Why Benjamin Moore Hale Navy is a Favorite Paint Color

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Let’s talk about a timeless classic paint color: Benjamin Moore Hale Navy.

You know that favorite pair of jeans that fit like a glove and can be dressed up or dressed down?

Benjamin Moore Hale Navy is basically the blue jeans of the paint world.

As part of Benjamin Moore’s Historical Collection, it’s no wonder it’s one of the top-selling navy blues and a favorite paint color for homeowners, designers and architects.

Hale Navy is a sophisticated neutral tone that gives it versatility, providing that pop of color to add drama (the good kind) to your home, both inside and out.

paint chips in navy blues and beige with paint brush and paint stick

The Makings of a Bold Classic Paint Color

All colors, except for red, yellow, and blue, are created by mixing different parts of the color wheel.

When there’s an unequal combination of colors, it’s said to have an undertone.

boys bedroom with furniture and navy painted wall — The Happy Housie

Why is the undertone important? It helps find coordinating colors and plays a role in whether a room is warm and inviting or cool and relaxing.

Does Hale Navy look black?

When it comes to navy blue, there’s a wide range with a variety of undertones.

What sets Hale Navy apart from other navy blue paints is its dark gray undertones.

These dark gray undertones make the navy lean towards black, but it’s still in the blue family.

One tricky thing about navy blue is that many of them tend to lean purple with the amount of red in them.

There is the slightest tint of green undertone in Hale Navy to offset this, helping it maintain that coastal look.

dining room painted with BM Hale Navy paint — Saffron Avenue

BM Hale Navy Color Code

Hale Navy is notoriously famous for its drama, which comes from its low light reflectance value (LRV).

The LRV value is the scale used to tell the quantity of visible, useable light reflected when light hits the surface.

For reference, pure black has an LRV value of 0, while white has an LRB value of 100.

The LRV value of BM Hale Navy is 6.3, which means it doesn’t reflect much light.

This means you want to use it in a space with lots of natural light or a decent amount of layered lighting to bring out the beauty of this navy blue.

boys bedroom with navy blue painted wall — Lehman Lane

What Colors Compliment Hale Navy

Coordinating Colors

What colors coordinate well with BM Hale Navy?

It’s hard to go wrong when it comes to finding another color that pairs well with Hale Navy.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t favorite combos though.

Hale Navy is one of those versatile colors you can use in all types of spaces, including classic, industrial, coastal, and modern spaces.

Here are a few ideas to get you started using Hale Navy in your home.

A Dramatic First Impression with Hale Navy

Often the “safe” choice for the outside of your home is a tan, cream, or beige.

But, because Hale Navy is considered a neutral, you can also use it to make your home stand out while still looking classic.

Just keep in mind that using a dark color can absorb more heat, fade faster, and can sometimes turn chalky from sun exposure, so they can require more upkeep than lighter colors.

When choosing Benjamin Moore Hale Navy coordinating colors, consider using Benjamin Moore White Dove for your trim.

Finish it off with Benjamin Moore Hale Orange for your front door to give your home that extra pop of color.

paint chips in navy blues, orange, beige and whites with paint brush and paint stick

Don’t worry about the orange standing out too badly. Orange and blue are complementary colors and help balance each other out.

Painting the exterior of your house a dark, bold color can be a bit intimidating. I get it.

As nice as it can look, it’s scary making such a big change!

The good news is that there are other ways to bring the beauty of BM Hale Navy to your exteriors.

In this case, consider using Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee for your exteriors and Benjamin Moore Hale Navy for your shutters, trim and accents.

Complete the look with a bold red door using another color from the Historical Collection, Benjamin Moore Heritage Red.

Using Hale Navy in a Home Office

In the world of color psychology, navy blue often invokes feelings of power or authority.

So what better place to use BM Hale Navy than in your home office.

Painting the entire office Hale Navy can give you a dark, rich, moody space.

But, it can make the room feel small and overwhelming.

Instead, use BM Hale Navy as an accent wall and complement it with Benjamin Moore Hidden Oaks, a warm tan color.

You can then pull the entire look together using a neutral such as Benjamin Moore Woodmont Cream.

Chic Statement Pieces

Hale Navy isn’t just reserved for walls. You can easily use it to give tired furniture a boost of new life.

Give your wooden kitchen chairs or stools a face-lift, or refresh your wooden picture frames with this dark navy blue.

It even makes an excellent choice for lower cabinets in the kitchen, laundry room, or powder room.

I used BM Hale Navy on a thrifted bedroom dresser to bring a touch of color to our guest bedroom. It was a perfect pop of color in our small space.

GoodWill dresser painted in navy with a white lamp on top

Just keep in mind that you want to make sure the navy goes well with your existing color scheme.

Or, if you’re looking to totally revamp your space, consider pairing Hale Navy with Benjamin Moore Spring Meadow and Benjamin Moore Butterfield.

Elevate Benjamin Moore Hale Navy with Finishing Touches

Benjamin Moore Hale Navy is a beautiful deep navy blue. But, pairing it with the right finishes can take it to the next level.

A simple way to do this is to opt for lighting and hardware in either gold or brass finishes (choosing one or the other works best).

For other furnishings, look at adding in warm leathers and wood tones.

BM Hale Navy is always a contender

If you’ve followed me for a while you know I love a dark, moody paint color.

One color I’ve always loved is Benjamin Moore Wrought Iron. I’ve used it for many of my projects, including my front door, kitchen island, and accent wall.

But, BM Hale Navy is always a contender.

For the first time I painted a room with it. Our new house has a weird little dining room so, to give it a little personality, I painted the walls with Hale Navy.

small dining room with navy walls and table and chairs

It turned out to be the perfect touch. I’m so glad that I went all in and painted the walls navy.

How to Figure Out if BM Hale Navy is Right for Your Space

Picking a dark, bold color for your home can be downright terrifying. I mean, going dark is a big commitment. Samplize lets you try on Hale Navy without having to commit.

It’s super simple and affordable at $5.95 for each repositionable swatch that doesn’t damage your walls.

All you have to do is visit Samplize.com, select Benjamin Moore Hale Navy color code HC-154 or any other color contenders.

Then place it in the room you want to paint to determine whether it’s the color for you!

Happy painting!

Don’t forget to check out our web story for this gorgeous navy blue paint color.

More Paint Color Inspiration

All About Chatfield Court

DIY projects can be both easy to do and easy on the pocket. How do I know?

Because together with my husband Roger, I have transformed our home.

We’ve done every different type of project there is, and I share our journey here at Chatfield Court to inspire you to start your own DIY adventure.

Personally, I love a touch of navy, and it’s perfect for DIY projects.

But I’m not sure I’d want a whole room full of it since it’s so dark.

What about you? Would you ever use a bold color like Hale Navy in your home?

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