Various terms

[laepelba]

I will be volunteering at a fair trade shop in DC this weekend. The shop sells African goods, but it happens to be located in a primarily Latino neighborhood. The directors of the shop were hoping that I might be able to use some of my (elementary) Spanish to interact with some of the customers.

Would it be possible for you to fill me in on some basic vocabulary below. Some of the Spanish-English online dictionaries I see have multiple entries for several of these terms. I want to make sure I use the most basic terms that would be most recognizable to the Latino customers.

Thanks!

Purse (bolsa)
Change purse (monedero)
Journal (as in, empty book for writing in) (jornal)
Tote bag (??)
Diaper bag (pañalera)
Apron (??)
Table Linens (mantelerías)
Placemat (estera?)
Hot pad (like what you use to get stuff out of the oven) (??)
Napkin ring (servilletero)
Bowl (taza)
Dish (platillo)
Overnight bag (??)
Belt (cinturón)
Bracelet (pulsera)
Earrings (pendientes)
Necklace (collar)
Bangle (ajorca)
Hat (gorra?)
Doll (muñeca)
Backpack (muchila)
Toy Ball (pelota)
Baby Bib (babero)
Quilt (colcha)
Wall hanging (??)
Picture frame (prensa)
Christmas ornament (esfera navidad)
Stole (like a priest's neck accessory) (estola)

[Rusty]

gorra = cap

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Not universal translations, but the ones we can use in Mexico:

Purse - bolsa
Change purse - monedero
Journal - diario
Tote bag -bolsa de lona ("lona" would be the cloth of which the bag is made)
Diaper bag - pañalera
Apron - delantal or mandil
Table Linens - mantel (table cloth), servilleta (napkin), carpeta (tablemat), camino de mesa (table runner)
Placemat - mantel individual
Hot pad - no-te-quemes
Napkin ring - servilletero (btw, "servilletero" is also the napkin holder for disposable napkins)
Bowl - tazón (note: "taza" is a cup or a mug)
Dish - plato ("platillo" a dish when it's already served)
Overnight bag - bolsa de viaje
Belt -cinturón
Bracelet - pulsera
Earrings - pendientes (in Mexico: aretes)
Necklace - collar
Bangle - brazalete
Hat - sombrero, gorra or gorro (watch the attached image) (gorra?)
Doll - muñeca
Backpack - mochila
Toy Ball - pelota
Baby Bib - babero
Quilt - colcha
Wall hanging - tapiz
Picture frame - if it's a frame for a painting, it's called "marco". If you mean a frame for a photograph, it's called "portarretratos"
Christmas ornament - adornos navideños or adornos de navidad ("esferas" are only the round ones, "adornos" is more general)
Stole - estola


Good luck with your sales!


Edit: Rusty was faster than me... I hope both lists will help you anyway, Lou Ann.

[laepelba]

Many thanks to you both!!!

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Sorry... I had forgotten to attach the hats image... now it's done.

[laepelba]

THANKS!! I was just thinking to myself that you must have forgotten the pic.

So a "sombrero" has a rim all the way around, a "gorra" is like a sports cap, and a "gorro" is like a cap with no rim?

Also, what is the difference between a table mat, a table runner, and a placemat?

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Right about hats.

Table mat (carpeta) is an ornamental piece of cloth, normally crocheted or embroidered you can put on tables or other pieces of furniture. Like the one you posted here.

A table runner (camino de mesa) is an ornamental long piece of cloth that goes along the dining table.

A placemat (mantel individual) is a small piece of cloth or plastic, often rectangular or oval, on which the served dishes are set to avoid spilling food and making the table dirty when one eats.

[laepelba]

How totally funny - NOW I remember that conversation. I would call the "tablemat" a doily or something similar. THANKS, Malila!!