When planning a wedding or any event for that matter, one of the most important components beyond choosing a wedding date, composing your guest list, and finding the perfect venue is the color scheme! In many cases couples choose colors that are favorites of theirs or that certain color the Bride feels she looks real good in. But you also must take into consideration what that color conveys; what's the feeling, emotion, and image behind it...
Cool colors; such as blue, green, turquoise, and silver, convey a calming, comforting and nurturing effect. While warm colors; such as red, yellow, gold, and orange can create excitement while also conveying emotions from simple optimism to strong violence. The neutrals of black and brown also carry attributes of warm colors.
(The year next to each color is the year Pantone named it Color of that Year.)
Pink (Pantone color of 2011 Honeysuckle Pink )
Pink is a softer, innocent, sweet, less violent side of red. Pink has been a popular choice for weddings as it is the color of universal love. With it being a combination of red & white it takes on the symbolism of those colors. White stands for the potential for fullness whilst red is said to help achieve that fullness. Deeper shades of pink are said to neutralize disorder, aggression & violence. This is also the color that promotes feelings of caring, love, acceptance, self-worth & tenderness. Pink carnations mean ‘I will never forget you’. The most common image of pink is breast cancer awareness; which is never a bad thing.
Red (2007 Chili Pepper)
Red is a very strong and powerful color, it suggest confidence and demands attention while symbolizing love, passion, sex, and power! Traditionally the color of love & passion in Western cultures, in China red symbolizes happiness & good fortune, and purity in Indian cultures. As red is the color of blood it has strong symbolism with the essence of life & vitality.
The negative images about red is it's also the color of war, bad temper and anger. It is the color of Mars, which is named after the God of War. As red is a warm color it is associated with fiery heat, warmth & danger or burning.
Yellow (2009 Mimosa)
Yellow is the warm color of sunshine. Like red, it has conflicting symbolism. On the one hand it denotes happiness and joy but on the other hand yellow is the color of cowardice and deceit. Yellow can bring with it a sense of clarity & awareness, but it is the shade of yellow which determines its meaning. A bright sunny yellow is the easiest to see and is full of creative and intellectual energy. It symbolizes wisdom, joy & happiness. A yellow green means deceit & can create disorientation. An orange yellow gives a sense of establishments whilst a light yellow can clear the mind leaving it active & alert. Yellow daffodils symbolize unrequited love. Yellow is a happy, joyful, cheerful, and hopeful color. Because it is close to the color gold, it is sometimes a symbol of wealth. Think of sunshine and summer as wedding themes. The yellow in wedding dresses, wedding candles, and flowers indicate a happy moment. For Japanese, it is a symbol of royalty and courage.
The bad images of yellow is emergency, cowardice, deceit, and hazard. In Egypt, the yellow means death, grief, and mourning.
Brown
Brown is a warm neutral color, that brings with it a sense of comfort, warmth, and coziness. The guests will be obliged to stay longer and like Orange, it's said that brown can also stimulate the appetite and make food taste better. It is the color of wood, earth, and stone; and is associated with the material side of life. Brown is a color which can coordinate with many different surroundings, being a mixture of red, blue & yellow. It is a stabilizing color which can promote practical energy & mental focus. Certain shades of brown can create a sense of warmth, comfort, wholesomeness, naturalness & dependability.
The only bad image is that it is sometimes dull. However, the brown brings character to the location.
Orange
Orange is a vibrant warm color. It's a combination of red and yellow so it shares some common attributes with those colors. But orange has a bit less intensity and aggression than red, calmed by the cheerfulness of yellow. Subtle shades of orange are said to stimulate the appetite & reduce tension, whilst brighter shades promote high energy & anxiety. It's also considered a power, healing color & can stimulate enthusiasm & creativity. As red is associated with fiery heat, orange is associated with the energy and warmth of the sun. It is a dynamic color which brings with characteristics of curiosity & wanting to try new things. The meaning of orange is vitality and endurance whilst people who like orange are said to be thoughtful & sincere.
It is also the color associated with Lady Luck!
