Instructions

• Step 1: Consider venue Consider the colors of the venue when planning your color scheme. Hot pink and lime may clash with the venue's navy walls and yellow rug.
• Step 2: Take a cue from home Take a cue from your home decor. If your style leans toward modern, minimal, and monochromatic, look for neutral colors. If you have one red accent wall, mix in a few bold splashes of color.
• Step 3: Create a seasonal mood Choose colors with a specific seasonal mood, such as white, ice blue, and silver for a winter wonderland or red, brown, pumpkin, and gold to evoke a fall harvest atmosphere.
• Step 4: Make mood boards Take pictures out of magazines with color combinations you like and put them together in a collage. You may have just two colors as a theme or up to five. Narrow down to your six favorites.
• TIP: Consider the mood you want to evoke. Beachy pastels take on a more formal look paired with a sophisticated metallic.
• Step 5: Collect swatches Go to a fabric shop or paint store to get swatches in your prospective colors so you can choose and describe the hues accurately. Do you want sky blue, Caribbean blue, or lapis?
• TIP: Choose hues from a Pantone color guide, which is used by many cake decorators and invitation designers.
• Step 6: Mix it up Avoid matching everything from the centerpieces and cake to the invitations and bouquets. Use varying shades of a hue or more than one hue, especially in the bridesmaid dresses.
• Step 7: Do the unexpected Incorporate your colors in unexpected ways. Use a colored font on the invitation and a theme-hued ribbon on the favors or add a colorful sash to the wedding gown and work in colorful cufflinks.
• FACT: Blue was the color of purity in the Middle Ages. It's the origin of today's wedding rhyme with "something blue."

You Will Need

• Venue
• Mood boards
• Paint or fabric swatches
• Pantone color guide (optional)