Today's Forecast Includes Wind // Shades of Blue

2.24.2015

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Vintage denim jumpsuit and sweater, American Apparel coat, Repetto flats, Foley & Corinna backpack 

Yes folks, it was time to break out some color and a textured sweater, however the wind proved to make my afternoon walk a little more challenging and razorblade-y.

Let's talk about the color blue for a moment while my coffee sputters away on my stovetop (99¢ store mokapots are convenient, albeit a little messy).

Ask me what color these shoes are and I'd say they're cerulean. Now, don't and start quoting The Devil Wears Prada just yet because cerulean is actually quite a broad color term. A color that falls under the description of cerulean just means that it falls between blue and cyan. It's kind of more of a descriptor of a blue rather than an actual color (unless you're Pantone, then it's quite a powdery blue)- I wasn't sure, now we both know.

Now, let's talk about color and language.
If you speak English. There's one word for blue. It's "blue". It's what you say when you're asked what color a clear sky is if you're not a graphic designer or a painter or an illustrator or a photographer or a color psychologist.  We have this concept of a "true" blue because we only have one word for it. If you're Russian, there is red, orange, yellow, green, light blue, dark blue, and violet. There is goluboy and siniy. Why this distinction exists lies within trade routes and historical happenstance and important objects associated with shades of blue like paints and minerals and religious art and landscapes, etc.

 The point I'm getting at is that because that distinction exists, Russian speakers can quickly notice and distinguish incredibly subtle differences between shades of blue faster and more accurately than a non-Russian speaker (Thank you, Stanford University). It's something I learned when I was studying aesthetics, and I'm sure a lot of you art history students and writers out there might be aware of this fact already, but hey, ain't that cool?
Just think about this the next time you don't know a word for something. You should find it, memorize its subtleties, and then make your friends' eyes roll when you start correcting them all the time.

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6 comments:

  1. Your shoes are sooooo adorable!

    http://imyownmuse.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great outfit! Simple but yet so nice and Love your shoes.
    Jamie
    http://www.shoplinkz.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. I LOVE your hair and your outfit! Your coat is so sophisticated. A nice combination of casual and chic.

    The Office Stylist
    www.theofficestylist.com

    ReplyDelete
  4. Especially love that first photo and your 'devil wears prada' reference!
    xx

    http://wearingwolf.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete

 

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