5 Favorite Vermilion Home Goods - Our Unusual Color of the Day

Irwin Weiner ASID - When we think of colors, we usually default to the primary, secondary, and possibly the tertiary hues. Think, however, of all the colors in the spectrum. Where would paint companies be without their exotic colors? They've made collections with over a hundred different variations on white alone! So imagine our delight when Merriam-Webster, the dictionary and reference company, came up with a feature on the definitions and origins of more unusual colors. Today's unusual color, courtesy of M-W, is vermilion. Here's what the dictionary experts have to say about it:

Color

Vivid reddish orange

About the Word

Spanish painter Francisco de Goya y Lucientes (who painted in the late 1700s and early 1800s) was so fond of this vibrant color – shown here in the woman's head scarf and the man's vest – that vermilion also became known as goya.

The word vermilion traces to the Late Latin vermiculus, meaning "kermes." Kermes are the dried bodies of insects (of the genus Kermes) used to produce this ancient red dye.

Full Definition

: a strong red that is deeper than geranium, yellower and deeper than geranium red, and bluer and deeper than average cherry red

In celebration of vermilion, we've chosen five different home good objects that share a hint - or more - of this magical color. Click on each photo for more information.

 

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