UPDATE:
Blue and black dress or white and gold dress? It appears all of humanity is clawing at its own eyes in frustration over… THE DRESS.
And this is no wardrobe malfunction, VPL or similarly heinous fashion fail.
The issue at hand: What colour is it?
Black and blue right? What’s everyone getting so worked up about? Oh just a veritable army of naysayers who insist it is in fact, gold and white.
An image of the brutally divisive garment in question was posted to Tumblr by user swiked, who wrote: “Guys please help me – is this dress white and gold or blue and black? Me and my friends can’t agree and we are freaking the fuck out.”
Almost everyone with an internet connection has an opinion on this dress.
Taylor Swift tweeted: “I don’t understand this odd dress debate and I feel like it’s a trick somehow. I’m confused and scared. PS it’s OBVIOUSLY BLUE AND BLACK.”
I don't understand this odd dress debate and I feel like it's a trick somehow.
I'm confused and scared.
PS it's OBVIOUSLY BLUE AND BLACK
— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) February 27, 2015
Actress Mindy Kaling wrote: “I think I’m getting so mad about the dress because it’s an assault on what I believe is objective truth.”
I think I'm getting so mad about the dress because it's an assault on what I believe is objective truth.
— Mindy Kaling (@mindykaling) February 27, 2015
Emmy Rossum asked: “Where are you guys seeing WHITE and GOLD?!”
She added: “My friend just texted me: ‘I’m questioning everything. What if Barbie was never really wearing pink?! I’ll be heartbroken’.”
Where are you guys seeing WHITE and GOLD?!
— Emmy Rossum (@emmyrossum) February 27, 2015
The artist formerly known as Cheryl Cole would beg to disagree...
@BellasNumptyx ITS WHITE AND GOLD !!!! 😤
— Cheryl (@CherylOfficial) February 27, 2015
Rob Lowe apparently changed his mind, swinging from black and blue to: "Now I'm seeing it in white and gold! WTF??
Now I'm seeing it in white and gold! WTF??
— Rob Lowe (@RobLowe) February 27, 2015
Jaden Smith weighed in with: “I’m seeing Blue and Black, As Of Now.”
I'm Seeing Blue And Black, As Of Now
— Jaden Smith (@officialjaden) February 27, 2015
Anna Kendrick stated: "If that's not white and gold the universe is falling apart. Seriously what is happening????"
If that's not White and Gold the universe is falling apart. Seriously what is happening????
— Anna Kendrick (@AnnaKendrick47) February 27, 2015
The image has gone viral, bringing BuzzFeed alone more than 670,000 concurrent views at one point.
Meanwhile some internet sleuths posited their own theories of the dress, with this “explanation” from YouTube vlogger BradTheLadLong appearing to take all credit for the matter.
SEE ALSO:
In a message retweeted almost 9,000 times, though offering no reasoning as to why such a "test" should be administered, he wrote: “I’d like to thank everyone that took part in my sight test which showed a picture of a ‘white and gold’ or ‘black and blue’ dress.
“Firstly this was an experiment for myself and others in a bid to prove what we already thought and tested previously to be true.
“You will be surprised to know that the dress is actually white and gold however there is an explanation as to why some viewers are seeing black and blue.
“Scientists have proven when there is a big event in your life that is having a negative effect on you, your sightings of colours may vary and that is why some people are seeing black and blue.
“It’s merely all down to emotions and when the person seeing black and blue checks back another day, they might see the dress in white and gold because their mood has changed from the state they were in when previously viewing the dress.”
Thank you all for taking part in my 'white and gold' 'black and blue' dress experiment. Read on for info. Thanks. pic.twitter.com/44Jb00FAno
— BradTheLadLong (@BradTheLadLong) February 27, 2015
Snopes seems skeptical of BradTheLadLong's boast and traces the origin of the picture back to a 21-year-old singer named Caitlin McNeill who noted the dress had been worn at a friend's wedding and ignited a similar debate.
TIME magazine has attempted a sensible scientific explanation but as the Washington Post expertly summarises: "The answer, which The Post won't deign to elaborate on here, has something to do with science. And eyes. And colour and lights and colour balances. And Photoshop. And many other matters that over-intellectualise something as delightfully absurd as a colour-changing dress."
Software company Adobe has also entered the fray...
For those seeing #WhiteandGold in #TheDress (http://t.co/pNG9tXu5pU), @HopeTaylorPhoto ends the debate. pic.twitter.com/W7TwQJy13m
— Adobe (@Adobe) February 27, 2015
And one tweeter presented the following evidence:
i actually took the time to research this so here's the real reason behind the dress written by yours truly. pic.twitter.com/kJr1oCvlGs
— kaeIyn♛please calum (@rebelashton) February 27, 2015
To further muddy the waters we have found the actual dress for sale on Amazon for just £50, where it is marketed as a “Royal Blue” bodycon dress.
And there are some cracking customer reviews, including: “This dress is a glitch in the Matrix” and “this dress made me lose all my friends and now I am so lonely.”