Is Navy The New Black?
I woke up Friday, looked in my closet and decided that I’m sick of wearing black. Shocking I know, and a real shame because I own epic quantities of black clothes and accessories. I’m not planning to rush out and donate my things because I know I’ll go back to loving black because:
- it’s slimming
- is sophisticated
- is timeless and always chic
- makes packing and traveling easier
- is easy to coordinate
- seldom shows dirt
- dresses up and down with ease
- can look harsh on many complexions
As I shoved my black things further along the rod I ran across a navy handbag, turtleneck, and blouse that got me wondering if navy could play all the roles that black does in my wardrobe. Navy is not as readily available to buy as black, but can it replace black in your wardrobe?
Navy:
- is classic and timeless
- available in warm and cool tones so universally flattering
- is sophisticated and elegant
- seldom shows dirt
- looks effortless
- coordinates with every other color in the rainbow
- looks amazing in hot weather
- is slimming
Somewhere, at some time, someone said navy and black don’t go together… which is total bunk! It’s a sophisticated color combination that looks fantastic.
Bags look so much richer in navy than they do in black.
Navy looks great with brown, gray, black, green, red, pink, yellow, orange, beige, off white, purple, etc which begs the question, “why is black the most popular color?”.
It turns out that navy is the new black and will be occupying more space in my wardrobe going forward.
Have you embraced navy in your wardrobe?
If you liked this post, I’d love you to pin this image to Pinterest.
Thanks for reading and be sure to wear what makes you feel confident.
I adore navy and have worn it all my life, but especially since early 20’s when I was building my career wardrobe. I have blue eyes, fair skin and warm chestnut brown hair . . .and have always received the most compliments wearing navy and other blues and greens. I pair it with pale buttery yellows, peach, and white in blouses, and for night and a little drama I love a long navy skirt with a fluid chiffon blouse in black, paired with black sling backs or kitten heel pumps. I also buy all my swimwear in navy mix-and-match pieces from Lands End collection, and then a white cover-up to make the most of a tan.
Love the black and navy tote….where can I find it????
That bag is on the widget for handbags
I love, love, love navy! It looks much better on me than black and has always been a neutral in my closet. It looks great with denim and especially chic with white. Navy seems to be everywhere for Spring, so it shouldn’t be difficult to find that perfect shade.
I’m finding a lot of it too!
I have been wearing navy for about four years now, especially in summer. It is widely available in Australia. we have a much shorter “winter” here too, so navy is quite trans seasonal. just love navy, and it is much more flattering close to my face than black.
I have been adding navy to my wardrobe for the past year or so. It’s such classic color for every season.
I love pairing navy and lavender — years ago I had a beautiful navy winter coat and had a lavender hat and scarf to go with it. I used to get so many compliments!
I’m planning a trip and using navy as the base colour for the travel capsule. It is a great, versatile colour and much better for a warm weather trip than black which can look dull in a hot climate. I agree with Penelope that it can be hard to create outfits with the many hues of navy and I like her suggestion for carrying a colour swatch of “your” navy!
I have always loved navy. It looks great with distressed jeans. In the summer it looks great with red and white. love navy shoes and booties!
It’s so fresh looking
Navy is certainly a happier color than black and I just love it’s versatility agelessness. I have always used it in place of black since the latter is too dense and heavy for me. My ongoing issue with navy is the many variations of the hue, making it difficult to create outfits unless coordinates are purchased in the same brand , at the same time. I have several navy pieces that are mismatched and do not create outfits, because, unlike some colors, in my opinion, mismatched navy looks tacky and cheap. Especially when warm and cool tones of navy are mixed.
I now carry a fabric swatch of “ my” navy color with me when I shop to help avoid mistakes. It saves much frustration. (Paint chips are invaluable for this).
Great idea Penelope!
