Is china blue just jean blue, inspired by the color of uniform of Chinese workers? And how common is china blue in daily conversations and writings? I've only heard this in the song, Vincent (Starry, starry night.)
4
-
10I think it comes from porcelain , china blue: a bright greenish blue. dictionary.reference.com/browse/china+blue. "Blue and white wares" (Chinese: 青花; pinyin: qīng-huā; literally: "Blue flowers") designate white pottery and porcelain decorated under the glaze with a blue pigment, generally cobalt oxide. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_and_white_porcelain– user66974Commented Jul 7, 2015 at 13:54
-
Agreed, @Josh61: “I find it harder and harder every day to live up to my blue china.”—Oscar Wilde.– Brian DonovanCommented Jul 7, 2015 at 14:16
-
It's just a standard name for a color, and the process used to produce it. The term has been used for decades, at least. See books.google.com/…– Hot LicksCommented Jul 7, 2015 at 15:11
-
OED's first citation is Wives & Daughters (1866) by E. C. Gaskell - Her eyes were soft, large, and china-blue in colour.– FumbleFingersCommented Jul 7, 2015 at 15:25
Add a comment
|
1 Answer
For an example of 'china blue', see Wedgwood Queens ware. It's a pale blue that you could easily imagine as the color of a person's eyes.
