Ashes of Roses
As paint manufacturers know, there is poetry to the names of colors which influences the way that people respond to said colors. Sadly, the newer names invented by sundry marketers, “taste-makers”, business people, and other such scallywags are often not as euphonic to my ear as the old classic names (although the people at Crayola are pretty good at coming up with jaunty color names which have a whisper of classic beauty). Of course this renaming/rebranding convention has been ongoing ever since the dawn of language. Some of the renaming debacles from past eras are as egregious as the most laughable names from the decorator paint samples at the hardware store. For example, during the Victorian era, an extremely popular color was a dusky shade of pink known as “ashes of roses” (I have included examples of the color at the top and bottom of this post). As the Edwardian era dawned, someone evidently thought that the name was too long and lugubrious—so the color was rechristened with the vastly less evocative name “old rose.” What a fall from grace! Everyone knows that Shakespeare wrote, “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” But I feel that sometimes the names of things do indeed diminish them. Would ashes of rose be as pretty if it were called “old rose” like someone talking in hushed tones about their spinster great-aunt?
“Old Rose”
ferrebeekeeper 
8 comments
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July 30, 2014 at 8:57 PM
jimannh
Ashes of Roses is a favorite color for me, and being from the South, ashes of roses is one of my favorite things to say assuming the soft drawl of my grandmother. The Old Rose paint swatch is about as near to the real color as the name. The gown detail is much closer, all monitors considered. The entry hall of my ancestral home was papered with pale ashes of roses shantung – nostalgic memory time. Adieu and thank you.
August 7, 2014 at 6:46 PM
Wayne
Thanks for sharing the reminiscences! Something about the color reminds me of a vanished past too. I wonder if it was the same way for the Victorians (or was there a time when it seemed like a brand new shade).
July 30, 2014 at 9:15 PM
AManCalledDada
Did not know that, which is the primary reason why this is Da-da’s fav blog. Thank you, sir.
July 30, 2014 at 11:12 PM
Harold
It’s a beautiful color for shimmering silk fabric. Or for lacy crocheted wool, for example.
August 7, 2014 at 6:43 PM
Wayne
I like it too, but mainly for painting sunsets, shadows, and primordial landscapes.
August 7, 2014 at 2:19 PM
Mike
What are the odds that screen calibration is universal enough for all of us to be seeing the same color looking at this post?
August 7, 2014 at 2:58 PM
Wayne
Ha! The apprehension of color is a weird nexus where several different fields of study meet. Biology, psychology, and physics are all involved–so even if we were in the same room looking at the same grayish-pink flowing Victorian robe we might be seeing different colors (but, based on erstwhile talks we have had, I suspect you recognize the ineluctable modality of the visible).
January 9, 2020 at 10:16 AM
Ashes of Rose - Isa Catto Studio
[…] Ashes of rose is a color name that has faded from view but was once celebrated in the sentimental English Victorian palette. It’s a blush pink toned down with a mild grey. And it’s an ubiquitous hue in every garden. I find it in the paler portion of my crab apple blossoms and my heirloom columbine flowers and everywhere in the Fall garden. But like many colors, it can be tricky to replicate out of a natural world context. If you are a particular vintage, you will remember that the sensational dress that Rachel Ward wore in an iconic scene in The Thorn Birds miniseries,was ashes of rose. That color was perfect, but then again, so was Rachel Ward. You have to have a specific skin tone to wear it in a substantial swath, so we amped up the pink and paired it with a mirrored indigo paisley to broaden its range and to balance out the sweetness. We are making this into a wrap for Valentine’s in a limited edition. Stay tuned and email us if you want to reserve one. Or email us anyway! Thanks for your help as usual with Adobe Illustrator@gabriellegraves. […]