diff --git a/web/src/view/mod.rs b/web/src/view/mod.rs
index 692ad04..3028c42 100644
--- a/web/src/view/mod.rs
+++ b/web/src/view/mod.rs
@@ -444,8 +444,10 @@ fn has_unread(tags: &[String]) -> bool {
 fn render_avatar(avatar: Option<String>, from: &str) -> Node<Msg> {
     let initials: String = from
         .to_lowercase()
+        .trim()
         .split(" ")
         .map(|word| word.chars().next().unwrap())
+        .filter(|c| c.is_alphanumeric())
         // Limit to 2 characters because more characters don't fit in the box
         .take(2)
         .collect();