New T-Shirts Feature Unique Bermudian Flavour
Duane Jones, a designer with Bermuda roots, is getting set to release a t-shirt line with a strong island influence, with the shirts reading “Nawf Shore” and “Sowf Shore” in honour of the distinct Bermudian accent that Mr. Jones recalls from his childhood.
Mr. Jones, alongside his wife, is the founder Be Glitterati, a company that began with its roots in services in 2006, before expanding to include a range of its own products.
Mr. Jones said, “I live in Halifax, Canada and started Be Glitterati with my wife in 2006 as Glitterati Communications. At that time I had no plans of having my own products; I was more interested in helping clients promote their products and services through design and branding.”
“I eventually realized that I could apply those skills to my own products and in 2011 I released my first line of t-shirts as Be Glitterati.
“Bermuda had a huge impact on how I view fashion and design. The diverse cultural influences from North America, The Caribbean and Europe give us eclectic taste in music and that reflects directly on how we dress and ultimately how I design.
“I remember wearing school uniforms and learning the importance of looking good at a young age. Outside of school I never felt like I was very stylish or cared that much but as I got older I noticed that girls cared about how guys dressed so I put more energy into what I wear.”
Promotional video for Be Glitterati’s ‘Hood Legend’ tank top:
Regarding Be Glitterati’s upcoming line of Bermuda-inspired t-shirts, Mr. Jones said, “I grew up in Loyal Hill on the North Shore and spent my summers diving off the rocks and fishing; it’s a part of my childhood that I really cherished.
“The shirts say “Nawf Shore” and “Sowf Shore” for North Shore and South Shore respectively. I spelled them in the way that my friends and I would say it as kids.
“It’s really important to preserve our Bermudian dialect. The longer I’m away from home the weaker my accent gets but I would really like to hold onto that part of me. A lot of people look down on local dialects but I think that they’re important.
“In the future, I’ll be expanding my product offering beyond branded apparel. The first iteration of that expansion will be a line of neckties. I designed one already and got some good feedback. My goal with the ties is to use fabrics and patterns that are hard to find in typical retailers and reflect my minimal aesthetic.”
For more information about Be Glitterati, visit the website.
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What an insult. “NAWF Shore” for example is the “Bermudian” accent used when whites mockingly try to imitate how black Bermudians talk. They exaggerate the accent to try and make the accent sound crude, lazy an dumbed down. You see examples of this in the comments sections daily on Ber”news”.
Before the end of the day some one will get on here and say “dem byes” or “duun de rooaad” or whatever other means they use to mock certain speech. Ever listen to an North Londoner talk? You’d be hard pressed to tell that the language originated in that country with how lazy some of their speech patterns are.
I nor anyone I know talk like this.
what are you upset about? that people speak this way or that people are depicting what gets spoken here?
You must not have spent a lot of time in Bermuda.
Despite this having absolutely nothing to do with race (until you brought it up, just to point that out), I – and am sure many Bermudians know – that the dialect and accent here is something that is unique to each individual, shaped by things like your family, where you stay or the school you went to. Do you not realize that as a community, as a culture, most of us make fun of the Bermudian accent? I don’t know where you’ve been but the Bermudian accent is hilarious, and I’m sure many agree. Bermudian is quite a lazy language, and it is extremely dumbed down. We have some of the poorest sentence structure, we slur our words, and our slang doesn’t help those points. So someone takes a word, a place – they come up with a humorous play on its pronunciation, slap it on a shirt… And you’re offended? “When whites mockingly try to imitate how black Bermudians talk”? I personally know plenty of white Bermudians that speak a far more aggressive dialect of the **BERMUDIAN** accent than their black counterparts, of whom are EXTREMELY well spoken and very proper in their delivery. How dare you take this and make it about race, turn it into something about one part of our unified culture ‘mocking’ another. We all mock each other in good humor at the end of the day, it has nothing to do with race. Get off your high horse and try to look at the world in a different manner, maybe a much more positive and accepting one. Do it for yourself.
Watchmen. I’m sorry that you feel that way. The intention of my work is to visually reflect my lived experiences or the things that interest me. As mentioned, in the article, the dialect I reference is a part of my personal experience in Bermuda which in turn makes it an authentic Bermudian experience. I acknowledge that the Bermudian accent varies depending on a number of factors; some of them race, socio economics and the cultural influences that I mention in the article but to refer to the way that some of us speak as lazy and dumbed down (English) is to accept what folks have said about us to be true. I remember being told as a young person that we should speak “proper” English and that using the “Queen’s English” makes us sound more intelligent than using the dialect/language we developed. I reject that ideal. I’m not condoning the use of colloquial dialect/language in all settings but it’s important to me that we embrace our culture. Language is situational and we all speak one way among friends and another among people we’re less comfortable around. I think that the goal of communication should be clarity, not the rigid enforcement of one way of speaking. We have developed our own dialect/language and we should be proud of it. We wouldn’t tell an American from the South or a Canadian from Newfoundland to “speak proper English” so why do we feel inclined to say that to our own people? Thank you for your comment though. I appreciate your honesty.
