White gowns and black suits are ever present tones at a wedding, along with the couple’s signature colours.
But while they worry about finding the right accents for their styles, in centrepieces, ties and bridesmaids’ dresses, you’ll be wondering what colours you should be wearing as a guest on the big day.
The key to choosing colours to wear at weddings is coordinating with the seasons. Seasonal colours, the changing of the leaves, emergence of flowers and amounts of sunshine, all tie into how we think about colour.
Here are the most on trend and popular colours to wear to a wedding, in each season.
Spring Weddings
As a time of revival and renewal, we return to youthful, bright and welcoming tones. Spring time is all about soft pastel coloured clothing to ease our senses into the summer boldness. At a wedding, couples will likely be using one of these chalky, soothing shades as their theme, meaning your outfit should marry well with the decor.
Luxury wedding planners, Snapdragon highlight Pantone’s 2016 dual colours of the year: Rose Quartz and Serenity, as they, add respectively, warm rosey tones or tranquil blues to your wedding palette for spring. According to the Pantone fashion colour report for spring, these are the top colours of the season, along with: Peach Echo, Snorkel Blue, Buttercup, Limpet Shell, Lilac grey, Fiesta, Iced coffee and Green Flash.
Summer Weddings
With the (hopefully) warmer day, Summer weddings are where you can really let your hair down with that you wear to a wedding. Layers are heading back in the closet and brighter colours are coming out!
Summer colours classically include saturated versions of your favourite colours, like: Turquoise, Melon, Strawberry and Kelly Green. These should all be applied in limited amounts however, as these bold choices can quickly overwhelm and make your look harder to stare at than the sun. Try balancing out your bright colours with neutrals, or by adding bold colours to your outfit in small doses with accessories; particularly shoes, clutches and belts, with white dresses or light suits.
If you prefer less of a statement shade, heading down a more traditional summer wedding styled look, colours like Coral, Sunflower Yellow and Fuchsia will give you a distinct warmth without being overpowering. With these tones you can also wear more of them, with fuller dresses, skirts or shirts paired with bolder choices.
Autumn Weddings
Autumn arrives in a flurry of colours, with leaves turning from Green to Burnt Orange and Saffron yellow, before succumbing to Earthy Brown. Weddings in autumn might be looking to more rustic settings and moving to interior locations. The chill means that you will want to choose tones that are rich, plush and deep.
Fiery oranges, russet reds and cocoa browns are welcome, though they can quickly overwhelm. Touches of these within your wedding outfit can complement the wedding couples theme, which may lean towards similar colours.
Modern trends in fall colours are better suited to stylish weddings, leaving behind summers statement colours for understated but impactful tones, such as: masala, mustard, camel, olive sage, burgundy and teal. Choosing opposites to the seasonal colours, in the red to yellow spectrum, such as Olive or Teal will allow you complement the season, rather than merge with its natural colours.
Winter Weddings
The wonders of winter tend to conjure classic wedding colours, whites and baby blues, and the occasional touch of Slate or Pepper Grey. But while the weather might be cool and occasionally snowy, you’re wedding outfit doesn’t need to be.
Typical winter clothing will allow for more layering, allowing you to combine several tones, with the more neutral black and whites. Coming into the winter months everything turns deeper and darker therefore look out for a more intense palette. We suggest looking for wraps, full length dresses and trousers in Ruby, Aubergine and Plum for the warmer style, or Sapphire and Midnight Blue for the cooler. However, if you’re feeling like going against the grain this winter, powdery pastels have been singled out as a dark horse fall/winter catwalk colour trend for 2016-2017.