Many are advertisng "pure Lavender" and they are not quite yet even Orpingtons. We are hoping in using hens from Cecil moore's Black line that we will move forward this season. We will most likely take our "pure" lav pullets and mate them back to our older Black male. He was hatched from a Cecil Moore produced egg.
The Self Blue, as the SOP refers to the color, needs to be shown. When judges start placing them and disqualifying some, we can see just how close we are. Comparing your birds with mine at a show is the best way to see where we are in the development. We may be closer to the Standard than we think.