Why don't I know my colours?

[cottonreels]

I don't know my colours and I find it embarrassing. Obviously I know the basics - red, blue etc. I also know turquoise, burgandy. I go a bit quiet when mauve, maroon and others are mentioned though.
A serious question: where did you learn all the colours? Was I away that day at school or something (rhetoric).
I always seem to be struggling to describe a dress I've seen or a wall paint in a restaurant that I like. When I try to describe a colour i feel like I'm forever saying "you know, a sort of reddy orange".
Recently though I've felt a bit that I can't even describe my own DD's eye colour. I've posted a pic on my profile of a close up if anyone knows how to describe a greeny browny eye.
I know it's not really 'am I being unreasonable' but more of a 'am I a bit wierd that I can't do this' and how do I improve it? Bottles of nail polish and dulux charts just seem to come up with fanciful names like 'sunset glow'.
Just to add, as far as I know i'm not colour blind or anything.

My sister who is ten years older than me was an art student. It rubs off. (unlike oil paints )

I agree that colours are facinating. I was watching my mum painting with my DD the other day. DD was paiting trees in the garden and she was just using some generic green for all of them. My mum told her to "stop painting what you think you see and paint what you know you see". DD had another look at the trees and then looked at us both in amazement before saying "hardly any of them are green at all - they are pink and brown and red and all different greens". She was amazed and it really opened her eyes to the fact that the spectrum goes beyond the primary colours and a few other 'well knowns'.

All sounds a bit twee but I remember having the same epiphany as a child and feeling quite smug that I had suddenly spotted all these shades of inbetweewn that I had never noticed before. I too wanted names for them which is why mum taught me the standard oil paint names - it was her personal point of reference.

My cousin - however - who is a graphic designer referes to colours by pantone reference or whatever name the software she is using proffers up.

A 'standard' would be nice but I don't think it would work. I think we all see and interpret colours a little differently. Maybe

Yeah, I had a 'blue' cat once. The vet said it was hard to get them in that colour. Talking him up, I think. I've seen lots of mongrel (naturally sturdy puds) since in that colour. Seems nature has no problem. He was actually a grey moggie who had no pretension about his own rarity.

OOOH- Jaded - your Mum sounds great!!

OOh, just thought of another good one - chartreuse!! (Greeny yellow after the colour of the liqueur)

I love Teal, and Duck egg and all those bluey/greeny/grey colours

i didn't learn fancy color names till I started painting with oils and coloring with prisma color pencils. hths!

I love eau de nil too ...

I love eau de nil and duck egg and chartreuse (am currently bidding on a dress that is described as Chartreuse and the colour makes my mouth water it's so lovely)

Whilst I think using 'fancy' names can be tres poncy, there are times when you do want to describe something very specifically and personally, I think most of the more descriptive words for colours sound beautiful and instantly make the world feel a bit brighter and more colourful