well, for the first time ever we present the2025 kQ Color of the Year!
HALE NAVY HC 154 from the Benjamin Moore Historical Colors Collection!
If we’ve been friends for a bit you know every year I eagerly await the Pantone Color of the Year reveal…and for 2025, Mocha Mousse has been selected.
Mixed reactions on the inter webs and I know in the bigger scheme of things color of the year selection isn’t monumental… but this annual selection by Pantone reverberates through fashion, art, the design world, florals, event production.
I usually have a strong opinion about color… ok, I ALWAYS have a strong opinion about color. There was a time in Brooklyn when folks would solicit my opinion about paint tones for their home, hire me to consult on decorating and staging projects and of course…design the most celebratory events in their lives. Color was a driving factor in all of these situations and the Pantone Color of the Year reveal was epic… almost a celebration and cause for a party itself.
Although I dig some neutral tones, sorry beige you’re not one of them, I find this selection MEH. Yes, it is warm and I guess comforting unless it reminds you of your old Brooklyn apartment building where they painted the doors brown and halfway up the hallway walls so it looked like each floor was flooded waist deep by sewer water. I suppose we will see nods to this Mocha Mousse tone in the coming year but I would like to make my own, first ever Kerry Quade Color of the Year selection…. and here it is HALE NAVY!
Benjamin Moore has been my go to paint recommendation for over a decade. The Historical Colors collection is a staple in my color recommendation repertoire, of course with a soft eggshell finish. I chose the Hale Navy and it’s nod to maritime notions because it evokes a solid foundation. The deep rich tonal value sets the stage for what is to come. Whether an accent wall or using the tone as a table linen for an event Hale Navy captures a vibe evoking quiet, strength, and solid footing laying a canvas to create an environment that envelops you in the experience of the room, event or outfit. Blues are generally a calming palette and the Hale Navy does this in a way that speaks with both historical undertones and a modern sensibility.
Of course, this is my opinion. If you were to select a 2025 Color of the Year what would it be?
