Using Flowers to Define Your Color Scheme
"I want to use my favorite color-- deep violet purple --as the main color for my wedding. I know that I also want to use another color as well, but I'm not sure what. My gown is white, the maid of honor will wear violet, the groomsmen will wear black, and I want a lot of color (not much white) in my bouquet for a dramatic effect.What other color would you suggest?'
All brides have to make similar decisions to yours. Their specific needs and circumstances are different, of course, but all need to consider how their use of color combinations, flower varieties, textures and proportions will effect the impression their flowers create.
You could use varying shades of purple with white and lots of greenery to make the bouquets stand out, but that probably would not create as much contrast as you want. A second (or even more) accent colors will help provide the impact and interest you want, and will help the flowers to stand out visually from the maid of honor's gown. What colors are best will be up to your tastes, and the mood you want to create.
Purple and yellow are traditional companion colors because of their opposite positions on the color wheel. This combination can be fresh or bold, depending on the depth of purple and yellow shades you choose. The stronger the yellow, the more vibrant the effect. Your purple choice will depend largely on the color of the maid of honor's gown fabric, because purples must be matched carefully.
Purple could be attractively paired with various shades of red as well, and even with red AND yellow. This has a very strong effect, and might work well for you if you like flowers which traditionally come in red or burgundy. The addition of yellow might be in the form of a tiny yellow "filler" flower to brighten the bouquets, or in proportions equal to the red and/or purple.
A really deep violet often looks strikingly fresh and pretty with hot pink or fuchsia as a contrast. These pinks have been very popular with brides in the past few years, and they look great with a bright white gown. Rose and paler pink tones are also harmonious with purples, but they create a softer impression.
All of these considerations, of course, will be affected by the flower varieties you choose. Flower types have "moods" as much as colors do, and the combination of flower sizes, shapes and textures will be important to creating the drama you seek.
Roses, for example, can be dramatic or charming, depending on their size and variety. Lilies are clean and formal, but are strong because of their size and substance. Orchids are also strong in form and substance, and a few come in very bold and unusual shades. Gerber daisies and ranunculus provide a bright, intense "spot" of color. Iris, hydrangeas, liatris and peonies all have unusual shapes which tend to direct the design of the arrangements they are used in. Smaller, busier flower textures are useful in softening the effect of bold flower shapes, or for injecting a small amount of a lighter or contrasting shade.
Whatever color scheme and flower varieties you decide to use, you can customize your floral statement even more by varying the amounts of different colors and textures you use in different arrangements-- more color or greenery in your bouquet, perhaps, to help it stand out against your gown; more of the contrast color than purple in the maid's bouquet, for the same reason; more white in cake decorations to look like "part of" white frosting; lots of strong purple at the altar to draw the eye from a drab or distracting church setting; or whatever appeals to you and is appropriate for your situation.