Violet is defined as a bluish purple color.
Growing up, I was never too sure of the difference between Violet and Purple, so I sort of ended up using them interchangeably. Not that anyone was too bothered about it since those weren’t days when people split hairs on such matters. If we children went to grownups with questions regarding shades of colors, they would impatiently say things like, “Call it whatever you want, and now just get out of my hair!” or the more dangerous, “Don’t you have anything to study?!” Besides, there was no all-knowing Google to turn to for answers like in the present age. So naturally I had to do the best I could which was to blunder along clueless for a few more years till enlightenment dawned.
In the traditional color wheel, violet is sandwiched between blue and purple. That puts them right next to each other. No wonder I was confused. Of course, I knew purple to be a rich color. The name itself evoked velvet robed royalty in my imaginative mind. The problem was that I attributed the same qualities to violet too. Anyway, it was easy once I realized that Violet is a secret depressive who has a thing for blue, while Purple is a proclaimed leftist, with leanings towards red.
Violet it seems has been around since ages. “Traces of very dark violet, made by grinding the mitneral manganese, mixed with water or animal fat and then brushed on the cave wall or applied with the fingers, are found in the prehistoric cave art in Pech Merle, in France, dating back about twenty-five thousand years” (source Wiki)
Imagine that! It is a color that goes so far back and yet somehow was never one that found its way into my wardrobe of its own accord. It had never caught my eye! I did rectify the lapse in the intervening years, by remembering to buy myself a violet sari with a modern art print, as also a salwar-kameez with a host of tiny violet flowers in a white background. That is so long ago in the past, a period of my life when sari was still a part of my wardrobe. You guessed it; I don’t much wear it now. For the record, I actually HATE it, the sari I mean, not the color violet and prefer not to wear it ever.
Anyway, getting back, though I added the missing color to my wardrobe, I was at the time totally unaware of a future that awaited me, an unknown future of blogging and online friends which was as yet years away, a time to come in which a friend would address me by the name of ‘Rainbow’ (link). I had to fulfill the criterion of owning all colors of the spectrum to justify the name conferred. Didn’t I?
Far-fetched imaginary theories apart, the truth is I do go out of my way to choose colors that I don’t already have. Unlike those who are happy to surround themselves with their one favorite color, I am all for variety. As for the sobriquet of ‘rainbow’ that eventually came my way, it was as much for the colors I wore as my ever cheerful disposition. That brings me to the theme I have chosen for the Festival of Words at Write Tribe. The colors of the rainbow. Today is Violet Day.
I am taking part in
The Write Tribe Festival of Words 1st – 7th September 2013.
Rekha said:
Lovely pic of the water lily. And for your confusion, I get scolded by my tiny tots for calling Magenta as Pink; all shades of Brown as Brown; Sky Blue, Indigo Blue and Peacock Blue as Blue. I truly cannot differentiate between the various shades, I mean I get confused with the names and most of my friends used to call me color blind for this very reason. Good to know that it wasn’t a problem that I alone had. 🙂
shail said:
Haha. I bet they know and can differentiate a lot more shades! By the way, have you checked for color blindness? I am not joking. My son could not distinguish a lot of colors and later we found he was color blind. It made his chemistry practicals really tough for him.
Rekha said:
Ha ha ha…no worries Ma’am! It’s not color blindness, it’s just the lazy dazy me, who wants to only remember the clan names that the colours fall into and not the individual color’s name. 😀
shail said:
😀
ohohsuzyq said:
Nice Shail The one that throws me is Indigo and will look forward to that tomorrow.
shail said:
Actually I am discovering these colors myself by writing these posts, Suzy 🙂
thewhitescape said:
Nice way of expressing the rainbow – 7 colors 🙂
shail said:
Thank you 🙂
Kalpana Solsi said:
At first , it didn’t click that you will be using VIBGYOR colours. good idea. I too never could differentiate purple from violet and had never these colours in my wardrobe but had only in my palette. and I am very loyal to the colour white and off-white. but love ‘bandhani’ dupatta.
shail said:
Hi 5! I am also big fan of white and off-white. That part of it will come in a future post 🙂
Bhagyashree said:
And guess what I still do not know the difference between purple and violet 🙂
Good post
shail said:
it IS a bit tough! 😀
Susan Deborah said:
Ah, I thought violet and purple were the same. Loved your idea to explicate the seven colours for the Festival of Words.
All the best and cheers!
Joy always,
Susan
shail said:
Ahh.. so there are many others like me! 😀
Jyothi Nair said:
I was called the Rainbow too. Although I never liked that name much. 🙂 I used to wear all kinds of colours. I had a favourite Salwar Kameez that was Violet in colour. It is such a peaceful colour as compared to the Purple. 🙂 Nice take on the theme. Looking forward to more pictures and colours. 🙂
shail said:
Rainbow is such a lovely name! 😀
C. Suresh said:
Very evocatively written Shail but, unfortunately, I still do not trust myself to be able to distinguish the colors. Am I tending to blue as in depressed about it or red as in leftist leanings towards a diatribe about the frivolity of colors? 🙂 Have not made up my mind, yet, considering that the former is too..well…depressing and the latter sounds too much like sour grapes 🙂
shail said:
Haha. Love your humorous response 😀
Proactive Indian said:
I’m reminded of the song by Bobby Vinton:
‘ Roses are red, my love.
