Colour Coordinated Bridal Parties

The colour scheme of a wedding is a crucial factor for most couples — but even if you’ve decided not to have an accent colour for the décor, colour coordinating your bridal party has a brilliant visual effect, particularly in the wedding photographs.

When you are planning your wedding, speak to the bridesmaids, groomsmen and close family members about your ideas for colour coordination. No one wants to be forced to wear a colour they hate, so find out how they feel about different shades and make some suggestions. Compromise is key, but if you can agree on a colour scheme for the entire bridal party, everyone will feel more involved in the day.

Pick a Colour

If you’re looking for a beautiful colour that will stand the test of time, consider a subtle yet contemporary choice. A timeless shade will help your photos to look amazing forever: very bright, vibrant colours do tend to date quickly.

Once the colour has been decided, you can start looking for the bridesmaid dresses — but it’s just as important to help the mother of the bride, the groom and groomsmen and other bridal party members to choose clothes and accessories that will fit in with the look you want to achieve on the day.

Five Super Shades

To help you decide on your bridal party colour scheme, discuss these five fantastic palettes with your guests — each one is timeless, stunning and works just as well across the flowers, décor and wedding dress as it does for bridal party fashion.

Chapel Green

A gorgeous choice for spring, chapel green is earthy, elegant and fresh.

A full-length bridesmaid dress with a slightly lighter or darker green sash looks super stylish — particularly with a cowl neckline — and your flower girls can echo the look with a gently contrasting sash. The mother of the bride will glow in a green coat or jacket, particularly if it is a full-length dress coat. Accessories in chapel green are incredibly chic too: make sure your clutch bag and shoes fall within the palette and, if your bridesmaids carry/wear the same accessories, the effect will be show-stopping.

Clockwise from top left: Bridesmaid dress by Pretty Maids; Flower girl dress by Dessy; Mother of the bride cashmere coat by Shibumi; Clutch bag by Colour Studio; Shoes by Colour Studio.

Blush Rose

Just as the bride is blushing, your colour scheme can be pretty, feminine and intensely flattering too.

All blush shades are on trend, particularly at summer weddings, but for the timeless factor, blush rose is an excellent choice. Little flower girls look absolutely adorable in this shade, particularly if you choose a dreamy dress adorned with flowers and with just a touch of sparkle. As this shade is so delicate, the bridesmaids could all wear matching necklaces on the day — and carrying the same clutch bag in this colour looks very effective too. For the bride and groom, just a hint of blush rose is ideal: a pair of blush rose sling backs add a gorgeous vintage touch to the bride’s styling and a light pink shirt with an elegant pocket watch (also a potential gift from the bride) is a stylish option for the groom.

Clockwise from top left: Flower girl dress by Monsoon; Pocket Watch from the Greenwich Pocket Watch Company; Necklace by Chez Bec;  Shirt by Without Prejudice; Shoes by Benjamin Adams.

French Grey

The height of sophistication, French grey is a fashionable choice for a bride who is a great stylist.

Bridal parties tend to love this shade as it provides them with a beautifully blank canvas to accessorise. A very simple bridesmaid dress can be dressed up with statement jewellery and an elaborate floral headdress, or a beautiful marabou stole in a matching shade of French grey. The mother of the bride can wear a dress in pretty much any colour she likes by using a flattering grey shawl to join the colour scheme, and the bride can participate with elegant grey shoes plus a fabulous tiara like the beauty shown below from Ivory & Co.

Clockwise from top left: Bridesmaid dress by Alvina Valenta; Marabou shrug by Chesca; Mother of the bride shawl by Chesca; Headpiece by Ivory & Co.; Shoes by Enzoani Love; 

Powder Blue

Soft, subtle, dreamy and totally on trend — powder blue is such a stunning colour to choose for your bridal party.

Powder blue looks beautiful against white, so consider a cute combination for your bridesmaids’ shoes and accessories — and carrying a powder blue clutch works wonderfully for the bride and/or bridesmaids too. Or, if your bridesmaids wear powder blue dresses and the groom chooses a powder blue jacket, the effect against your white gown will be breathtaking.

Alternatively, if you really want to wow with this gorgeous colour, why not break with tradition and choose a powder blue wedding dress? It’s a fairytale come true.

Clockwise from top left: Bridesmaid dress by Ronald Joyce; Linen jacket by William Young; Wedding dress by Alexia Designs; Shoes by Charlotte Mills; Clutch by Colour Studio;

Vanilla

Forget ivory, yellow and nude — if you want to hit the right note trend-wise, vanilla is the shade to look out for.

Vanilla is a neutral shade, so it’s easy for everyone to wear. Your flower girls will look natural and traditional in this shade — and their parents will melt when they see how beautiful they look in it. The mother of the bride will look amazing too — vanilla is an intensely flattering choice for mums. Vanilla pearls are a must-have accessory for adult bridesmaids and the bride can add a touch of vanilla — with plenty of sparkle — when she choose her shoes.

And the groom can get completely onboard with the vanilla palette too: a gorgeous vanilla suit at a summer wedding will make you fall in love with him all over again.

Clockwise from top left: Flower girl dress by Dessy; Pearl headband by LouLou Belle; Bridesmaid dress style 8462 by Sorella Vita; Shoes by Benjamin Adams; Pearl bracelet by Stephanie Browne.