Pick Your Palette
Anyone who's studied the shifting face of a "mood" ring can tell you that color reveals emotion. Like a mood ring, the palette you choose for your wedding day says a lot about how you're feeling and who you are. Monochromatic schemes, for example - which combine various shades of a single color, or closely related colors - convey classic elegance, sophistication, and seriousness. Bright, contrasting colors - like purple with yellow, or orange with blue - project unbridled joy and lightheartedness. The following pages illustrate a range of cutting-edge color combinations - played out in cakes, flowers, and decor - to fit a variety of moods and personalities. Which palette most pleases you?
Black-and-white may sound perfectly boring, but add a punch of color - any color - and this staid combo jumps to life, creating a look that's both edgy and romantic. We think green, one of nature's most soothing colors, softens the hard edges of a two-tone scheme perfectly. Think vintage green glassware on a black-and-white floral-print tablecloth, or bright green hypericum berries punching up a black-and-white bouquet. Think mint green and chocolate! Have fun with black-and-white as your starting point, you can let your imagination run wild.
Pink, White & Silver
The look of a winter wedding can easily veer toward "holiday" themes and trite seasonal decor. If you want a look that says "seasonal," not
"Season's Greetings," steer clear of the reds, greens, and golds that tend to dominate this time of year, and use shades of pink and white instead. Conjure the crisp, fresh feeling of an Upstate New York winter by adding subtle flashes of silver.
Brown, Blue, Yellow & Orange
Conjuring up crisp blue skies, autumn leaves, and earth, this striking combination is a perfect evocation of everything we love about fall, balancing heat and cold, neutral tones and brighter hues. Adding a more intense note - with a very bright blue or an almost red orange - lets you turn up the heat where you want to draw attention.
Blue & White
Dripping icicles, frozen lakes, birch woods deep with snow, cloudless blue sky - the minimalist palette of blue and white evokes the very essence of the winter experience. The look is clean, cool, and refined. Dressed up, not overdressed, this combination is perfect for a space with beautiful architecture that you don't want to overpower. Add accents of brown and green, with a flash of silver, to make it simply magical.
Palette Picking Tips:
Can't decide on colors? These simple suggestions will get you started.
*Answering a few basic questions can help you pick a direction. Do you have a favorite color? Or a favorite flower? Will you be married in the spring, summer, fall, or winter? Are there colors or elements of the architecture or landscape at the ceremony or reception site that you want to work with?
*To fine-tune your selection, try to come up with two or three words that describe the overall feel of the decor you want to achieve - "sophisticated," "dazzling," "earthy," "elegant," "whimsical," "vintage," "bold," "simple," "chic"? When considering possible color combinations, ask yourself if they fit the description you've come up with.
*Decide on any special objects or collections you want to include in your wedding decor - do you have your heart set on using your great grandmother's collection of antique glass bottles as vases for your table setting, for example?
*Make sure to spend some time with your partner, identifying any definite nos or yeses. He may have imagined his wedding day a certain way, too. How does it match up with your vision?
Have fun - and take comfort in that fact that it's the 21st century, and the old rules no longer apply!
