(image credit: by Moose Photos )
Think pink is the ultimate girly color? You might be surprised to learn that pink was once considered a boys’ color! Here’s how history, fashion, and marketing flipped the script on one of today’s most gendered hues.
Once Upon a Time, Pink Was for Boys
When we think of pink today, we often associate it with femininity, softness, and all things dainty. But this wasn’t always the case. In fact, up until the early 20th century, pink was widely seen as a masculine color.
The reasoning? Pink is a derivative of red — a color long associated with power, passion, and aggression. Back then, red symbolized strength and was ideal for boys, and pink, as its “junior version,” made logical sense for young males.
On the flip side, blue was considered more suitable for girls, largely because of its associations with the Virgin Mary in Christian iconography. Blue was calm, serene, and maternal — all qualities tied to traditional ideals of femininity.
The Big Switch: How Marketing Redefined Pink
The reversal didn’t happen overnight. It was a gradual shift influenced heavily by fashion trends, department store catalogs, and marketing campaigns in the mid-20th century. By the 1940s, American retailers began actively promoting pink as a feminine color in children’s clothing — largely as a strategy to differentiate products by gender and boost sales.
This shift was reinforced by post-war consumerism and the rise of targeted advertising, which fed into the idea that boys and girls should have distinct styles, toys, and even colors.
Pop Culture Cemented the Change
Once Hollywood and media caught on, there was no turning back. Think Marilyn Monroe in “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” wearing that iconic pink dress, or the endless pink packaging of Barbie dolls since their launch in 1959. Pink became synonymous with glamour, girlhood, and softness — despite its masculine roots.
