Tres Chic Signs

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Thursday, April 13, 2006

"Everyone in England wants to live in France," laughs Roy Foulger, a graphic designer and entrepreneur lucky enough to have houses in Brittany and Nottingham. When an English friend asked him to bring back one of the familiar blue enamel house numbers that appear all over France, Foulger realized these government-issued staples were not actually available in shops. So he and his wife, Susan, found the factory that makes them for the local jurisdictions and began a business of selling them.

That was a decade ago. Today, the Foulgers' business, the French Number Co., sells the classic handmade plaques all over the world through their Web site, http://www.thefrenchnumber.com/ .

"It's a romance thing," says Foulger.

The vitreous enamel signs, made by traditional artisans, cost about $36, shipping included. Numbers 1 to 125 are in stock; higher numbers cost a bit more. And custom signs can be ordered, including in colors such as black, English green or red.

The company also sells French dog and cat signs such as "Chien Bizarre" and "Chats Lunatiques."

Foulger recently did a rush job for someone who was presenting Queen Elizabeth with a sign commemorating royal cats.

Jura Koncius