'The Dress' made in white and gold for charity auction


March 4, 2015

The world was divided over one dress last week, which sparked debate and a Twitter meltdown over the true nature of its colour. While some internet users saw the item of clothing as blue and black in a photo that went viral, others were adamant that it was actually white and gold.

The two-toned number – now known as "The Dress" – was in fact blue and black, featuring a royal blue body and black lace embroidery.

Those who were seeing the infamous piece in different colours will be relieved to know that Roman Originals, the womenswear brand behind the commotion, have just announced that they have made an actual white and gold dress.  

The family-run business have only created one piece though, and will put it up for auction to raise as much money as possible for Comic Relief. The bidding war on eBay will begin on Thursday and last until Sunday.

The picture of the dress was initially posted on Tumblr by 21-year-old Caitlin McNeill, who wrote: "What happened was two of my close friends were actually getting married and the mother of the bride took a photo of the dress to send to her daughter. When my friend showed the dress to her fiancée, they disagreed on the colour."

Caitlin's post was shared on Tumblr before going viral and becoming a trending topic on Twitter, leading many stars to share their views on what colour the dress is.  

Kim Kardashian revealed that she and husband Kanye West disagreed on the subject. "What colour is that dress? I see white & gold. Kanye sees black & blue, who is colour blind?" she tweeted.

Meanwhile Taylor Swift joked that she was "confused and scared", telling fans: "I don't understand this odd dress debate and I feel like it's a trick somehow. I'm confused and scared. PS it's OBVIOUSLY BLUE AND BLACK".

Scientists explain that the reason why some people see white and gold instead of blue and black is because the picture is an optical illusion. The brain determines the colour of an object by filtering out backgrounds and lighting – so colour is perceived in relation to the items surrounding it.

In the case of "the dress", the background colours are so mixed up that it confuses the brain about the colour of the dress itself.

What colour did you see the dress? Will you be bidding for the unique white and gold dress? Leave your comments below.

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