Starry Night Blue

Starry Night Blue is Benjamin Moore's inkiest navy, and the brand files it under purple for a reason: there is a definite violet cast under the blue, so it reads as dusk rather than nautical. With an LRV under 8 it swallows light, which is exactly what you want when a room is meant to feel enclosed and dramatic.

It is at its best on all four walls of a small room — a bar, a study, a powder room — where lacquer or an eggshell sheen lets lamplight skate across it. Brass, gilt and warm wood glow against it; pair it with a soft white like Chantilly Lace on the ceiling to keep the room from going flat.