Can you "taupe" this?

[ronni]

Taupe's popularity in the late '80s and early '90s could be viewed on a variety of items from personal fashion to decorating. Electrolux followed suit with a series of taupe/sand-colored machines produced in the US and Canada in 1987-88.

So what exactly is the color of taupe? The term is of French and Latin origin meaning 'mole' and therefore at first identified a dark tan color. Beginning in the 1940s its use was expanded to a variety of shades including 'mauve taupe' and 'rose taupe'--either of which I perceive to be more descriptive of the color of the Electrolux machines. Indeed, the background color of the name and indicator panel labels is mauve.

Anyway, I am curious to know if other floor care companies sold machines whose primary or accent color was taupe. If so, please "taupe" (top) this photo collection of taupe-colored North American Electrolux machines (the only machine photo of the color set I could not locate was the Model CB2000):

1. Model 1623/L-E--Canada/USA (with white aftermarket attachments)
2. Model Hi-Tech 2100 w/PN-6A--USA
3. System 90--Canada
4. Model 2101--Canada/USA
5. Model 1521/Marquise--USA
6. Model 1453/Deluxe Special Model--USA
7. Model B-10--later designated as Model 1522--USA)

 

[gottahaveahoove]

I know that HOOVER

used taupe. I know "Frank", one of the colorists retiredfrom Hoover.
Of course, HOOVER's big color (got lots of miles out of) SEAL GREIGE "light", "medium", and "dark". It's a combo of seal gray and beige. They did have several taupe cleaners as well.

 

[ronni]

I just realized that none of the photos showed the original woven hose common to all the Electrolux tanks: sand-colored with taupe chevron tracers. I point out the colors, because that particular pattern had been used in a variety of colors from 1978 to 1993 and at first glance may appear the same--particularly those from the Diamond J era and on:

--white/brown tracers: Olympia One era

--lt. gray/dk. gray tracers: Silverado era

--sand/jade tracers: Diamond J era

--sand/taupe tracers: Marquise era

--lt. sand/navy tracers: Grand Marquise/Legacy/Ultraluxes era



The style had also been used from 1952-1957 with these models: LXs, Es, LXIs, AEs, Ts, and Ss.



Question: Did these retail/show lines have hoses in their own colors or did they use the following:

--Regency Series ... Grand Marquise/Legacy/Ultraluxes era

--Special Edition series ... Marquise era

--Advantage Series ... Marquise era

 

[ronni]

Please post photos of the taupe Hoovers. As for the seal griege Hoovers you've piqued my curiosity. I'm probably familiar with the color--just not the term (albeit I'm not too familiar with Hoovers).

 

[collector2]

Hey Ronnie

The first special edition (wine coloured) machines used the taupe hose from the System 90. Later ones had the new plastic hoses with a wine coloured tracer.

All the Regency series machines I have seen had the same blue hose as the diplomat / ambassador etc.

Here's a pic of the Taupe C2000

Don't forget the Discovery 3 too (I don't have a picture handy of one)

Doug

 

[portable]

<span style="font-family: tahoma, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's one with a taupe color in the bag (as well as other colors). This is one of John Long's lovelies.....Convertible Model 1076</span>

 

[ronni]

Hey Doug and John-

Thanks for your replies.

Doug - I've never seen a taupe/sand-colored CB2000 till now--wow! Great info. on the hoses. Please post a photo of the plastic hose with a wine tracer; I don't think I've seen one of those either. Typically when I see Special Edition tanks on eBay they have replacement hoses--or so it seems to me.

Speaking of the Special Edition reminds me ... do you know the exact years when those machines--and the Regency Series were sold? I have seen such a variety listed, so I'm not sure.

Thanks for the reminder of the Discovery III/1572E. It slipped my mind; and I had a photo too (albeit not one of the entire machine), so here it is--besides the main motor housing the handle and bumper are also taupe.

__________


John - I'm sure John Long will appreciate your photo post of his 1076--nice taupe bumper, too.

 

[collector2]

Hey Ronnie - Take a look at the Electrolux sections of my web page - it may fill in some answers. http://smithcollection.altervista.org/index.html

Heres my Special Edition 2100 with the hose

 

[ronni]

Awesome site, Doug--what an incredible amount of work, and what an astounding collection!

Thanks for the photo of the Special Edition/2100 and hose. Didn't know that the plastic hoses had tracers.

 

[gottahaveahoove]

I didn't realize that you (John )

had that pic. Here's another:

 

[eurekaprince]

Could we not categorize all those Singer vacs of the 1950's and 1960's as being coloured taupe? In real life, the taupe colouring was a brownish purple. Maybe these Singers were trendsetters well before taupe became trendy?

I am especially referring to the taupe Singer canisters made by Eureka Williams.

 

[eurekaprince]

Here's a Vacuumland thread showing lots of taupe Singers:

http://www.vacuumland.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?5239

 

[ronni]

I wonder if you'd describe the Singers shade of taupe "rose taupe" (see color chart at the end of the machine photos in original post)?

I have to say, I didn't realize that taupe has been such a popular floor care machine color--even in mid-century. I was thinking that it was more of a recent trendy color with a short-lived popularity.

___________


Here is a photo of a complete taupe-colored Electrolux Discovery III/1572 E:

 

[eurekaprince]

The Singer attachments made by Eureka definitely had a "grape" or "purple" tone to them....our neighbours The Wexlers had a Roll-a-Magic Singer and as a toddler, I was often lucky enough to be visiting my friend Shelley Wexler when it was being used!

I would agree that the colour is Rose Taupe, though I just found a website calling it Metal Taupe....

It is so weird that the term taupe comes from the French word for a rat-like animal.

 

[ronni]

Instead of the rodents, I was thinking of the other mole homonym--skin spots.

 

[eurekaprince]

It seems that the origin of the term "taupe" is from the colour of the mouse-like animal known as a mole.

It was originally used to describe a grayish-brown colour, but in the last century the use of the term expanded to include a wide array of tones of grayish-brown.

I think we can even go back to the Hoover line-up in the late 1940's to see taupe-coloured vacs. Look at this advertisement from 1949:



http://m.ebay.com/itm/161467758300?nav=SEARCH

 

[portable]

<span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: 12pt;">Brian - That color in the ad for the Model 28 is sort of misleading. It is really a tan - known as British Tan. But, yeah, I can see the gray influence in it, too. BTW, the darker hood color was known as British Brown, at least by the paint suppliers of the wrinkle-finish paint sold to replace it. It is almost impossbile to get EITHER color now, though I have heard that the darker brown is still around. I have not personally seen either color (in a wrinkle-finish) in YEARS.</span>

 

[ronni]

Ok--very interesting. I didn't do any research like you. I just took for granted that it was the skin blemish.
For future reference I like to include photos rather than links that will eventually expire, so here's the 1947 Hoover ad:

____


Thanks for letting us know about 'British Tan'. I like its combination with the cream color and taupe bumper and bag on the Model 28 and the ends and handle of the Model 50.

 

[eurekaprince]

Thanks for the photo Fred!

Indeed, the bumper on the 1949 Hoover upright and some parts of the 1949 canister look very "taupy"!