The following list of colors and synonyms should be a helpful starting point, but doesn’t come close to exhausting all the possibilities. If you don’t find the exact shade you need here, try looking in your garden, refrigerator, make-up bag and even your child’s jumbo pack of crayons.
Be sure that if you are using multi-tags, that your words are all relevant to the item being sold. There are 18 character spaces per tag line (including spaces), and if you plan carefully you may be able to fit a related color phrase into a tag, such as lime green or turquoise blue. Besides colors there are also a variety of alternative words that we listed below in the general tags section. We hope this helps people find your Etsy shop and the fabulous items you have for sale! Happy tagging!!
Tagging Terms - Colors
For colors, the first alternative is French. Remember, you get 18 spaces in a tag.
RED – rouge, wine, burgundy, ruby, maroon, terra cotta, rust, fire, blaze, flame, auburn, bay, bronze, chestnut, cinnamon, copper, hazel, henna, mahogany, russet , sorrel, rust, jasper, brick, cabernet, blood, pomegranate, apple, cherry, tomato, garnet, raspberry, strawberry, paprika
PINK – rose, cerise, fuschia, magenta, blush, flush, mauve, cotton candy, bubble gum, ballet, petunia, carnation, shell
ORANGE – peach, apricot, mango, tangerine, coral, salmon, pumpkin, squash, rust, mandarin, cantaloupe, paprika, carrot, copper, melon, bronze, flesh
YELLOW – jaune, gold, oro, lemon, sulfur, citrus, topaz, canary, sun, mustard, amber, ochre, tawny, saffron, citron, citrine, jasper, butter, daffodil, popcorn, champagne, sunshine, lemonade, sunflower
GREEN – vert, emerald, jade, moss, peridote, olive, lime, mint, apple, grass, Kelly, loden, avocado, fern, leaf, chartreuse, lichen, honeydew, forest, evergreen, bottle, seafoam, kiwi, pea, sage,
TEAL – sarcelle d’hiver, aqua, turquoise, robin’s egg blue, blue-green
BLUE – bleu, beryl, cobalt, eggshell, marine, indigo, midnight, azure, navy, royal, sapphire, sky, denim, cornflower, periwinkle, coastal, ocean, pool, lapis, cyan, peacock
PURPLE – pourpre, violet, lilac, amethyst, plum, orchid, grape, wisteria, periwinkle, lavender, eggplant, mauve
BLACK – noir, ebony, coal, ash, cinder, carbon, onyx, jet, midnight, raven
GRAY – gris, grey, silver, dove, ash, mist, fog, taupe, titanium, charcoal, granite, smoke, slate, dusk, steel, haze, platinum, gunmetal, pewter
WHITE – blanc, cloud, vanilla, pearl, sugar, powder, snow, chalk, milk, opal
CREAM – ivory, ecru, pearl, opal, natural, parchment, bone
BROWN – amber, cafe au lait, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, fawn, tawny, topaz, umber, ochre, brass, bronze, copper, espresso
TAN – beige, khaki, ecru, taupe, oatmeal, natural, parchment, sand, camel
CLEAR – crystal, transparent
MULTICOLORED – rainbow, iridescent, chromatic, variegated, aurora borealis
Other Tagging Terms
OOAK – unique, artisan, exclusive, original, novel, atypical, exceptional, handmade
MATERIALS – names of stones, type(s) of fiber or fabric, weave or fabric, types of wood
GENERAL – Punk, steampunk, nerd, geek, science, modern, midcentury, funky, dramatic, romantic, whimsical, artisan, edgy, bohemian, boho chic, shabby chic, fantasy, Victorian, prom, contemporary, mystical, mythical, magical, witchcraft, Christian, earthy, antique (over 100 years), vintage (over 20 years), retro (made to look old), heirloom, southwest, old world, Americana, rustic, ethnic, primitive, folk art
OLD – olde, vintage, antique, fossil, patina, old world, primitive, old-world
ECO FRIENDLY – recycle, reuse, up-cycle, refashion, earthy, vegan, environmental, organic, repurposed, natural, earth friendly, earth-friendly, earthfriendly, slow food,
TEXTURE – smooth, rough, pebbled, matte, shiny, sandy, loose weave, tight weave, braided, laced, plaited, lattice, webbed, patina, gossamer, delicate, pointy, sharp, hard, spiny, puffy, patterned, bold, ruffled, frilly, velvet, silky, gnarly, old world
ELEGANT – simple, refined, aesthetic, tasteful, graceful, luxurious, classic, polished, chic, sophisticated
ROMANTIC – erotic, fanciful, amorous, love, flirtatious, dreamy, passionate, darling, precious, bewitching, alluring, seductive, enchanting, kissable, huggable, feminine, flirty
COZY – cuddly, snug, comfortable, snuggly, huggable, warm
SHAPES – geometric, structure, block, symmetric, square, triangular, angular, round, spherical, ovoid, egg-like, irregular, cubic, cuboid, bold, concentric, free form
CIRCLE – loop, hoop, round, ring, spheroid, pouf, halo, bulls eye, doughnut, donut, disc, link
SPIRAL – twist, double helix, swirl, whirl, whorl,
LIGHT – sun, beam, streak, shine, radiation, luminescent, glare, glow, halo, aura, corona, bright, luminous, radiant, luxe, bright, cheerful, breezy
