Okay, I’m admitting some fundamental ignorance here—this is probably going to wind up in one of those MPSIMS “things you’re surprised somebody could go their whole lives without knowing” threads, but I gotta ask:
What does it mean when someone is described as having “olive skin” or an “olive complexion”? What does that look like? Are we talking green olives or black olives here? I remember the olive crayon in my Crayola box being a greenish color, but if I saw a person with skin that color, I’d think they came from another planet!
And what is “strawberry blond” hair? Everyone knows that strawberries are bright red, and strawberry-flavored things are either red or pink (like ice cream), but I’ve never seen hair that color, at least not naturally, and if I did, I wouldn’t call it “blond.” So what the heck does this mean?
I’ll use a couple of celebrity examples to illustrate what I have always thought these expressions describe.
Penelope Cruz has an olive complexion - not peaches & cream like Renee Zellweger - but a “warm” yet “light” skintone.
Nicole Kidman (usually) has strawberry blonde hair - blonde, but with a reddish tinge/hue when the light hits it. I’m trying to think of another example, but can’t right now. I’m sure other Dopers can!
Ever tried matching your crayons to ‘white’ and ‘black’ people?
A word of warning… don’t try to taste anyone’s Chocolate Lab without asking permission first.
**Stainz ** already described strawberry blondes perfectly but to go a little further on the olive complexion, it is how most Mediterraneans (Greeks, Italians, Spaniards, etc) are described. It’s a healthy tanned look.
You’re not joking. I’ve said I’m like Kermit the Frog- brown in the summer and green in the winter.
And a lady actually did follow me around once asking if I was abused because of the dark skin under my eyes- it looks much worse when I’m sick or very tired.
Interesting. I have darkish rings underneath my eyes, although nothing as bad as what you’re describe, and I’d never thought much about it possibly being due to my heritage but I’m a quarter Italian.
I’ll have to compare and contrast now with my mom and sisters to see if its something we all have in common.
