{Jose Villa for The Knot wearing Badgley Mischka Cape}
Once upon another lifetime ago I touched on sourcing a wedding color palette from a non-wedding related image as wedding inspiration. Its such a simple yet powerful way of going about the process that I wanted to breath new life into this idea along with how we can look for even more wedding related elements beyond just colors from a single image. An inspiration image can help you figure out far more than just your color palette, it can help direct you as far as the look and feel behind the styling of your wedding as well. From textural elements to a strong sense of theme, there is a lot to be learned from the images that draw us in.
While crafting a harmonious color palette is certainly paramount, working out textural details is quite possibly the second most important area to focus on. Why texture you might ask? Simply put, light reflects, dances & moves in the most interesting of ways depending on what it is hitting. Various textures can bring a hue to life, or politely tone it down where needed. The right material & the right accents can be ever so powerful when it comes to color! Combine the right colors with the right details and your more than half way through your theme without even trying! Let’s work through a couple non-wedding related inspiration images to truly get a feel for what to look for.
Food images tend to be a really great place to look for inspiration. By nature of the beast, most chefs strive to bring together multiple harmonious hues to create lively dishes that appeal to far more then simply our sense of taste. Additionally, food photography typically has some pretty great styling that goes hand in hand to make such a great shot so why not to a cue from the professionals. This image is practically jumping off the screen into your lap with wedding inspiration. From a color palette stand point, look how beautifully these pastel colors work together! Ivory, Mint & Peach are the major colors here with a deep organic green & burgundy pop serving as accents give off the most lovey sense of calm. So how to apply? From the image we get a sense of theme & feel that is soft, romantic, cottage-like & vintage. Bridesmaid dresses in a flowing chiffon in hues of mint green, pale peach or even muted light grays would be divine. To play up a cottage like feel light floral prints is also a great choice, picking up the floral notes within the styling from the photograph as a whole. When it comes to the reception styling, its easy to envision tables with soft light gray linens, glass mint chargers, vintage lightly worn silverware, peach or floral print napkins along with pewter bread plates bringing together a shabby chic essence. To turn up the cottage feel in the floral department I see thick full creamy garden roses with young ivy vines & peach-pale pink almost unripened berries all spilling out of their tall candelabra homes. I might even go as so far as to actually incorporate real peaches into my tablescape which would bring in the earthy down home organic feel our inspiration photograph gives us. You may notice at the top of the image there is a burgundy pop of color in the tea cup. By using a few well chosen injections of burgundy around the room for smaller more accent elements in blooms & décor, you will provide gorgeous contrast & a touch of dimension to our soft palette! Texture wise we get a really muted earthy feel from the white washed wood grain as well as a bit of a silky touch from the yogurts & metal. Over all the feel is romance with muted detailing with nothing loud flashy and in your face here. Here its all about soft, sweet & dreamy.
Remember my remark about texture and how texture can really define a color? Case in point is right here. Weddings that are heavily designed in black tend to be overlooked and I think to some degree feared. There is a natural association with funerals & Halloween that is hard to avoid. Wielded the right way however, and they are quite possibly the most stunning of events yet! Firstly let’s start with the color palette this image inspires which is an interesting mix of black, white, gold, peach & (gasp!) brown. From a textural standpoint we have a lot to be inspired by like the sheer fabric in the blouse, the rough highly reflective nature of the sequin skirt, animal print, smooth angular beads & the brushed gold detailing. The sheerness of the blouse provides us with muted blacks while the absolute smack in the face of light bouncing off the sequins certainly provides the glamour. An image like this inspires a theme of a posh, upscale perhaps even formal wedding that is most certainly stylish with a sharp eye on whats in modern trend. I envision a wedding inspired by this image to conjurer a metropolitan setting, perhaps a loft space with grand views and exposed accent walls in brick. I see a reception featuring long tables draped in gorgeous black sequin tablecloths while suspended centerpieces hover above crafted on brushed gold metal frame work with ivory blooms spilling over. A lounge area for guests would be perfection for this wedding, offering an area to relax featuring zebra print chairs & gold metal accent tables. To inject a gorgeous dose of romance windows, columns & the ceremony space would be draped in panels upon panels of sheer black fabric, left to sway in a breeze of air. An inspiration image like this is all about the drama & glamour, all executed with the chicest and most sophisticated of touch!
When working with non-wedding images to inspire your wedding day, just remember these 3 key elements: Color Palette, Texture & Style. If you can answer these three questions when working with an image, you are absolutely able to then apply those answers to how yo craft & style your very own wedding. Its easy to get swept up in all the wedding inspiration that is out there. Sometimes its 10 times easier to simply get away from wedding anything as a whole, seek wedding inspiration from something totally different and create!