Violets are blue.
….’
Preetilata Sarkar said:
wow! this is good too. now when even i am confused i am gonna remember these line s and Shail’s epic description. Problem solved :d
Laxmi Chundi Addanki said:
Your pic outdid the words today – or may be it was a tie 😛
You have come a super long way in your blogging journey and can you say I am looking forward to seeing the rest of the colors in your words??
“The purple Headed mountains” – was a line that always intrigued in a poem I read as a child. Chunks of Heather blooms that grow on the mountains in certain parts of the planet make the heads of mountains look purple it seems – For the longest time, I thought purple and violet were interchangeable, until I stumbled upon the color wheel myself – I’ll stop here – don’t want to make the comment longer than your post 😛
shail said:
Thanks Laxmi. ‘Mountains covered in purple haze’ came to my mind too, and in the nick of time I remembered it is not violet and so cannot be used here. 😛
Smitha said:
Loved your take on the theme, Shail! I am still confused about violet and purple, will use your reasoning to figure out if I can distinguish between the two. As for clothes, I have realized that I go through phases when I end up picking up the same colour and then at some time the colour changes and I have a bunch of another colour.
shail said:
I can relate to that Smitha. There was a time when I had a surfeit of sandalwood color. 🙂 Now it is aquamarine blue. 🙂
aparnasdotcom said:
Hi…Nice description of violet. I should have probably read your post before writing mine 😉 But no worries we are on different routes with only the colours linking us.
Waiting to read more of the rainbow from ‘Rainbow’. 🙂
shail said:
Indeed, we are on totally different routes as regards our posts 🙂
Thanks Aparna 🙂
afshan said:
ooops ! I love violet
some how many tops i hav r violet 😉 ! may be it suits me
I also cant say difference between violet and purple
love both colors
lookng forward to other colors on the spectrum
HAV FUN
shail said:
I am sure the color suits you Afshan! 🙂
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vishalbheeroo said:
Love your challenge. I love violet too and what a start with a bang:)
shail said:
Thank you Vishal 🙂
Vidya Sury said:
Fabulous theme, Shail. I’ve added your post to mine today. I am colorblind and cannot distinguish between shades of blue/violet/indigo/purple but I definitely know what I like when I see it.
I am so looking forward to visiting you everyday, Rainbow!
shail said:
I think we are all a little challenged when it comes to the different shades 🙂 Thank you for sharing my post and sorry for the delay in acknowledging it. Life does not move quite as planed for all of us. 🙂
UmaS said:
Lovely flower Shail..looks like its opening itself to the sun 🙂
shail said:
This is one of my fav pictures too, Uma 🙂
Corinne Rodrigues said:
Confused between the colors, I wasn’t, but very prone to choosing pastel shades. Of late, I’ve become more adventurous in my choice of colors. That I actually bought myself something red and another a bright pink, shocked my poor mother! 😛
Looking forward to the colors to come in the next few days, Ms Rainbow. 🙂
shail said:
Hmm.. I have never yet tried bright pink. May be one of these days…. 😉
Thanks Corinne.
subzeroricha said:
Violet is my favourite color. And yes it reminds me also of royalty. And the coincidence is I am presently reading the color purple 😀 😀
Richa
shail said:
I have read that book! Why am I not surprised it is your fav color? You look like someone who can carry off the color, like Afshan 🙂
subzeroricha said:
thanks a lot 😀 well in my narcissist tone I would say, “but Shail I can pull off any colour 😀 ”
usha menon said:
Shail I am really impressed by your post. Its a masterpiece, which strikes the reader instantly. Wonderfully penned.Looking forward to your take on the rest of the colours of the rainbow.
shail said:
I am humbled by your kind words. Thank you so much Usha 🙂
menons129 said:
Shail this is a fantastic post. Your pen has a magical effect. Looking forward to your take on the rest of the colours of the rainbow.
radhasawana said:
Still cannot differentiate between violent and purple, but I will find ‘something to study’ I guess 😛 Loved the theme you chose – seven colours of the rainbow. Looking forward to more on this!
shail said:
Lol, what did you find to study? 😉 😛 Thank you for being here and welcome to Shail’s Nest.
the little princess said:
the first time i ever saw a waterlily i remember standing mesmerised by it and admiring it’s beauty!! and what a lovely post on violet ! violet is supposed to be the colour of royalty…..i have this fetish to be able to distinguish between colours and i ended up learning names of quite a few colours i can’t even pronounce properly!!
shail said:
That’s wonderful that you have learn about different shades of colors! 🙂 Waterlilies are really beautiful! 🙂
Preetilata Sarkar said:
My First choice was to write on color and then it shifted to Movies and that the last minute i happily ditched both 😀
i loved your theme ans well as the post.
thanks to this epic description, now i will be able to differentiate between violet and purple, “Violet is a secret depressive who has a thing for blue, while Purple is a proclaimed leftist, with leanings towards red.”
