Naval plays a starring role in a trio of stunning projects, from a clubby restaurant to a refined farmhouse kitchen.

Raising the Bar

With a menu created in part by chef Travis Swikard — who worked alongside renowned New York City–based chef and restaurateur Daniel Boulud for a decade — Black Rail Kitchen + Bar naturally carried high expectations when it opened last fall. Those expectations, however, were not limited to food and drink. The design for the Carlsbad, California, restaurant had to meet an equally exacting standard.

Designer Katie Reneé with MY Studio ID delivered with what she describes as “1940s New York social club meets laid-back Southern California hospitality.” Sherwin-Williams’ 2020 Color of the Year, Naval SW 6244 (253-C6), plays a critical part as a backdrop to a wall mural and on wood surfaces including a center-stage bar. “Naval worked well in creating a classic, timeless feel,” Reneé says. It also complements the restaurant’s palette of warm wood, brass accents, and rich leather and velvet upholstery.

Naval-painted woodwork pairs perfectly with other surfaces in the bar, including towering iron beams and brass fixtures.

Photos: Michael Auda, Auda & Auda Photography

A Vibrant, Versatile Neutral

Vibrant colors are one of interior designer Hallie Henley Sims’ hallmarks. So when she embarked on upping the elegance in a circa-1967 Houston home, the homeowners knew full well she’d go bold — and beat her to the punch with the request for navy blue on their living room’s walls. She chose Naval, a hue she extended to the adjacent bar area and kitchen island. “That created consistency throughout the first floor,” Sims says.

Sims sees Naval as a neutral. “Consider it the blue jeans of an outfit — it goes with everything,” she says. “I’ve paired it with bright citrusy greens such as in this project, but I’ve also used it separately with orange and red. Naval also happens to look amazing with shades of lavender.”

Naval brings understated elegance to a renovated living room, which designer Hallie Henley Sims now calls the lounge. She chose to cover the walls of the adjacent dining room — reflected in the mirror — with lime-green grasscloth.

Photo: Jack Thompson

Sophisticated Farmhouse Style

Three variations of navy blue vied for a place in this newly renovated Morgantown, West Virginia, kitchen. Naval had the best “purity of hue” to it, interior designer Stephen Shutts says. “Others leaned toward more green overtones or were more purple-y.”

The effect was exactly what Shutts and the homeowners wanted for the cabinets in the late-1800s farmhouse kitchen. “People throw around the term ‘farmhouse,’ but one of the things I love about this space is that it’s truly authentic,” Shutts says. “It’s not just about the look — it’s a working farmhouse.”

The space is family-friendly yet sophisticated, thanks, in part, to Shutts’ decision to treat the cabinets to a lacquer look that reflects light — something Hunn Cabinet Co. achieved through a multi-step process that used Sherwin-Williams SHER-WOOD^® KEM Aqua^® Plus as a final finish. Oversized ceramic tile on the walls, Carrera marble-look quartz countertops and a Lacanche range — all white — complement the look. Metal finishes do, too. “I find that silver and brass tones work really beautifully with that color,” Shutts says. “In this kitchen, all metal finishes are brass, but either would look great.”

A final finish of Sherwin-Williams SHER-WOOD^® KEM Aqua^® Plus gives cabinets a lacquer look that reflects light.

Photo: Michael Kaskel