Drives me puce

Posted by Victoria S Dennis on October 07, 2007

In Reply to: Drives me puce posted by Gary Martin on October 05, 2007

: : I am contributing two I think you may not have.
: : My English grandmother who was raised in Mold Wales would say of my bad behaviour "That child drives me puce!" Puce is the colour of a healing bruise so I guess she meant she was really fed up with me!

: : Also my mother would say, "Now there's mutton trying to look like lamb" when an older woman was dressed like a younger woman would dress.

: Mutton dressed as lamb, we've had before and is a commonplace English expression.

Also, puce is the colour many people's faces go when in a state of suppressed fury, so I suspect your mother meant she was enraged, not bruised. I have seen healing bruises go black, yellow and purple; rarely puce. (VSD)