Inspiration in the color baby blue.
Learn the history and meaning of the color baby blue, a soothing pastel with use beyond the baby room.
How to use the color baby blue.
Popularity comes with familiarity.
Tap into the psychology of the color baby blue.
Baby blue color has you looking up in more ways than one.
Combine baby blue with other colors.
Information about baby blue color.
The baby blue HEX code picker is #89CFF0. This is a light tint of azure, which itself is a pastel blue.
The color baby blue can be achieved in a RGB space with 137 red, 207 green, and 240 blue. Baby blue color can be achieved in a CMYK color space with 42% cyan, 3% magenta, 1% yellow, and 0% black.
What is the meaning of the color baby blue?
Baby blue recalls a baby boy’s nursery with the characteristic pastel scattered around the room. However, it’s only the name baby blue that tricks us into thinking of baby boys. The color baby blue has a fascinating history and provides more applications than its name suggests. Think of baby blue color as the baby of big blue, not just a blue of babies.
This soothing light blue is a tint of azure, which itself is a pastel. Baby blue color is cool and reassuring — and not just for babies.
The history of baby blue.
The color baby blue was first recorded in 1892.
Baby blue is associated with baby boys, but that’s not how the color baby blue got its name. A poem printed in American newspapers in the 1860s is said to be its origin. The poem spoke of “eyes of baby blue,” reflecting the erroneous notion that most babies are born with blue eyes. Regardless of a baby’s sex, those blue eyes were the inspiration for the color baby blue. It wasn’t until the mid-20th century that baby blue was assigned to infant boys and pink to infant girls.
Police cars in San Francisco took on a baby blue hue.
A philosopher named Alan Watts living in the suburbs of San Francisco in the 1960s felt that city aesthetics (like better architecture and use of color) could improve quality of life. Watts suggested painting police cars baby blue and white. This was implemented by the SFP for about a decade, starting in the 1970s. Watts also thought police officers wearing baby blue would be less likely to commit violent acts, but the uniform change was never made.
The color baby blue is the most popular blue.
Baby blue color is the most popular blue today. The color evokes thoughts of baby boys, but its popularity stretches well beyond the nursery. Baby blue is a soft blue that can be used as a highlight or as a primary color in décor. The color baby blue is also used frequently in art for nature-inspired panoramas. In fashion, baby blue is a light, summery color seen in garments from men’s dress shirts and women’s blouses to shoes, purses, and make-up.
The color baby blue across different cultures.
Baby blue is found in flags around the world.
The flags of Argentina and Somalia feature the color baby blue as a representation of clear, blue skies. Guatemala has two vertical strips of baby blue on its flag representing the two oceans the country is nestled between. San Marino’s flag has a band of baby blue color to represent freedom.
Plays on word build off the meaning of baby blue.
In line with the baby blue’s true origin, “baby blues” can be used casually to refer to someone’s eyes (even an adult’s), as in: “I looked into her baby blues.” The term “baby blues” has more recently been used to describe the “blues” (i.e., depression) that sometimes follow childbirth. Neither of these terms altered the use of the color baby blue, but they are part of its linguistic make-up.
The color baby blue in fashion culture.
Baby blue has a place in fashion alongside other pastels. It combines famously with white and appears in floral prints. Black and navy are a timeless color pair that come together in a new way with baby blue in the accessories. Purses, jewelry, scarves, and even cosmetics are popular in a beautiful baby blue to achieve this enduring look.