I thought I knew from the get-go what my wedding colors would be.    A whimsical wedding at Glen Echo Park calls for an equally fun color palette.   I initially thought our colors would be light blue, red and white.  But we switched it from light blue to more of an aqua/teal and I’m really happy with the choice!    I’ve always loved aqua.  It’s calming yet bright and reminds me of water, which I love.  My little VW convertible bug is even aqua blue!  I joke that when I’m working with a couple, I automatically arrive with “something blue.”

The choice of red came from one of my not-so-secret indulgences:  red shoes.   I have a somewhat embarrassing number of red shoes.   I love them.  I can’t say no to them.  And I feel my prettiest in them.   Since every bride should feel her prettiest on her wedding day, I decided long ago that my wedding day shoes would be red.    Even if it does make my mother raise her eyebrows a bit… OK, a lot.  And since I want my bridesmaids to be just as sassy and gorgeous, they will each be wearing red shoes as well!  I picked a candy-apple red to match the vibrant reds found all over Glen Echo Park.

So there you have it…..  aqua (more of a blue-ish teal), bright red and a neutral white… maybe with some light blush pink as an accent where necessary.   I’m in love with the scheme and am having a blast building off of it.   Here’s a look at the combination.

This one’s from The Budget Savvy Bride

A fellow Knottie wedding with teal dresses and red shoes (sorry, don’t have a credit!):

Another collection of red and aqua: Couple photo by Jonathan Canlas, Invitation from Bella Bliss Design, Bride and Bridal Party photo by Art of Light, Candy Cones from Brides.com, Tablescape from Gentlandhyers, Cake and candy and centerpiece photo by Jonathan Canlas, Escort card by Rebecca Thuss, Ceremony Program by Martha Stewart, Shoes photo by White Box Wedding

My neice (who will only be 17 months old for our wedding) will actually be carrying a big teal and white lollipop just like this (instead of flowers).   Seeing as she likes to eat everything in sight these days, we figure this will be yummier than flowers…and it fits our theme perfectly!  Photo by Jamie Hammond.

This Indian wedding in California was shot by Lisa Lefkowitz.

This cherry blossom stationery set is by RSVP Stationary. Red and teal is perfectly whimsical for my vintage amusement park wedding… but this would also be a great option for any of you brides using DC’s cherry blossoms as inspiration!  It puts a contemporary spin on a very traditional (and common) inspiration for weddings in the DC area.

This adorable clutch by knitty bitties on Etsy would be a great bridesmaid gift!

These poppy escort cards are by Etsy seller Michelle Brusegaard, who has a lot of red and teal items with both poppies and tulips.

This Mexico destination wedding was shot by DC’s Lara Swanson.  The red and aqua colors were inspired by the colored spaces on a Scrabble board, which played a big part in their engagement!

This table setting is by Martha Stewart, who did a whole feature on this color combo a while back.  While I’m not usually a fan of carnations, I must admit that I L-O-V-E this look.   Since carnations are budget-friendly and will fit perfectly with my 1950’s vintage wedding theme, I have a feeling I’ll be using them.  If done right (such as these tightly-packed red carnations), they can be really gorgeous.  And, after consulting my gramma and grampa’s wedding photos over break, I discovered that their 1956 wedding used only one flower… carnations.   Perfect!

Speaking of red carnations, check out the tightly packed red carnations on the pomanders for this red and teal wedding, Pure7Studios.  Bee-yoo-ti-ful!

While red and aqua/teal are a great spring or summer combo, the weather outside is frigid so I thought I’d leave you with an inspiration board for a winter wedding.   The icy blues are reminiscent of snowflakes, but are warmed up by holiday reds.   The ladies at Masterpiece Weddings in Florida put this inspiration board together and I couldn’t have done it better myself!

So… what do you think?  It’s a vibrant and bold color combination for sure.   And while it can work with a lot of different wedding themes, it’s not for everyone.  With the holidays over and lots of couples newly engaged, we are officially in “Engagement Season!”  Would any of you newly-engaged couples out there consider this color combo? Do you have any color palettes of your own that you’d like to share?