A Rose By Any Other Name

In a sea of colored, semi-plastic squares, a single paint chip is a pretty poor brand ambassador for its maker. Each sampling along the colorful gradient that is the interior paint display possesses a hue, a texture, and a name. And then, a whole lot more.

As soon as a DIY-er encounters the chip’s shade, an unlimited collection of associations emerges in her mindspace. The vibrant yellow-orange that conjures memories of a Grand Canyon sunrise induces a fond sentiment. But when her pick turns out to be titled “Nacho Cheese,” the connotation may shift to something less alluring, like a part-time job back in junior high, when long, hot afternoons were spent working behind the ballpark concession counter.

Similarly, the shade adored for capturing the blue-gray of a smoothed pebble collected along the New England coast doesn’t have the same appeal for the shore house half-bath when it’s titled “Thunder Gray.” To the eye, the shade spoke to beach combing along the waves, but upon hearing the name it suddenly becomes a welcome mat for bad karma from the weather gods.

Here’s the point: since texture and color are characteristic of the product, the name remains a crucial touchpoint for guiding consumer associations and for rendering positive correlations. With naming each shade comes a hidden responsibility to depict the environment where the pigment might appear in nature, to designate the interior destination for the new hue, and to dictate the mood that the wall color may summon.

At The Naming Group, we happen to be in the market for a new coat of paint ourselves. Though they are both names that typify the shade we seek, “Tantalizing Teal” and “Caribbean Sea” fail to strike a nerve with the name fan-addicts at The Naming Group. While this blogger is pulling for “Mermaid Song,” I have a feeling other Group members will stick to their guns and vote for the clever, finely-coined title, “Turquish.”