The much anticipated, at least amongst the design community, Color of the Year for 2025 was announced yesterday by Benjamin Moore, one of the big US paint brands. And I have thoughts…

I find these announcements fascinating as the paint companies all try to analyze the current mindset of their consumers and the current international influences on color and select a paint color that they hope will resonate with, or at least inspire, buyers.

For 2025, Benjamin Moore has selected Cinnamon Slate, a color they describe as “a delicate mix of weathered plum and velvety brown that offers enduring style and a modern sensibility”. 

Their copywriters should get a bonus for this description.

I like plum and I like brown and I’ve used both in various projects, but the mashup of them together is less than appealing to me, personally. Could I create a beautiful room with this color? Absolutely.  Would I choose it for myself? Probably not.

My initial reaction to seeing the color was - these people never had a cat…this is exactly the color of some of the furball cat urk I have cleaned up in the course of my life, so not the most pleasant association for me.

I have long maintained that no color is inherently bad, but personal history affects how we react to color and what ones we avoid or gravitate toward.

For the COTY announcements, I am always hoping for something in the blue or green family, or barring that, a warm hue plucked from a sunset as I find these nature colors to be so appealing and versatile. But this was definitely not any of those.

Trying to be objective, I will concede this is a nuanced and complex hue and I do appreciate the sophistication and ease of more complex colors in design.  They tend to be more livable than stronger, purer hues, especially for large surfaces like walls.

And this looks like one of the colors the venerable English paint company Farrow & Ball might put forth and call something tragic like ‘anemic eggplant’ or ‘rodent cheeks’.  Farrow & Ball has beautiful complex paint colors with generally appalling names like ‘dead salmon’ and ‘broccoli brown’.

In addition to the crowned winner of Color of the Year, Ben Moore also puts out a whole curated color palette of the year with 10 shades including the COTY.  These are meant to be colors that will work well together and complement the winner .  Here is what they chose:

I personally would have preferred almost any of the other colors in the palette to Cinnamon Slate as the COTY.

Tissue Pink, a pale ballet pink with peachy tones, would make a flattering color for bedrooms or bathrooms and also would be a lovely ceiling color depending on the circumstances.

Stained Glass is a stunning teal perfect for a cozy library or kitchen cabinetry or to create a dramatic backdrop in any living space. It reminds me of some of the DeVol kitchen images. Similarly Ashwood Moss and Rosepine would work equally well in that capacity.

Paris rain would make an emminently livable wall or nearly neutral cabinet color. And Sea Salt and Glacier are nice muted neutrals that would have utility in a lot of circumstances.

As always, color trends are fun to watch and are sometimes indicative of what merchandise will be available on the horizon. But, while trends can inspire new ideas, they should never be blindly followed.

Always always ALWAYS choose what YOU love to personalize your own home!

So what do you think of Cinnamon Slate?  Would you use it in your home?

Other posts you might enjoy:

12 of the weirdest paint names

Ben Moore 2024 Color of the Year