Crayon Colors

Fun Facts About Crayon Colors

• The first box of Crayola crayons came out in 1903. It featured eight basic colors (Black, Brown, Orange, Violet, Red, Yellow, Green, Blue) and cost 5 cents.
• Crayola retired 8 beloved colors (Blue Gray, Green Blue, Lemon Yellow, Maize, Orange Red, Orange Yellow, Violet Blue, Raw Umber) to make room for 8 new shades (Cerulean, Dandelion, Fuchsia, Jungle Green, Royal Purple, Teal Blue, Vivid Tangerine, Wild Strawberry). In response, thousands of children across the country walked out of kindergarten class in protest... just kidding!
• Polls have consistently shown blue is the most popular crayon color of all time. It has held the #1 spot almost continuously since the 1940s.
• Since 1903 Crayola has created over 400 distinct colors, with around 148 currently in production. But if you count unique names, that number rises to over 700. That's because the company occasionally renames colors (like Flesh to Peach in 1962).
• The shortest-lived Crayola color names were Magic Mint and Teal Blue. Both colors were introduced in 1990 and were retired 13 years later in 2003. They were replace by Inchworm and Mango Tango.
• Crayola established a "Hall of Fame" for retired crayon colors. Established in 1990, it honors shades taken out of production, like Maize, Orange Yellow, Mulberry and Blizzard Blue. Retired color crayons have become highly sought-after by collectors.
• The longest Crayola color name is Purple Mountains' Majesty (24 characters). Other long names include Razzle Dazzle Rose (20), Macaroni and Cheese (19), and Granny Smith Apple (18).