May Color of the Month: Lush Lilac (DE5970)

Why Lush Lilac Is May’s Color of the Month

Our newest Color of the Month for May is Lush Lilac (DE5970), a mid-tone purple with slight red undertones. Lush Lilac represents one of nature’s most beautiful features in the colorful blooms spotted this time of year as warmer weather spreads across the American southwest during spring.

Purples popped to life in our 2022 Color + Design Trends Elysian story. When it comes to Lush Lilac, the paint color works well with many design styles, adding a luxurious, unique touch to bedroom spaces, powder rooms, accent walls, dining rooms and more for a blast of color. Combine this Perfect Palette® purple with our violet-frosted white, Abalone (DEW398), and our warm neutral tone, the mauve-tinged Thick Fog (DE6058), to create the sensation of being in the center of a lilac-filled flowerbed!

A Brief History of Purple

Purple is often associated with luxury and royalty. But where do the associations with the color purple come from? Let’s take a dive into a brief history of purple. According to History, the purple’s royal association begins in the ancient Phoenician city of Tyre, in what is today, Lebanon. “Tyrian purple” was the particular name of the purple dye formulated during this time. Its production was notoriously arduous, stemming from a mucous extracted from a sea snail. Deriving enough of the dye to manipulate clothing was a lengthy process, thus the dye and any purple articles of clothing were extremely expensive, making purple a popular choice among royals. In fact, in some cases there were laws in place, stating that the color purple could only be worn by royals, and commoners risked death if caught with purple garments.

The more modern day derivation of the color can be traced to England and a chemistry student named William Henry Perkin in 1856. As The Guardian notes, Perkin was trying to make quinine (known for its treatment of malaria) but, in fact, ended up discovering synthetic purple. As a nod to the original hue, he called his discovery “Tyrian Purple” as well before eventually renaming it “mauve.”

Getting Started

For extra inspiration we encourage you to see how you can build a room around purple or embrace cottagecore with these purple-inclusive palettes. Then with the click of a button you can download our Insta-ColorID® app and simply upload a photo from your personal library or one from ours to give the space an instant paint job. Dunn-Edwards is committed to bringing you the highest-quality paint that is trusted by design experts and painting professionals.