There's a lot of work that goes into choosing your wedding color scheme. The colors will haunt you throughout the entire duration of wedding planning (and long after that too!)

It's important that you put a considerable amount of thought into your colors. They will affect your bridesmaids dresses, your linens, your flowers, your cake, and even your shoes. It should always be a color you love. On top of that, you will need complementing colors that pair with your main color(s).

When choosing your wedding colors, you should always keep your setting and season in mind. Burgundy and emerald may be your favorite colors, but if your wedding is taking place during a spring garden party, jewel tones may not suit the event best. If you do have a darker scheme, you should try to incorporate pops of a lighter, more muted color. If you have chosen delicate colors as your mains, adding a saturated darker hue can add elegance and create striking contrast.

It can feel like a huge task to tackle all of this color swatching nonsense, so we have some pictures here to aid you in your quest for the perfect wedding colors. To use these charts, first determine your most wished for wedding color. Remember to have a backup or two - you may love your second favorite color and its complementary hues MORE than you love your favorite color and its matching sets! The Color Schemes section explains how the schemes are formed. The below figure gives examples. Take the very bottom left figure for example: if your main color is purple, hints of red and light green will create an excellent scheme.

It can be easy to feel wrapped up in the science of color schemes, but when it comes down to it, don't overthink it too much! Use this as a guide to get you on the right track so that you can decide what colors you love together.