Love navy but there are so many variations in the shade. Not all navy pieces can work together which is so frustrating when trying to build a wardrobe around it. Mixing prints could solve some of the problems . Yet I prefer solids. Don’t others have this difficulty?
I’ve been wearing Navy since age 5 in grade school. Mostly because my mom made me and now 55 years later, I still wear Navy and it’s so easy to throw on. The color is softer too. Thank you for finding some Navy options. The brand “Something Navy” at Nordstroms has some nice Navy basics.
I’ve been wearing navy as my dark neutral ever since having my colors done 10 years ago. It also looks much better against my skin at age 65 than black does, much more flattering. You have tempted me to get some black pants which I do use for traveling and at home with a more flattering color on top. I just wish there were more navy items out there! Dressing in black and looking great is such a slam dunk. Dressing with navy as your dark neutral takes a lot more effort. Not as easy to look pulled together and sophisticated as black is.
Thank you for this post! I couldn’t agree more — I have too much black in my closet and not enough navy, a color that generates compliments when I wear it. I’ve always wondered, though, are navy and indigo the same color? I see Talbots offers a lot of clothes and shoes in “indigo” and am unsure if that’s just another name for “navy.” Thoughts?
Great timely article. I absolutely love navy and just received a navy pair of pants from Chicos. When I choose an accessory or top I try to get a pattern that includes a little navy as well as black. It works perfect for traveling.
You’re so right!!! Navy and all dark blues are as useful and flattering as black. My favorites are indigo and midnight blues which are rare.
When I finally wear black it feels very dramatic.
Im waiting patiently for navy to be the color of the season and then pounce and pick up a few good pieces to last for years.
Black and gray make up my entire wardrobe. I’m trying to add a few pops of color, especially since I went to my natural gray hair color. I do have a favorite navy and gray houndstooth sweater, and added a navy and green tartan turtleneck from JCrew. I’m going to check out some navy lines – great idea.
Navy truly is a wonderful color and as versatile as black, as others have said. However, navy can be hard to match……..dye lots seem to vary so much. So the navy slacks that you thought would look great with that navy/white stripe sweater don’t really…..they look over washed or black-ish, not the look you were going for. Even in the same store it can be hard to find navies that match—if that’s what you’re going for. I, too, am hoping for a renaissance of navy over the next year—that can help justify the spending for new clothes vs buying more black pant/leggings or black tops. And, hopefully they will be of a hue to strike a happy note with black to really extend the closet offerings.
Many brands match their navy’s within a collection. Black does have the same matching challenge but we tend to ignore it. The secret is to find navy’s that have the same I undertone!
I think navy has never had the popularity of black because there are too many different colors of it. It’s so frustrating to try to put a navy outfit together when the shoes, the pants and the top are alllll different shades of the color. It ends up not flowing together at all.
I never wear navy shoes with navy pants. Black works best in MHO:)
Hi Jennifer, Ditto on the navy thinking…can you provide details on the black/navy handbag that you featured? I love it!
It is in the handbag widget. It’s by Claire V. It’s an investment but a great combo of navy shades.
I’ve always liked blue, including navy. As a summer, people don’t say, wow, that black is your color. They do like the black outfit , and often, they are winters, who make the comment. When I sewed, I could make any colored outfit, not just what the stores offered, I didn’t realize how limiting the store palettes are. Shoes have been a problem for years. Hopefully with the panetone blue color of the year, navy shoes will be shown. Some of the most sophisticated looks I’ve admired have been monochromatic, springs in all cream, autumns in all camel, green, or brown, summers in all grey, or blue, these looks are gorgeous, especially in nice fabrics, be still my heart… wow.
It’s very hopeful this spring! When I was a buyer for high end boutiques we bought everything in black and one navy for me. I wish I’d kept all those things.
About two months ago, I came suddenly to the same conclusion as you about black. I found ‘LL Bean to have some classic pieces in navy, Plus jjill has been adding navy (their scarves are particularly nice to tie the different shades of blue together).