The actual dress was black and blue. The confusion came from how lighting and color perception tricked people's brains, making some see it as white and gold. It became a viral example of how human vision can interpret colors differently under certain Internet debates that blue dress (it is blue, right?) The Seattle Times How Does Your State Sales Tax See That Blue and Black (or White and Gold) Dress? Woman Bought A Blue Dress That Carried Deep Personal Meaning, But Her Sister Broke Down Crying And Claimed She Copied Her 21st Birthday Outfit TwistedSifter Wardrobe Breakdown: Shakira Black Studded Mini Dress On Jimmy Fallon Talking With Tami TheDress one year on eight things we learned from the viral phenomenon Social media The Guardian