TIFFANY BLUE

The famous robin's egg blue, or forget-me-not blue, of American jewellery house Tiffany & Co was selected in 1845 by founder Charles Lewis Tiffany.

The colour adorns the cover of the Blue Book, the publication that showcases Tiffany's annual collection.

According to the company, the blue may have been chosen because of the popularity of the gemstone, turquoise, in the 19th century. Victorian brides often gave turquoise brooches to their attendants.

The colour later made its way onto the brand's shopping bags, boxes and promotional material. It was formulated and trademarked as 1837 Blue, which refers to the year Tiffany & Co was founded.

HERMES ORANGE

The first boxes to be used by Hermes, which started in 1837, were cream with gold lining, and then mustard beige with brown lining. However, World War II led to supply shortages and the paper box maker ran out of material.

There was only orange paperboard left in stock, so the French luxury house bought that instead. After the war, the company continued using the orange colour, but in a more vivid hue - today's signature brick orange.

In 1949, the Bolduc - the name given by Hermes to the signature brown ribbon - was introduced and used with the Hermes box. In the 1960s, Mr Thierry Hermes' descendants, Mr Bertrand Puech,

Mr Jean-Louis Dumas and Mr Patrick Guerrand noticed they could easily pick out Hermes shopping bags in a crowd, thanks to the bright colour. That cemented their conviction to keep using the distinctive orange.

Today, all items come in the trademark orange box.

VALENTINO RED

Italian luxury brand Valentino, founded by Valentino Garavani in 1959, is well known for its prominent use of a poppy red colour known in fashion circles as Valentino Red.

Mr Garavani was reportedly inspired after he saw a striking woman dressed in red velvet at the opera house in Barcelona, Spain.

A poppy red dress appeared in his first collection in 1959 and in many collections afterwards. The Italian designer reportedly believes red is the only colour worthy of competing with black and white.

He trademarked the shade, which is a combination of 100 parts magenta, 100 parts yellow and 10 parts black. All boxes and shopping bags (above) for the Valentino brand are in the Valentino Red shade.

In 2003, Valentino launched a diffusion line called Red Valentino.

A Phoebus cape by Italian designer Elsa Schiaparelli in the Galliera fashion museum in Paris.

SCHIAPARELLI PINK

The label, founded by Italian designer Elsa Schiaparelli in 1927, was one of the first to sell ready-to-wear clothing in Paris in the 1930s. The brand was known for its trompe l'oeil sweaters and the use of zippers.

In April 1937, Ms Schiaparelli introduced a bright magenta pink colour she dubbed "shocking pink", inspired by trendsetter Daisy Fellowes' 17.27-carat rose-coloured diamond called the tete de belier, or ram's head.

Ms Schiaparelli is credited with bringing colour to couture, jazzing up subdued browns, blacks, navys and greys with bright hues. She had a tendency to introduce new colours with products, such as Shocking Pink for her Shocking perfume; Sleeping Blue, a turquoise blue, for her Sleeping perfume; and Stunning Red, a bright solid red, for her Stunning red tights and Stunning lipstick.

The designer was rumoured to be buried in a shocking pink antique Chinese robe after her death in 1973 at the age of 83.