SPARKLE – glow, prismatic, shimmer, prismatic, sheen, gloss, flash, brilliant, iridescence, luminous, glint, glitter, glisten, gleam, starry, faceted, bright, cheerful
HOT – zesty, pungent, racy, peppery, passionate, fiery, torrid, steamy, thermal, blazing, flaming
COLD – frigid, icy, chilly, cool, frozen, bleak, wintry, frosty, arctic, glacial,
NIGHT – shadows, scary, evening, darkness, twilight, dusk, (see black),
CLOUDY – foggy, wispy, vaporous, vapor, smoky, filmy, hazy, murky, shadowy, dusky
FLOWER – bloom, bud, blossom, bouquet, boutonniere, buttonhole, corsage, festoon, garland, lei, nosegay, posy, spray, vase, wreath, stem, floral, flora, weed, garden, nature, vine, wildflower
OCEAN – sea, beach, tidal pool, coast, lagoon, tide pool
BIRD – avian, sparrow, robin, songbird, warbler, nestling, flying
JEWELRY - jewellery
FLUFFY - downy, fuzzy, feathery, soft, puffy, airy
The pictures in this article are some screen captures of some recent ETTEAM Treasuries that made the Front Page of Etsy. Thanks to the following Etteam members for their contributions to this article: Sharon of KnotOriginal, Jaci of By the Way & By the Wayside, Sinta of Art by Tanja Lichtensteiger , Lynn of MidnightCoiler, Sandie of ZaftigDelights.
Fantastic, Sandie. You've really been turning our blog into a fantastic resource. Thanks for all you do! :)
ReplyDeletea brilliant resource, and great to see all the team pulling together to compile it. thanks sandie!
ReplyDeleteNot only helpful, good reading too. Thanks so much.
ReplyDeleteSandie, great job on pulling the info together!
ReplyDeletewhat a brilliant list! I'm going to print it off right now, if you don't mind....
ReplyDeletethanks for sharing more great tips Rx
Great tips, thanks so much for sharing!
ReplyDeleteSo glad you are all finding this a good resource! :o)
ReplyDeleteSandie
Etteam Blogmistress
Wow...I had no idea that we could put more than one tag in a line...with commas inbetween...thanks for sharing...
ReplyDeleteThis is so helpful! So many words I would have never thought of to use for tagging.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
Karrita
This is such a helpful blog! Thank you all, I appreciate the opportunity to read it. Rosemary
ReplyDeleteWhat a great list! Thanks for putting this together.
ReplyDeleteGreat tips,thanx for the info. Now to go add to my tags!
ReplyDeleteThank you SO much for writing this! It really puts tagging into perspective for me!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much...great tagging inspiration!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the insight...I'm off to RE-tag my entire shop!
ReplyDeletegreat job, i am going to print this out and post it to my peg board for the future. always love to get in tresuries!
ReplyDeletethank you
Katy at south paw studios
Thanks for this info-I need all the help I can get describing color. I'm stuck on the boring words blue, yellow, etc.
ReplyDeleteRachel at janssendesigns
Etsy just sent this article out in an e-mail about tagging for success, so I would think it's okay to post multiple tags on one line. I'm going to go by that, and try it out:-)
ReplyDeleteThank you for all the helpful information.
ReplyDeleteThanks, that is really helpful!
ReplyDeletethank you, this will be very helpful for me.
ReplyDeleteGreat post and lots of important information for tagging, which for me isw one of most difficult things, mainly because English is not my native language. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteTHANK YOU so much for these synonyms. You don't know how many times I couldn't think of one.
ReplyDeletefabulous!
ReplyDeletevintagedress.etsy.com
Thank you, what a great resource page, for when you are 'stumped' for another tag! Excellent work !!
ReplyDeletethis is a great blog...what a great way to promote each others' shops...!
ReplyDeleteSuper handy, going on my list of selling resources. Thanks so much!
ReplyDeleteGreat list! I really need to utilize these suggestions! Thanks so much!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you for this article, very helpful!
ReplyDeleteAmy
Thanks so much! I had to make a copy cause I will never remember the first tag!
ReplyDeleteAmazing! So helpful - a must read for all Etsians! :D
ReplyDeleteBut if every white item was tagged "pearl" and every grey item was tagged "silver", it would make it very hard to find actual silver and pearl jewelry, for example.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for this post. I will put into effect really soon.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
ReplyDeleteonly you can't use '-' in the tags. up-cycle is not possible then.
