Question from Carey:
My son is getting married next month. The colour scheme is purple and turquoise. What colours would be suitable for me to wear so as not to clash? Thank you.
Answer from Wedding Expert Angela:
Hi Carey. If they have chosen an accent colour for the wedding decorations that is used sparingly, this might be a nice colour for you to use as it would tie you into the over-all colour scheme. Basically, you don’t want to be the same colour as the bride or the wedding attendants. Pretty well any other colour will work, but YOU need to look good in the colour you choose. No sense choosing a colour that makes you look sickly or washed out—even if it works with the wedding colours.
The complementary colour for purple is yellow, and the complementary colour for turquoise is orange. So any colour in that range like orange, melon, peach, pale yellow, etc. would work.
Harmonious colours for purple are voilet, lavender, and similar shades, as well as blue—from navy to sky blue. Harmonious colours for turquoise are blues which we have just covered, as well as greens.
The key thing here is to ensure that the bride shines. I have a friend who has exquisite but an exotic taste in clothing. She told me that when her son was getting married, he told her no gold, no sparkles, no animal prints, no big jewellery, and so forth. Since that was her style, she was in a great dither about what to wear. We eventually found her a lovely dress that suited her personality, but didn’t take attention away from the bride and the wedding party.
Choose a colour that suits you, and avoid the same colours as the wedding party. And if you don’t like a lot of colour, neutrals are ALWAYS are appropriate. For a wedding, stick to grey tones (instead of black); browns can be deep chocolate brown to pale tan colours; and avoid white for this occasion.
Check out this video to learn more about wedding colour choices.
Good luck, and if you have further questions feel free to ask!
Angela Fiebelkorn, Wedding Expert
Hi,
Yes. Brown is a neutral colour and goes with any other colour. Turquoise and brown are lovely together.
I am in a similar quandry. My son is getting married in August. Bridesmaids are in a deep purple/aubergene. I have found a dress that I love – it is a 50′s style swing dress – deep almost wine/merlot with an over dress in black lace/polka dots. It is very festive which is kind how the wedding is being done…but I am unsure of the colour. I kind of think it will blend in with the jewel tones?
Hi Louise,
How nice that you aren’t afraid of colour! So many people are. I think your choice of dress is fine. It has the black lace/polka dot overdress which will differentiate the colour sufficiently from what the bridal party is wearing. If you are really unsure, and don’t want to make waves with the bride, show her the dress and see how she feels about it.
Good luck and enjoy!
Angela Fiebelkorn, The Wedding Expert