Benjamin Moore Bistro Blue 1421
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| Official page: | Bistro Blue 1421 |
| Code: | 1421 |
| Name: | Bistro Blue |
| Brand: | Benjamin Moore |
What color is Benjamin Moore Bistro Blue?
Benjamin Moore Bistro Blue 1421 is a muted medium-dark blue with a noticeable violet cast, giving it a softly inky, periwinkle-leaning appearance. Its grayness keeps the color from reading overly bright, while the depth makes it especially effective in rooms that need visual weight. In strong daylight, Bistro Blue can appear clearer and bluer; under warm lamps, its violet undertone becomes more apparent. Use it on a study wall, a powder room, built-in shelving, or lower cabinetry paired with warm white paint, pale oak, brushed brass, and natural linen. For a more graphic contrast, it also sits well beside crisp white trim and charcoal-black details.
Bistro Blue for exterior
Looking for a fresh new look for your house exterior or starting from skretch? We’ve collected pictures of real-life homes that have been painted with this cool blue hue. Find inspiration for your house’s exterior, front doors, gates, shutters, frames or windows.
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What are Benjamin Moore Bistro Blue undertones?
Bistro Blue is a deep, soft slate blue. The HEX sample leans blue; this describes its measurable digital hue direction, not a hidden paint pigment. Warm bulbs may gray the color down, while cool daylight usually makes its blue or teal direction clearer.
HEX value:
RGB code:
83, 88, 138
Is Benjamin Moore Bistro Blue cool or warm?
warm
cool
With a hue of 235°, this dark blue reads cool based on its HSL hue position.
1421 Bistro Blue HSL code: 235, 25%, 43%
Hue - degree on a color wheel from 0 to 360. 0 is red, 120 is green, and 240 is blue.
Saturation is expressed as a percentage. At 0%, it appears as a shade of grey, and at 100%, it is in full color.
Lightness is also a percentage value. 0% is black, and 100% is white.
How light temperature affects Bistro Blue
Natural Lighting. During the day, natural light shifts from about 2000 K at sunrise/sunset to 5500–6500 K at noon.
In addition, natural-light temperature depends on its direction:
| Direction of sunlight | Visible temp. | Hue | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| North | Cool | Bluish | All day |
| East | Warm | Yellow | Before noon |
| West | Warm | Orange-red | After noon |
| South | Warm | Orange-yellow | All day |
Artificial Lighting. When choosing bulbs, pay attention to their color temperature in Kelvins.
Use the slider to see how this dark blue shade looks under different lighting:
4000K
Coordinating colors.
Colors that go with Benjamin Moore Bistro Blue:
Monochromatic color scheme
This scheme consists of various shades, tints, and tones of a single color. While it offers a perfect combination of hues, without accent décor it may become monotonous.
Lighter shades
1421
Bistro Blue
Darker shades
1421
Bistro Blue
Complementary color scheme
This color scheme is a combination of two shades that are opposite each other on the color wheel. The high contrast between these colors creates a vibrant and dynamic visual effect. For the color Bistro Blue with a blue hue, complementary colors are those with a orange hue close to 55, such as Benjamin Moore Himalayan Trek and Briarwood.
LRV of Bistro Blue
Bistro Blue has an LRV of 13.33% and refers to Medium Dark which means that this color reflects very little light. Why LRV is important?
Light Reflectance Value measures the amount of visible and usable light that reflects from a painted surface.
Simply put, the higher the LRV of a paint color, the brighter the room you will get.
The scale goes from 0% (absolute black, absorbing all light) to 100% (pure white, reflecting all light).
Act like a pro: When choosing paint with an LRV of 13.33%, pay attention to your bulbs' brightness. Light brightness is measured in lumens. The lower the paint's LRV, the higher lumen level you need. Every square foot of room needs at least 40 lumens. That means for a 200 ft2 living room you'll need about 8000 lumens of light – e.g., eight 1000 lm bulbs.
Color codes
We have collected almost every possible color code you could ever need.
Not sure what the difference between HEX and RGB is? We break down color models in plain language. Understanding color models
| Format | Code |
|---|---|
| HEX | #53588A |
| RGB Decimal | 83, 88, 138 |
| RGB Percent | 32.55%, 34.51%, 54.12% |
| HSV | Hue: 235° Saturation: 39.86% Value: 54.12% |
| HSL | hsl(235, 25, 43) |
| CMYK | Cyan: 39.86 Magenta: 36.23 Yellow: 0.0 Key: 45.88 |
| YIQ | Y: 92.205 I: -19.047 Q: 14.502 |
| XYZ | X: 11.643 Y: 10.653 Z: 25.481 |
| CIE Lab | L:38.99 a:11.295 b:-28.438 |
| CIE Luv | L:38.99 u:-5.049 v:-41.335 |
| Decimal | 5462154 |
| Hunter Lab | 32.639, 6.556, -23.44 |
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