iron hand

Rigorous control, as in He ruled the company with an iron hand. This usage is sometimes put as iron hand in a velvet glove, meaning "firm but seemingly gentle control," as in She runs the town with an iron hand in a velvet glove. [c. 1700]

Common Names:

Name	Pronounced	Usage
ÓRlaith	OR-la	Irish
Shukri	-	Arabic
Amethyst	AM-ə-thist	English (Rare)
Tomasa	to-MAH-sah	Spanish
Dillon	['dilən]
Carolina	kah-ro-LEE-nah (Italian, Spanish), ka-roo-LEE-nə (Portuguese), ker-ə-LIEN-ə (English), kar-ə-LIEN-ə (English)	Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, English, Swedish