Hello Everyone, and welcome again to this column on my favorite subject - Color! As you may recall, in my last column I issued the following challenge to insulator clubs: I will donate a Spec-Tru color identification kit to every club that is willing to provide a standard light source for color identification at their next show. So far, only the Greater Chicago Insulator Club has accepted my challenge. Thanks, Russ Frank.

Russ Frank built the standard light source box 
and helped GCIC club members work through the 
Spec-Tru color identification for an olive 
green CD 133 Star. 
(Photo by Marge Frank)

What Color is that Two-Tone?
I recently acquired a blue and green Hemingray-42 from Montie McDowell. When I placed it on my light box, I was surprised to see that the 'green' coloration was caused by heavy amber streaks in the Hemingray Blue glass (yellow + blue = green). Although it certainly looks green in my window, there is no 'green' glass in this insulator. Curious as to how many other insulators have this same coloration, I asked Montie how many 154's he found with amber streaks in them. Well, between Montie and Pat Scott, 86 of these beauties have been rescued from the same railroad line over the years, and all of them appear to have amber streaks in the same general location - vertically, at the (left) mold line between USA and Hemingray. I wonder if this was caused by a rusty mold? But, my real question is: are these really blue/green two-tones? Or should they be called blue/amber two-tones? Or just Hemingray Blue with heavy Amber streaks? And, how did the listing in the Price Guide get generated - are there really blue + green Hemi-42's out there? This 'name game' may seem picky, but it's just my pursuit of the most accurate color description that is possible. Send me an e-mail and vote for your choice! Regardless of the name we give them, I don't think it affects their rarity or value - they are still a knockout in my display!

Travels with Charley 
This Fall I took a three-week road trip in order to attend the Enchantment Insulator Club's annual show and sale in Albuquerque, New Mexico. At the show I was able to verify Spec-Tru color descriptions for Apple Green, Lime Green, and Depression Glass Green H.G. Co. beehives, with the assistance of Al Riddell and Duane Davenport. Also, Duane straightened me out on the differences between California 'Plum' and 'Burgundy', which requires changes to my color index. Thanks Al and Duane for your continued help and support! As I collect many different types of colored glass besides insulators, I was fascinated by Tom Katonak's display of Australian piano insulators, which come in a variety of shapes and colors. Oh boy, something else to collect.....

Things to Come... 
A Canadian pony collection may grace these pages sometime this year. Dudley Ellis's goals are to document the colors of skirt-numbered Diamond ponies and to document the colors of each mold style of the Diamond pony, and publish the results. Hopefully, the color photos that accompany his article will include Spec-Tru slide combinations with the color description, providing us with yet another way to get 'smart' about color. I'm looking forward to helping in any way I can with the color identification.