Duane
@Duane Jones…..Thank you so much for that articulate and accurate explanation! I have lived on North Shore, Loyal Hill all my life my speech is refined but I will always want to live on “Nawf Shore.” Language is indeed situational; as I sit daily next door to one of the brightest minds I know, which happens to be Bermudian, holding one of the highest offices on the island, I can detect when they are talking to family and friends or when they are speaking to another professional. It’s somewhat of a gift to be able to do that.
However, I am qualified to speak from the same perspective as Duane Jones. It is an exclusive experience like none other living on the North Shore especially from the area of First Church of God to Terceira’s Gas Station. No matter how well-spoken you may be you can say North Shore and the sound is undoubtedly “Nawf Shore!”
@ Watchman, I do understand the disgust you feel when certain Bermudians start with that stupid exaggeration of “dem byes” and “duun de rooaad.” It’s a dead giveaway that they are ignorant white folks attempting to be funny but they just sound plain silly. It highlights their lack of humor.
Dude, seriously, get a grip.
Have you not have spent a lot of time in Bermuda?
Despite this having absolutely nothing to do with race (until you brought it up, just to point that out), I – and am sure many Bermudians know – that the dialect and accent here is something that is unique to each individual, shaped by things like your family, where you stay or the school you went to. Do you not realize that as a community, as a culture, most of us make fun of the Bermudian accent? I don’t know where you’ve been but the Bermudian accent is hilarious, and I’m sure many agree. Bermudian is quite a lazy language, and it is extremely dumbed down. We have some of the poorest sentence structure, we slur our words, and our slang doesn’t help those points. So someone takes a word, a place – they come up with a humorous play on its pronunciation, slap it on a shirt… And you’re offended? “When whites mockingly try to imitate how black Bermudians talk”? I personally know plenty of white Bermudians that speak a far more aggressive dialect of the **BERMUDIAN** accent than their black counterparts, of whom are EXTREMELY well spoken and very proper in their delivery. How dare you take this and make it about race, turn it into something about one part of our unified culture ‘mocking’ another. We all mock each other in good humor at the end of the day, it has nothing to do with race.
Alright Dean Jones I see you!
He is the Hood Legend… But I taught him everything he knows
. Thanks for watching.
Cute. Would be good to see a women’s tee. Why can you buy them from locally? Would be good to see some at Harbour Nights maybe.
Men are my target market but my tees are unisex. You aren’t the first person to say that though so it’s something I’ll consider. Thanks for your interest!
Though it was pronounced Naw Shore, not nawf.
Yes I DJ!! All the best on your venture. Definitely gotta get one…or two!
Thanks!
Don’t see d Sowf Shore one….
can i get a shirt with: Spreeng Heel?
also: Or Drode, Seeda Heel, Up de Kuntry, Dahn de Kuntry, Summasit and San Jorjis.
Lol
Honestly. I did consider doing an entire line of those
but I kept it simple. Thanks for the comment.
Geez…up de heel we say Sin Jawjiz ‘n Nawf Shaw…where you at?
@Watchmen if you don’t talk like this don’t support the product I think its a great idea because if u go 2 jamaica they r known for saying ya mon…sooo why bermuda can’t promote our slang….
Pathetic!
Sorry you feel that way. Perhaps some of my other designs are more suited to you?
@watchman. I hear you. To hell with the haters. I love the Beemudian accent. It’s uniquely ours and we need to celebrate it more. The accents also differ between black and white Bdians only to the trained ear. It’s still ours though as Bermudians.
Sorry. ‘Bermudian’.
At age 50 an accidental Bermudian of 4 generations, born in the heart of Blackness on Pond Hill. And no one I know or encountered has/had the dialect that is often attributed to being Bermudian.
Cute but appealing to a limited customer base. Locals might buy a few but our lingo like ‘nawf shore’ will not appeal to visitors.
A shirt with “Bermuda Triangle Survivor” or along such a theme will appeal to visitors big time.
You’re right. I designed it knowing that the target market would be very niche for that particular design. Be Glitterati is a lifestyle brand that is more about my lifestyle than Bermuda specifically so I’m intentionally limiting my Bermuda themed designs. Here is a Bermuda Triangle design that I posted to my Instagram account https://instagram.com/p/5vF_GCMY6p/?taken-by=glitterati_duane
Maybe a variant of “Hey Bie!” with an appropriate Bermuda motif could pull local interest yet remain intriguing to visitors (and former residents who miss that ‘touch’ of Bermie)?