Why Navy is the New Black – At Least For Me.

Image courtesy of shop style.com

I have a confession to make. There was a time when I hated navy – it was my school uniform colour and it took me almost 30 years to get over that fact. Up until a couple of years ago I just couldn’t bring myself to wear it – there were too many associations with rules, regulations and uniformity so I simply adopted black as my base colour and the foundation of much of my wardrobe. While I still have a deep affection for black, that eternally chic, streamlined and slimming shade, in my mid-forties I began to notice that it was not quite so fond of me. I began to observe that it emphasised the dark shadows under my eyes, made my winter pallor more ghostly and if not wearing a full face of make-up could render me drawn and dejected looking. 

At around the same time I began to perceive that navy was enjoying a resurgence in popularity – it was being worn by fashion editors on the “frow”, was appearing increasingly in editorials and was also being championed amongst younger women who were paring it with unexpected brights such as  red, burnt orange and neon pink. Suddenly navy didn’t look “mumsy” and “matronly” anymore but cool, classic and understated. Once Phoebe Philo started giving the colour her endorsement I was sold.  I didn’t consciously decide to re-evaluate my bias against navy but somehow subtly and imperceptibly I began to soften my attitude and the next thing I knew I had bought a navy tailored pea coat. Next came a striped navy and cream maillot, a pair of slim navy cropped pants, a pair of navy suede pumps and a navy leather jacket. Gradually I became a fully-fledged “navy-ophile” and soon wearing the shade with increasing frequency. 

I was forced to admit that the softer inkier darkness of navy was much kinder to my skin tone and was just as flexible an anchor colour as black.  I had to acknowledge that my school uniform experience had blinded me to the positive attributes of navy for too long. Now I began to appreciate that black is not the only shade to confer gravitas – navy is elegant and serene but not quite as sober as black – it doesn’t take itself quite as seriously. It possesses a chic French allure that is sexy without being self-conscious. This Autumn Winter is has been given a serious style re-boot courtesy of Maria Grazia Chiuri at Dior who showcased a collection almost entirely in navy which was inspired by Christain Dior’s assertion that “Among all the colours, navy blue is the only one that can ever compete with black, it has all the same qualities.”  

As a colour navy has always had association with uniforms – the colour was named after the dark blue worn by officers in the British Royal Navy since 1748 and has therefore long been connected with functionality without fuss. Indigo the shade most associated with denim (the uniform of the street) has its roots in workwear and was perhaps the first incarnation of navy in a newly fashionable guise. Certainly the renaissance of navy owes much to the huge popularity of denim again in the past five years – women began to wear the colour as a partner to their designer denims and over time an increasing amount of directional labels began to include navy garments in their collections. Previously seen as something that your mother wore in sensible slacks and nice blazers, navy began to be perceived as innately cool. In a social media  saturated world where attention seeking has grown to epidemic proportions, there is something about the restraint of navy that is immensely appealing. There is also the bonus that if you buy navy well it will last a lifetime.   

If you stop to recall perfect navy fashion moments there are some quintessential images  – Jackie Kennedy Onassis on the streets of New York in a navy pea coat, Marilyn Monroe in dark denim in The Misfits, Princess Diana in a long languid Catherine Walker slip dress accessorised with a huge aristocratic sapphire, Victoria Beckham in a tailored trouser suit or Alexa Chung in one of her beloved navy jumpers of tomboyish jumpsuits. What is illustrated by these is how adaptable navy is to all women regardless of body shape or style – it is the chameleon of shades – looking distinctly  different on each wearer yet also simultaneously as if it belongs to them personally. Put simply – everyone looks good in navy. 

There are of course certain garments that seem to look better in navy than any other colour – the blazer, jeans, pea-coat, cable sweater and cropped trousers all seem to reach peak perfection in navy . A navy tailored blazer is perhaps the most perfect pairing – first worn by naval seamen as a uniform adorned with pewter, brass or silver buttons, it was later adopted by civilians who had Savile Row tailors craft bespoke versions which were then copied by preppy Ivy Leaguers in the US in the 1920s. It has been the talismanic garment for Ralph Lauren over the span of his entire design career and reached its most perfect incarnation of waspish sophisticated glamour on the divine Robert Redford in the 1974 film, The Great Gatsby.    

 Navy - this inky, cool, sharp shade manages to look calm, collected, intelligent, intriguing, elegant, sophisticated and confident without even breaking a sweat. Despite never drawing attention to itself or its wearer, navy always manages to look expensive and effortless. There are multiple shades of navy – those with  purplish, blue or indigo undertones – shades that are darker or lighter, clearer or smokier. As a neutral it is extremely flexible and can be worn with a wide array of other colours including black, grey, camel, chocolate brown, tan, orange, all shades of lighter blues, lilac, cream, white, red, cerise and even yellow. 

It semaphores calm enduring style in an increasingly chaotic and frenzied world. It manages to transcend trends while exemplifying modern glamour. That is why for me navy is the new black and I will be continuing to wear it throughout the winter. As I get older I find myself drawn increasingly to simpler things – no fuss, no stress just easy relaxed glamour. Navy symbolises this attitude perfectly. Yes, this is going to be my blue period.