I love colors and like you, i too am all for variety. but purple/violet, white, and yellow holds special place in my heart.
Looking forward to your next post. 🙂
shail said:
White, off-white have a special place in my heart too 🙂
Gulshan said:
Oh dear
Where’s lavender
Mauve too
I give you
To confuse y’all further!
shail said:
Whoa! Gulshan, you are adding more of them 😉
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Ruchira said:
Loved your perspective on this.
I love the rainbow cause it aligns with our chakras 🙂
Looking fwd to all the colors of the rainbow, shail
shail said:
That is news to me about the chakras. I should read up on that. Thanks Ruch 🙂
Vaayadi Pennu ;) said:
Violet, purple, lavender, lilac, magenta, maroon, pink and the rest.. our mess conversations on many days revolve around these colours, trying to lay bare its constituents and explaining to innocent and alarmed hungry souls who come for food in the mess, the reasons behind our glares at their dresses of the day.. it is fun, with designer friends around, they do know and they don’t at the same time, we do know and we make up at the same time.. violet has a hint of black in it, while purple has a hint of pink.. technically.. but lovely colours both are, to a layman it seems the same without a relative grade to refer to..
too long a comment.. and I have two lovely lilies as well, will tag u in the coming days 🙂
Pins
Vaayadi Pennu ;) said:
ahoy, took away the coy, had my say and going away to come back later.. 😛
shail said:
Technically, violet has more of blue and purple has more of red. 🙂 Hope to see the lilies soon 🙂
Anu Dev said:
“VIBGYOR” the womb for colors.not only people do mistake voilet for purple but alas there is a whole color dictionary for every tint n tones of voilet which they are unaware.Very well written.
http://sailorswiferamblings.blogspot.com/2013/09/seven-faces-of-me.html
shail said:
Yes, mauve, lilac and host of other such shades. 🙂 Thank for dropping by and welcome to Shail’s Nest.
Random Musings by Swati said:
Hmm! Scrolling down through the comments I was wondering is there anything that has been left unsaid and my heart and mind (first time in unison) said yes — brilliant take on the theme and like I have said before as well you are natural with prompts and themes. Interesting post! Waiting to read about other colours.
shail said:
Thank you, Swati 🙂
rainbowhues23 said:
Okay so you are covering the ‘rainbow’. Cool. Just the thought that crossed my mind when I was scouting for ideas for the festival. Glad you took it up. Looking forward to your interpretation of the colors.
BTW: why don’t you like wearing a saree? I think it looks very elegant, if worn nicely.
shail said:
I have had sari pushed down my throat too much. It is not as if I have not worn a sari. I used to wear it regularly in college and have been complimented for how well I wore my cotton sari, keeping it neatly tied from morning to evening. 🙂
jini maxin said:
Lovely write-up. Just out of curiosity I wish to know why did you give up wearing sarees. It defines an Indian women I believe.
shail said:
Welcome to Shail’s Nest, Jini. I guess I have heard its virtues extolled too many times. And also had it pushed down my throat as THE thing to wear. I have developed an allergy to it. Besides, though as formal wear for weddings and parties it is okay, to walk around daily with five and a half metres wound around you is madness. 🙂
Roshni said:
oooh! I actually thought about using the rainbow colours as the theme for the challenge but then tossed it out because I had no idea how to develop on it! You did it so wonderfully!
shail said:
This is the only idea I had 😀 Of writing on colors 😀
Shilpa Garg said:
Beautiful post! I was chuckling and smiling all through the post. You are bang on about what our parents would have said if we asked them such questions. I have given up on Sarees completely too, not that I was wearing them like day in and day out earlier! 😀
shail said:
Thanks, Shilpa. I used to, wear sari a lot about 25 odd years back. Now I just don’t, not at all 😀
sunita said:
Hahahaha..and i thought i was the only one who got bamboozled by these two colors 😛 Whenever somebody asks me what is purple i say Brinjal colour and Violet ends up with Lavender flowers 😛 Loved the post Shail. Would like to be bowled over by your wordy colours 🙂
shail said:
Thank you, Sunita. Brinjals come to my mind too when I think of purple 🙂
meenamenon said:
thts a v interesting theme for seven… memories with each of the colors.. looking fwd to reading them all…
shail said:
Thanks, Meena 🙂
Amit said:
I get all confused when my wife describes all the various shades of the 7 colours. How can anyone remember so many shades? My head is spinning at the mere thought.
shail said:
In this matter I am with you. I am clueless about the different shades too 😀
Usha Pisharody said:
Back here, and loving the colours splashed about 🙂
Violet and purple seem to be quite interchangeable for me – I have these arguments as to whether it is purple or violet, and somehow, in this respect I am deeply colour challenged 😀
Loved the picture, the history, the nostalgia, and the angst … towards certain clothes 🙂 Lol! Having to wear a saree everyday I have school, I think of it as a sort of punishment for longing to wear it when I was in school and college and could not 😀
Now to the next one 🙂
shail said:
After writing this I think, only think, that now I can differentiate between violet and purple 😀
I think it is time the sari became extinct 😛 😉