Wedding Color Schemes and Themes


Picking wedding color schemes and/or a wedding theme for your special day is one of the first decisions that you'll need to make. The color or theme has an influence on the decor for the ceremony and reception, and are reflected in items like your invitations and the attire for your bridal party.


You don't need to have a themed wedding but it's a popular option for many couples. Some ideas for a wedding themes are:

  • Doves
  • Daisies
  • Beach
  • Mardi Gras
  • Cinderella or Fairy Tale
  • Season Inspired
         - New Year's
         - Valentine's
         - Christmas
  • Victorian
  • Art Deco
  • Maybe even a certain era like the 1950's or 1960's.
  • Culturally inspired
          - Irish weddings - visit The Irish Path for Irish wedding ideas
          - Jewish weddings - visit Jewish Wedding Rabbi for Jewish wedding ideas
          - Asian weddings
          - Indonesian weddings

How can color schemes and themes come together?

Each of the themes that I mentioned above are actual designs that you can incorporate into the style of your wedding or have distinct colors that are associated with them.

If you were to use the daisy theme you could have daisies printed onto your invitations or have your bridesmaids wear yellow.

For an Asian theme you could use colors like red and gold and use bamboo in your decor.

If you want stay away from a traditional wedding and reception, you could do a 1950's theme and ask guests to wear jeans and poodle skirts and have the reception at a diner. You can use these ideas to come up with your own theme.


Do I need a theme?


No, you don't need a named theme like one above. You could just pick one of many wedding color schemes on which to base your event.

You could always use your favorite color if you have one. Or you could go to a paint store or somewhere like Home Depot or Loews and get a paint color swatch.

They are FREE and it gives you a range of colors so that once you pick your main color it'll be easier to pick accent colors.


Color Combinations

Using a color swatches can help you come up with different wedding color combinations. I always remember the movie Steel Magnolias when Julia Roberts chose the colors "Blush" and "Bashful" (both were shades of pink) for her wedding day.

Two shades on the same paint swatch should work fine. I happen to think that chocolate (a rich dark brown) and ivory are really nice together.

Or you could get a color wheel and come up with two colors that complement each other. One of the many wedding color schemes that I have seen is mint green and peach. It's a really beautiful combination.

When picking wedding color schemes, you'll want to remember to choose colors that go with the season for which your wedding is planned.

For instance pastels and light colors like butterscotch are great for the spring and dark colors like wine and emerald green are nice for autumn. Have fun choosing your themes and colors.



Finished learning about wedding color schemes? Get more wedding reception information.