How to Coordinate Wedding Colors

Creating a well-coordinated wedding design often depends on the success with which you coordinate colors. From sharp contrasts to simple, monochromatic schemes, the way you choose to coordinate your wedding colors will affect the look of your entire wedding.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Color palette

Choose a Monochromatic Palette

1. Pick a color that is significant for you or your future spouse. This might be one of your favorite colors or a color with cultural or religious meaning for both of you.

2. Choose multiple shades or values of this color as your accent colors. The most successful monochromatic palettes will include one to two accent colors on either side of the value scale.

3. Pick invitations in the base color of your wedding and have them printed with one of the accent colors, setting the tone for your wedding decoration color scheme.

4. Combine the multiple shades of your base color when picking your bridesmaids' dresses. For example, you might choose an accent color for the body of the dress and use the base color for the sash or a decorative hem.

5. Ask your florist to create tasteful monochromatic bouquets for the reception tables. Blooms of a single color, arranged without foliage, will carry off this motif successfully.

Create Contrast With Color

6. Mix up your color palette by selecting a base color and its complementary as your jumping-off point. For example, you might choose a creamy orange for your base color with blue as its complementary.

7. Choose one or two colors a shade lighter or darker than your base color to complete your palette.

8. Coordinate wedding decorations by dividing up the usage of each of the colors. To highlight your base color, use it at least 50 percent of the time and divide the remaining decorative choices equally between your accent colors.

9. Choose flowers for your attendants in the complementary accent color from your palette. You can then contrast this with a decorative-bouquet wrap in a darker or lighter shade of your base color.

10. Alternate the use of colors from your palette when designing your wedding favors. You can use ribbons of different colors to tie small packages of candy or nuts and place them in alternating patterns around your reception tables.

Tips & Warnings

• Create a wedding color palette by gluing paint chips to card stock or painting swatches with watercolor paint. If you keep this palette with your wedding planner, you will be prepared to select coordinating colors for all your wedding accessories.