Maroon, burgundy or wine: which red do you mean?

Maroon: red with brown in it

The word comes from the French for chestnut, and that is the right picture: a deep, warm, earthy red. Beside burgundy, maroon looks browner and flatter, and under warm indoor lights it can drift close to brown. It is a traditional deep red for winter shawls and dressy suits, and it is forgiving on most fabrics.

Mehroon, the word used in Urdu and Hindi, is maroon in English. In everyday use it is broader than the English word, though, and often covers any deep red, burgundy and wine included. If someone asks for mehroon, it is worth checking which of the three they have in mind.

Burgundy and wine: red with purple or blue in it

Burgundy takes its name from the wine region in France. It is as dark as maroon but cooler, with a clear purple note: think of the skin of a black grape. Beside maroon it looks richer and slightly plum.

Wine is the least fixed of the three names. Most often it describes a red-purple a step lighter and brighter than burgundy, with a bluish-pink glow. If burgundy is the wine in the bottle, wine is the colour at the rim of the glass. Close relatives you may also meet include oxblood, which is darker and browner, and plum, which has crossed over into purple.

Checking the undertone in a photo or in your hand

Deep reds give themselves away when you compare them with something.

• Use daylight. Warm bulbs add yellow, which pushes every deep red towards maroon.
• Put it next to true red. Against a bright red, maroon looks brown, burgundy looks purple and wine looks pinkish.
• Look at the folds. On cloth with sheen, the highlights show the undertone: rusty for maroon, violet or magenta for burgundy and wine.
• Hold it against black. Maroon stays warm; burgundy can look almost aubergine.
• Distrust the screen. Deep reds are among the hardest colours for cameras and displays, as our piece on why fabric colours look different online explains.

Wording that tells a tailor which one you want

A name alone is not enough, so add the direction and a reference. Attach a daylight photo of the shade and say what it has to go with: gold embroidery and warm jewellery flatter maroon, while silver, pearl and cool pinks sit well with burgundy and wine. For more ideas see choosing colours and prints for a custom design.

• “A deep red that leans brown, like a chestnut. No purple in it.” That is maroon.
• “A deep red that leans purple, like black grape skin. Not brown.” That is burgundy.
• “A red-purple a little brighter than burgundy, with a pink glow in the light.” That is wine.
• “Deep red, and I do not mind which way it leans.” This is useful too, because it widens what fabric can be offered.

Ordering a deep red from us

Maroon is one of the listed colours of our button-front shirt dress and our tiered maxi dress; judge it from the photos on those pages and not from the name alone. For anything else, Fabric + Stitching lets you describe the red you want, and we confirm in your written quote what we can supply. A small difference in shade from a photo is not a fault, so if the undertone matters, say so in your notes when you request a quote.