When choosing wedding dresses there are potentially millions of variations and factors to consider. One of the most important is actually color, because there’s so much you can do outside of just choosing white.

Yes, that’s right, there ARE other options than white for your wedding dress! Read on to explore how colors could make your wedding really memorable:

Color taps into our most primal of instincts and feelings. They are so powerful that even seeing them can alter our mood and evoke certain feelings. Why does red mean danger? Why is blue fresh? Why is yellow warm? In fact different colors ‘mean’ different things to each of us, but if you are going to trek off of the beaten path and try a different color to white for your wedding gown and theme then you’d better be ready to mix and match.

How do we match colors though?

This is your wedding so you want to be looking more Coco Chanel than Coco the clown, so understanding how to match your colors is perhaps critical to how great you’ll look on your special day. First start with primary colors like red, yellow and blue. These colors can be mixed to produce secondary colors like orange and green. Mixing primary and secondary colors can produce tertiary colors such as olive-green. Which colors work well together though?

Usually opposites of the color spectrum will work well together as opposed to colors that are too close to each other; but primaries or colors that are too bright won’t be too easy on the eye, so consider tertiaries as complementing colors.

Why should we consider different colors than white though, isn’t it supposed to be the color of weddings?

White does signify purity and innocence and therefore is a good choice.

Red evokes feelings of passion and love and physically stimulates people.Pink is derived from red and is of course the most romantic color!

Purple is a royal color and evokes images of wealth and sophistication.

Yellow grabs attention and is warm and happy. It is a good choice if you want everyone’s eyes to be drawn to you.

Green is the color of nature. It is calm and fresh and actually signifies fertility, like Mother Earth.

Blue is cool, fresh and clean. It evokes feelings of loyalty and is calming.

Which do you like and what do they mean to you?

Does your wedding have a theme?

If so then your dress should fit in well with this. Christmassy of festive themes would benefit from dark green and red, like holly and ivy. Summer weddings could have fresh colors like sky blue and yellow. Fall weddings could feature golds and bronzes like fallen leaves.

In this case choose a main color for your dress, perhaps the brighter color to ensure that you’re the center of attention, and then choose complimentary tertiary colors for your bridesmaids’ dresses.

If you aren’t sure of colors you can get help. You can ask your dressmaker for advice, most websites also have color information or you can do a web search with a search engine to find a color chart or color wheel which should show you matching colors.

You should also consider your own and your bridesmaids’ skin tones.

Wedding dress color can also bring out or clash with skin tone, so be aware that bright colors with darker tones may not work well. Typically black skin will work well with darker colors like Navy blue. Tanned tones will benefit from a warm color like peach or ivory, and paler complexions can choose lighter colors like light pastels. The best thing to do is check your skin tone in the makeup section of your nearest department store and then try some different colored options of dresses, or hold some color swatches (which should be free from a DIY store’s paint section) up against your skin.

Colors are a minefield, but if you get your combination right then you will have a really memorable wedding, especially if it’s themed! So get some advice, be brave and try a few colors before reaching for that white wedding gown!

If you’re wondering where to find dresses for your wedding or color advice then you could try looking online. Here you will find a myriad of great clothing stores offering many wedding and bridesmaids’ dresses at really low prices. These sites also often have thorough resources including color charts and swatches, so perhaps give them a try as well as stores in town.