Over the last few years I've had some conversations with people about what to call your boyfriend or girlfriend after a few years of being together. If you're living together it is pretty much like you're married, but there isn't really a word that carries the importance of this relationship the same way wife or husband does. Every option you have has problems. Boyfriend sounds like high school, partner is confusing because you could be running a business together, de facto sounds like you live in the 1980s in a caravan and drink wine coolers and lover is all sex and no relationship. We need a word that is short, easy to use and defines exactly what this living in sin relationship is all about.

I drew the drawings for these cards not sure which direction they would go in. To me it was all about the familiarity of wearing your daggiest clothes around the house. I know I've created the winter snug up mismatched PJs tucked into socks look many times. In the end I thought highlighting the many names for the live in lover for us unmarried folk, the boy version is available here and the girl version is here.