Blue (2008 Blue Iris/ 2000 Cerulean blue)
Blue is a calming & soothing color, it can be strong and steadfast or light and friendly. Blue is recommended and versatile.Often associated with the color of water and the sky, it has come to symbolize serenity and infinity, particularly shades of aqua & teal. Blue calls for calmness, tranquility, nobleness, and faithfulness; while a dark blue is the color of truthfulness and moderation. Wear blue gemstones such as sapphires or topaz for a sense of calm.
Be careful though because some shades of blue can cause feelings of depression, loneliness, and sadness. In all the culture, blue has the lowest amount of bad images.
Turquoise (2010)
A blend of blue and green; shades of turquoise such as aqua, aquamarine, beryl, blue-green, cerulean, teal, and ultramarine, have the same calming effects of those colors. Turquoise symbolizes youth and communication. This shade of blue has been traditionally used for protection, health, confidence & strength. Some shades of turquoise have an old-fashioned 50s and 60s retro feel. Teal has a darker, somewhat more sophisticated look.
Green
Green is life. Abundant in nature, green signifies growth, renewal, health, and environment. Green is a restful color with some of the same calming attributes of blue. Like blue, time moves faster in a green room.
Associated with spring & prosperity it can also be a negative color in terms of feelings of jealousy & nausea. For many centuries it has been thought to represent fertility with green being the color of choice for many 15
th century brides. Green is often considered a safe color, it contains the energies of nature, growth & the desire to expand. Green symbolizes wealth, money, nature, environment, fertility, growth, re-birth, victory, healing, abundant, and renewable. The green tells of new life and beginning after the wedding. Oftentimes, we use green to show the awareness to be eco-friendly, or environment friendly.
On the flip side, the bad image of green is greed, jealousy, and envy.
Purple (2005 Violet Tulip)
Purple is warm and cool, it has often been associated with royalty and authority in the Western world as purple was a hard and expensive color to produce. Even in today’s modern world it still invokes a sense of elegance and sophistication. A mysterious color, purple is associated with both creativity, nobility and spirituality. It has a special, almost sacred place in nature: lavender, orchid, lilac, and violet flowers are often delicate and considered precious. It is said to be the color of good judgment and profitable to those seeking spiritual fulfillment. It is also used to represent mystery & magic, as well as peace of mind. Violet shades of purple are associated with imagination and inspiration. Deep or bright purples suggest riches and lighter purples are more romantic and delicate.
Gold
The cousin to yellow, orange, and brown. The color gold shares many of the attributes of yellow, it is a warm color that can be both bright and cheerful as well as somber and traditional. Because gold is a precious metal, the color gold is associated with wealth, prosperity, and of good health. Gold is linked with divinity and is associated with those gods linked to the sun.
White
White is the most common wedding color, it is a neutral color also associated with purity, innocence, cleanliness, and virtue.
It is the color of kindness, wholeness and completion. Carry white daisies in your bouquet as a symbol of loyal love.
Black
Black depicts formal, modern, mysterious, sexy, and sophisticated. It can be serious and conventional.
Black is also possibly the most misunderstood color, also being associated with death. Native Americans believe black to be a good color as it is the color of soil, the bringer of life. Black is seen as being restful, mysterious and gives a sense of potential and possibility. It is a color that is always in fashion, and it never goes out of style. With black, you feel elegant, powerful, and sophisticated. Black works well with lighter colors such as yellow, white, blue, red, and green. Black will also stand out in photographs.
On the contrary, it is often linked with the unknown, unseen, fear and darkness.
Gray
Gray is a neutral, balanced color. It is a conservative color that seldom evokes strong emotion although it can be seen as a cloudy or moody color. Like black, gray is used as a color of mourning as well as a color of formality. Regarded as the color of sorrow, gray was actually 2009's color of choice for weddings. Dark, charcoal gray carries with it some of the strength and mystery of black. It is a sophisticated color without much of the negative attributes of black. Native Americans associated black with friendship and it is seen as the symbol of security, maturity and dependability. It also gives off a sense of responsibility and conservative. Gray can be seen as a restful color although some will associate it with feelings of emptiness and devoid of emotion. It has a cooling effect when teamed with other colors especially more vibrant shades.
