Even if colour isn’t central to the theme for your wedding day, you will still most likely end up making some colour choices.
What wedding day colour palette will you use for your invitations? What colour do the bridesmaids wear? Is there a colour that you would like to include in the bouquets, the flowers at the ceremony, and the centrepieces and decorations at the reception? Having an idea that ties all of this together can actually make your decisions easier rather than more complex.
Of course, you don’t have to have any of this matching, but most couples like the style and flow that can be created by sticking to two or three main colour choices. But how do you know which ones to choose?
How many colours do you need?
A wedding day colour palette can work best if you choose 2-3 contrasting colours, or a colour range such as pastel, jewel-toned, or metallic. These aren’t strict rules, of course, you can have as many colours as you would like (if there is one thing we don’t like it’s rules around weddings). But you don’t need to look for more colours in your palette if you are happy with 2-3.
Art 101
Choose your colours with some thought as to what goes well and what contrasts nicely. You may not want to choose 3 very dark colours for example, or several bright ones that clash. Usually one darker and one lighter goes nicely.
Use the colour wheel from high school art class to see what goes well together. Looking for colours that are on the opposite sides of the wheel tend to go beautifully together, as do those that share a central hue, theme or primary colour. Consider choosing one warm and one cool colour, or one bright and one neutral, as your starting point, and then perhaps throw in one or two more that you think adds some interest and intrigue.
Choose something based on where or when your wedding is
When you are selecting colours for your wedding, you could start your choices with considering where your ceremony or reception is being held, or the time of year that you are getting married. A beachside venue for instance might inspire blues, greens or yellows, whereas a winery setting might be more burgundy, ivory or gold.
Seasonally you have a lot to play with, with bright colours for spring, pastels for summer, or the vibrant hues of the changing leaves for autumn. If your wedding is near Christmas you could go with red and white, or perhaps royal blue and silver.
You might also choose colours that the venue has used in their décor, such as a stunning rug in the entrance or the colours of the trees that line the driveway. You don’t need to have inspiration before you plan anything for your wedding day; the perfect colours might reveal themselves to you a little down the track.
Choose your own personal favourites
You might like to choose you and your partner’s two favourite colours, or something that has meaning to you as a couple, such as your home or where you first met. You don’t have to go with your favourites if they really don’t mesh well together, but this might be a good starting point.
If there is something meaningful to you that you know you want to incorporate into your day, such as a kind of flower or a family heirloom, then make sure that you take this into consideration first, and then build the other colours around it.
Check out what is trending
If you are pretty open to colour choices but just want something that looks striking and makes you happy, why not do a bit of research into what colour palettes are fresh and new right now? The beauty of colour is that there is an unlimited number of combinations, so something new is always popping up.
Consider the theme and mood of your wedding
What sort of atmosphere are you wanting to create? This may also have an effect on the colours that you choose. Consider if your day is modern and contemporary, boho and relaxed, romantic, sophisticated, glamourous, vintage, rustic or something else. All of these themes tend to bring different wedding day colour palettes to mind.
Darker colours and metallics bring more drama to the day, while pastels may bring a more whimsical or nostalgic feel. Of course, you could buck the trend completely and go for something that is a bit of both or that brings something else the table altogether.
Inspiration can come from anywhere
If nothing is springing out at you yet, why not just look around you and do a bit more research? You could take inspiration from a piece of fabric or pattern you have seen, from a wall mural in the city, from a building, or from a piece of artwork in a gallery or cafe. Take a walk and drink in some sights of your home town and see what you can find.
Take a quiz
There are some cool style guides and quizzes online which can help you nail down your colour palette as well as a number of other choices about your wedding day. These can be fun to do and a good place to start your planning.
Check out this one from The Knot
https://www.theknot.com/wedding-vision
Flowers by: Made In Flowers
Colours that we love right now
When looking for the perfect colours for your wedding, there is an absolute treasure-trove of exciting options out there to choose from. Some recent wedding day colour palettes that we have seen include:
Brights: magenta, poppy and a lovely bold yellow
Autumn: purple, burgundy and orange
Nautical: yellow, navy and white
Glam: pale green, black and royal blue
Spring: pale blue, cornflower blue and a pretty light green
Winery: sage, merlot and gold
Boho: navy, purple and poppy
Colour doesn’t really have to play a major part in your wedding day, so try not to stress about this too much (you will likely have enough decisions to get stressed about!). If you really don’t know and it doesn’t seem that important, don’t overthink it, just go with what makes you and your partner happy.
Main image by Parsimony InspiredÂ
Florals by Carla Kayes
Name Cuts by Jen Simpson DesignÂ
Design by Kelsey Rae DesignÂ
