Salty Dog Undertones: What to Compare Beside Your Finishes

Start with the documented color character

Salty Dog is a very deep navy. A physical comparison is needed to decide how that character works with your own finishes. Salty Dog is among the deepest navy references here, with less reflectance than Indigo Batik.

Why the white counters and aged brass relationship matters

A white counter and brass handles can define the cabinetry, but the lower door still needs to be acceptable when obvious blue recedes.

Salty Dog has an LRV of 5; Sherwin-Williams Indigo Batik SW-7602 is 8. The difference is 3 points, with Indigo Batik returning more light under the reference measurement. Indigo Batik is a saturated denim blue with very low reflectance. This supplies a named color control; the LRV gap alone does not identify the warmer, greener or pinker paint.

Use Indigo Batik as a control

Give Salty Dog enough illuminated area to reveal its color, then move the same board into the normal shadow. Compare it briefly with Indigo Batik. Decide whether the hue is important everywhere or whether a near-black impression is acceptable in the darker parts of the planned surface.

Separate a persistent cast from a comparison effect

Judge the blue on the lower door before using it for tall cabinets as well. The warm-versus-cool comparison covers that related choice.

If the unwanted cast remains beside a permanent finish under normal light, that is a practical reason to replace Salty Dog. If it appears only beside an unused sample, remove the comparison and assess the intended palette alone. Before ordering samples, compare room-planning features in the paint color visualizer roundup.