Today’s blog post could have been titled: Any color + white + ivory = rich and sophisticated wedding colors.

I selected these photos to illustrate how simple orchestrating a successful color scheme for your wedding can be. It can be tempting for planning brides to freak out a little bit with so many colors to choose from–and it’s not always straightforward for non-designer types to find the combos that are fresh and attractive. So, perhaps you’re a bit overwhelmed with color and how to use it at your wedding. You can always try out this formula: Pick ANY color that you like. One that makes you happy, or makes you feel love, or simply makes your heart sing when you see it. Now add two whites. You might have to experiment here. Maybe it’s the icy whites that set off your main color. Or perhaps you need to go the other direction, toward buttermilk or vanilla ice cream. I promise that when you find your color’s mates in the while family, the combination will read as rich, complex and sophisticated.

Recipe for success? Your favorite color plus two whites. Give it a whirl.

I sure do like her here. Bold, nuanced, collaborating nicely with her close friends, Magenta and Violet. She’s interesting enough to hold up to all the attention, but never showy or too in-your-face.

Maybe you’d like to invite Ms. Pink to your wedding?

The gorgeous floral decor shown here is the work of the unparalleled, Geranium Lake Flowers.

I’m crazy in love with how these pale colors combine to make the softest, most sophisticated summer reception look. Lately pale colors have been a bit off trend. The vivid, vibrant palettes have been popular for the last few seasons, but I’m seeing glimpses of these softer colors returning to wedding popularity. How about Reese’s petal pink wedding look? For now the pale look is all about monochromes, but I’d bet a box of cupcakes that combinations of pales will more popular within a season or two. But, just to be stylish, let’s not call them “pastels.” We’ll be right on point if we instead rebrand these pretty colors “sheers.”

This gorgeous party design is the work of the oh-so-talented Kim Foren of Geranium Lake Flowers. Kim is among the most inspired, creative and just plain fun women in the world. Her wedding flowers and events are divine.

Now, on to the colors. When I first saw this combination from a July wedding last season, I thought to myself, “do those really go together?” I’m accustomed to seeing rich lavender paired with pink, green or other mild colors. But here is purple, lavender and cornflower side by side with bright orange. What makes this work however, is the rich colors of the b-maids dresses and the vibrant color of the grass and trees. If either had been softer, I think the color combo would have been overwhelming. What do you think?

This gorgeous wedding at The Viewpoint Inn remains among my all-time favorites. I recall it as one of the prettiest weddings and also among the most loosely choreographed. The day simply unrolled in such a relaxed fashion. No stress, no rush.  Nothing too elaborate or arranged. There’s probably a great wedding-planning lesson to be had in there somewhere.

Another lovely aspect of this wedding was how elegant it all looked without being overdone or too matchy-matchy. As I recall, the only thing that ran to a strict scheme was that the bridesmaids dresses were all the same color. The adorable full-skirted, bronze strapless dresses featured a sheer embroidered overlay and a fluff of black net peeped out from under the knee-length hem.  The groom and his groomsmen chose straightforward dark suits which set off their white boutonnieres. Close family dressed formally in black or white, making for quite a pulled-together look during the ceremony.

This wedding is a good reminder that sometimes under planning, rather than over planning can be the key to a relaxed and enjoyable wedding.

I’ve shared before how much our clients have loved their Timberline Lodge weddings. Besides the setting, which is eye-poppingly and soul-stirringly beautiful, it’s straightforward and simple to plan a wedding at Timberline Lodge. Their event people are nice, helpful and full of creative options. And since so much is included, you won’t find your head spinning from having to sort through a million different options. Is Timberline Lodge the perfect wedding spot for you?

This would be a wonderful look for an intimate winter reception. I can easily imagine the Renaissance Room at the Governor Hotel transformed with a look similar to this. Or tweak the colors a bit to something like salmon, peach and deep red and picture it against the creamy white of the Heritage Ballroom.

I think the key elements to getting this look is to pile on the rich metallics as a base, and then contrast that with a delicate feature, like the peonies. Old-fashioned cabbage roses would work if peonies weren’t available. Or in early spring consider something like parrot tulips and ranuculus to get a similar delicate and fragile feeling.

Dana’s red satin shoes were a bright surprise under white full length dress. The bride’s bouquet and bridesmaid’s flowers included orangey-red gerberas, dark red dahlias and dark orange freesia. The groom’s boutonniere was a single, happy gerbera. The table cards were tied to a single long rudbeckia stem pushed into a shiny red apple. The tables themselves were designated by the couple’s favorite places around Portland. And when the evening grew cool, Dana had handy a yummy red pashmina—beautiful and striking.

To top it all off, at the end of the evening the couple drove off in the cutest bright red Mini Cooper.