So many words...how exciting!! Thank you!! The music is lovely...salute whoever put it together!! :)
ReplyDeletexoxo
Kartu.etsy.com
marialuna.etsy.com
Thanks for such a great blog post! I didn't realize you could put more than one color term in the same tag, so that's really helpful info. Thanks!!
ReplyDeletejenarthur.etsy.com
What an awesome post, thank you!! Sometimes I get so stuck on certain words so this is really helpful!
ReplyDeleteI never thought of using more than one word in a tag line. It's so helpful to have these posts. Bookmarked this one for sure! Thanks so much!
ReplyDeletepamlicobee.etsy.com
thanks so much for sharing this great information, it's always great to get new ways of showing off all the wonderful crafts on ETSY
ReplyDeleteI've bookmarked this for more viewing
Very helpful info! Thanks for your efforts to help us be more successful!
ReplyDeletethanks so much for the info :)
ReplyDeleteThis is really helpful. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing! I get stuck and in a rut with tagging and this is really helpful!
ReplyDeletethis is great! I keep trying to think of different names for colours - this will healp heaps
ReplyDeleteThanks for the cheat sheet!
ReplyDeleteFabulous post. Thank you for the tagging tips
ReplyDeleteawesome list!
ReplyDeleteThank you!!! This is an awesome list. So many things I never would have thought of as tags. You guys rock!
ReplyDelete*kgb*
http://acageybee.etsy.com
Very informative...Thanks for the great article.
ReplyDeletebeaneandco.com
I didn't know there was a such a team! Thanks for the tagging help!
ReplyDeleteI did not even know there was such a team... Thank you for the valuable information. It is kind of you to share...
ReplyDeleteSandie, Thanks for all you do! :)
ReplyDeleteVery helpful. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteas a not in "america born" i appreciate the collection of new vocabulary! great thanks!
ReplyDeletecool idea!
kris schirmer
from www.mr-uxn.com
Wow! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteKatie
Thanks for the great information and a special thanks for sharing it!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this great information!!
ReplyDeleteWonderful list of synonyms and other like-types. Now I won't strain my brain and computer places so much! THANK YOU!
ReplyDeleteThank you for this! I use it all of the time!!! I am so grateful...
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for this!! I use it all of the time! I am so grateful!!
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy to have come across this, you have no idea what a big help this article is! THANK YOU so much. I'm grateful. :)
ReplyDeleteJessica
www.lolavintage.blogspot.com
Thank you! Thank you! much needed & appreciated!
ReplyDeleteFantastic article. Thank you for sharing the color combos this will be very helpful when making a treasury and tagging items.
ReplyDeleteShay
If you run your color tags through http://www.tools4etsy.com/tagwars with your normal tags, you can see how you compare against other listings ... The nice thing about TagWars is that you can compare two sets of tags side-by-side. :)
ReplyDeleteFantastic article, thank you!
ReplyDeletei needed this so much!! i'm going to print it out and tape it next to the computer!!!! thank you!!! And thanks for TagWars too.
ReplyDeleteOMG, this post is SO perfect! I need this! Thanks so much!!!
ReplyDeleteVery informative...Thanks for the great article.
ReplyDeleteThis is a fantastic article that every treasury maker should bookmark...like 2 minutes ago!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing this wealth of information!
I'm very happy I found this article. Just print it out. Thank you
ReplyDeleteI love it my own etsy dictionary. What a great help. Thanks
ReplyDeleteAwesome ideas...
ReplyDeleteso grateful for more useful terms!
Thanks for the tips, I will update my tags shortly!
ReplyDeleteThis is a fabulous article - very generous of you. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteThanks, this is just what I needed!
ReplyDeleteInteresting and very helpful thanks for compiling this list!
ReplyDeleteThank you for these tips - they're great!
ReplyDeleteThis is WONDERFUL! Thanks soooo much!
ReplyDeleteThank you -- this is very helpful!
ReplyDeletemil gracias, thank you so much, merci beaucoup, grazie mille.....SOOOO helpful!
ReplyDeletegreat read and thank you
ReplyDeleteThank you! This is a great list!
ReplyDeleteMerci for
ReplyDeletethis fantastic INFO:)
This is great. Thank you so much! It's pointed out things I didn't even realise :)
ReplyDeletewww.owletts.etsy.com
Really useful! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely awesome post - thank you!
ReplyDeletethanks for sharing, very helpful!
ReplyDeleteThanks, lots of great information:)
ReplyDeleteThis is the best resource for tagging I have found. I struggle with tagging and to see the helpful information you have provided is a blessing. Thank you so much!
ReplyDeleteVisit my etsy shop please;
http://www.etsy.com/shop/sisterlycreationz
Thanks so much for such a comprehensive and inspiring list of tags. Very kind of you.
ReplyDeleteThank you for this wonderful info!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much =)
ReplyDeleteI appreciate all the help I receive from this team. You guys Rock!