May I Offer You My Calling Card?

Move over, business cards. A relic of Victorian-era etiquette is making a comeback

In the 1800s, there was a certain logic--and a cool distance--to the formal calling card. Those who were part of, or sought a place among, the social élite would deliver a card with their name engraved on it to someone's home to request a visit. But now that you can IM, e-mail or text pretty much anyone immediately, the Victorian practice seems laughably outmoded, right? Not so, according to a growing number of enthusiasts reviving the old-fashioned social-networking tool. "Is it technology fatigue? A colorful way of branding yourself? We're not sure," says Peter Hopkins of Crane & Co., where sales...

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