Forthright Blithe Violet

Old English forð-riht, straight ahead, direct. Used as a color modifier in Anglo-Saxon-revival contexts for hues that read as honest and unguarded. Forthright red, forthright blue: the saturation is full, the hue is presented without ornamentation or qualification. Sits in the bold-bucket center alongside frank and direct.

Old English blīthe, joyful-and-kind. As a color modifier, blithe implies a carefree-and-light-hearted-and-cheerful quality, the visual register of Shakespearean-pastoral-and-Forest-of-Arden-blithe hand-carefree-and-light-hearted-and-cheerful Shakespearean-pastoral-and-Forest-of-Arden-and-As-You-Like-It blithe-and-carefree-and-light-hearted-and-cheerful surfaces under Shakespearean-pastoral-and-Forest-of-Arden-and-As-You-Like-It English-greenwood-and-shepherd's-meadow Maytime-light. Sits at the modifier-and-mood end of the grid, parallel to merry and jolly in usage.

Viola odorata, the European sweet violet — small, fragrant, and the original meaning of the color name in English (the Violet of the rainbow). The color refers to a fresh sweet violet blossom in late winter: a saturated, slightly red-shifted deep blue-purple with the matte finish of small five-petaled flower. Cooler than amethyst, warmer than indigo, with the perfumed weight of a flower used in Roman garlands and Victorian eau de toilette.