Art is much paler and doesn't tan as quickly. Our daughter has his skin tone and will burn if she doesn't watch it. When I went to Japan for the first time when I was 21, everybody kept asking me where I was from. They couldn't believe I was of Japanese descent. The Japanese tend to be a lot paler.
When we moved to Illinois a new and good friend was teaching me about make-up and told me that I had olive skin. (I've mentioned this in a long ago post.) I was really insulted. I love green olives so I thought she meant I had a greenish tint to my skin. Gosh.... now that I think about it, I still haven't cleared up that misunderstanding with her.
Anyway, I started to notice the different ways tanned skin is described. I've seen the words dark skinned, brown skinned, swarthy. I've noticed that they use the term swarthy to describe pirates so I'm thinking it's got a negative connotation. Well, unless you happen to like pirates, that is.
I think my son's skin has the color of mocha. I happen to love mocha and I do love Jon. Do you know any other words they use to describe tanned skin. Hey... don't they use chocolate also?
I love dark chocolate!
Can't help you there, Kay:-) I think olive is a nice description - my daughter-in-law is olive skinned.
ReplyDeleteMocha sounds nice, not sure about chocolate. How about latte or cappuchino?
I agree w/the above, mocha.. dark chocolate? I don't think... Your son is gorgeous his skin looks flawless.. I have olive skin as well which in makeup terms means 'yellow tone' in fact, I came across more cosmetic folk who favor olive tones... The guy who cuts my hair feels the same way.
ReplyDelete"Mocha" sounds wonderful, and is a lovely description of your handsome son. And I certainly wouldn't consider "olive" an insult.
ReplyDeleteMy skin is pink and it freckles and burns in the sun -- or burns and freckles, whichever. It is very inconvenient, requiring hats and parasols, not to mention frequent stops in the shade.
We're just coming into the hot weather part of our Russian trip and I'm considering staying on the ship the whole time to keep cool. Dick enjoys heat, and he tans without burning (one of those swarthy pirate types).
However, I suppose I must see something of Moscow.
Will be home Tuesday and start posting photos as soon as we finish hugging our dog.
Hi to Art.
-- Kay and Dick
I have olive skin, too. It's got a little bit of yellow cast rather than pink, and I tan easily too. My husband, on the other hand, burns in two minutes in the sun, so he's always wearing sunscreen and hats and long sleeves. We are so happy here in the Pacific Northwest, because the sun is so much less intense.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I think I would love Hawaii. And I could visit YOU! :-)
Hmmm, Japanese CAN be quite dark. (Though, as you say, more often are whiter than Irishmen)
ReplyDeleteSome of the Kyushu people are really really dark, possibly from all the sun they get.
Some of the Japanese in my town have complexions that are indistinguishable from Indians/Sri Lankans, possibly from the equatorial sun.
Is handsome a color?? Such a good looking boy.
ReplyDeleteI'm like you and can tan in the short distance from the car to the store. Outside I use sun block and hats thought my dermatologist doesn't believe me.
No offense to my own son, but if there were a photo of a perfect face I could look at all day, it would be Jon's. Whatever color you call it.
ReplyDeleteFor your word swarthy I think a codeword heard in my neck of the woods is "Middle Eastern."
I'm not very good on describing complexions. All I know is I agree with Patti above, John is a very handsome young man. I have been told that I have a very pale complexion which is exacerbated when I feel ill or am very tired, I go almost too white. I feel I need to rush to the rouge jar :)
ReplyDeleteWell Jon's very handsome, that's for sure!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Arkansas Patti above...
ReplyDeletewhatever color you would call his skin tone, I would just call Jon handsome.
Skin color, eye color, who can figure it out? My very blonde, very blue-eyed granddaughter Hannah inherited skin that tans quite easily from some ancestor in her past. My very dark-haired, brown-eyed granddaughter Rita has skin like mine, light and prone to skin cancer.
ReplyDeleteRita just returned from the beach with almost no tan and is quite annoyed. Her sister who stayed home and mostly worked indoors has a nice tan. Go figure.
Dianne
PS, your Jon looks a bit like my John, and even more like my grandson Jacob. A healthy gorgeous All-American boy.
David is red from the sun - rosacea? I get dark from too much sun. But, nowadays, my skin is pale because I stay indoors most of the time. Yes, Jon is very handsome; you have every reason to be proud of him. When does he expect to graduate?
ReplyDeletelet's just say handsome and not worry about skin color...lol!
ReplyDeleteI just turn red too. You and your son are lucky to have such beautiful skin.
ReplyDeleteI've always said that I had olive skin when I was younger. I like the sound of mocha though.
ReplyDeleteYour son is very handsome. He is the compete package: hair, eyes, skin, features, smile. I bet he has a wonderful personality too. He just looks kind, smart, caring, and outdoorsy.
Arrrgh, what bee rong wid SWARTHY, matey??
ReplyDeleteOi, I agree with Dina, swarthy has always meant middle eastern to me, or east indian.
Kay, I would gently suggest that you may have japanese colored glasses on. The northern japanese (like Sendai, where our folks hail from)have always sort of held the southern tribes a bit askance and skin color was traditionally one of the criterion, although my mother would never admit to such a thing. I picked it up only after meeting more japanese locals in high school, where I encountered ambiguous feelings of northerns against the southern-most prefecture, Okinawa, even to this day. Being in hawaii I think we're more isolated from that sort of thing, but its constantly referenced in japanese art and literature to a large degree... all courtisans paint themselves white, remove hair, etc... okinawans are usually very dark haired and hair is plentiful and they are darker skinned than the northern tribes.
For myself, I'm just thankful that we don't have to buy as much sun screen, that stuff's expensive.
walt
Jon is so handsome! Wow! And I've seen how pretty your daughter is. Good genes, eh.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean about the fair Japanese. I notice that whenever I see Japanese tourists.
Anyway, skin color in my family is ineresting. We're "white," of course, but range in color from very fair to dark skinned. My mother was striking with dark skin, bright blue eyes and curly dark brown hair. I am extremely fair and tan with an uneven skin tone and now more and more brown spots. I wish I took a nice, smooth tan!
I don't want to spend all my time worrying about my complexion!
I always thought olive skin usually meant from Mediterranean heritage, and Greeks: people, not the olives. The rowdy local K.C. newspaper has references to chocolate for African-American folks. Jon initially appears to be of Hawaiian decent more, until I learned of your family history. I'd keep him, he's wonderfully handsome. He should work on the new Hawaii Five-O show! DrumMajor
ReplyDeleteHow about "Handsome." Moca. :)
ReplyDeleteAgree with everyone here, what a handsome son you have. Everyone in your family is very good looking. I think your mom is especially pretty too. You all have such a welcoming face.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I don't think you're dark skinned at all. I'm Japanese and twice as dark as you are. I asked the dermatologist why I don't lighten during winter months anymore, and he said because my skin is damaged and loss its ability to rejuvenate.
L.
gorgeous mocha skin!
ReplyDeleteI'm Mediterranean/olive and love it!
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Thank you, everybody! We think he's rather cute too, but then we're his parents. :-)
ReplyDeletewhat a handsome fellow,, we use the term olive skin here as well and means darker complection, some of the best looking people I know have an olive complection, which I always wanted,, I'm so fair I sunburn at the drop of a hat.To be told you have olive skin tone here is a compliment i do know that,, i think you are abeautiful family inside and out.
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