20 Monochromatic Wedding Ideas Contemporary Couples Should Bookmark

By Sarah Schreiber
April 19, 2017
Janca Korcek

Work a one-color, tonal element into your big-day décor.

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Janca Korcek

If you're in the process of planning a contemporary wedding, you've likely considered throwing an all-white celebration. We understand why: The bright noncolor translates beautifully across all big-day elements, from your wedding dress (naturally!) and invitation suite (à la this set by Janca Korcek) to your floral décor. There is, however, more to this monochrome approach—you aren't limited to just white if you want to pull off a one-color wedding.

The following monochrome wedding palettes are proof. Ahead, you'll discover how tonal reds and purples (and ombré jades and blues!) make for nuanced palettes that are anything but one-note. In fact, using multiple shades in one color family—pairing up multiple pink hues, like blush, dusty rose, and bubble gum, for example—often creates a more dynamic palette than two or three separate shades ever could. The secret? Playing with texture. That might mean using multiple bloom types in a monochrome bouquet or playing with different fabric types on your single-color reception tabletops.

If you're intrigued by the one-color palette trend, but don't want to sacrifice your favorite shade combinations when curating your event's collective design, feel free to choose one specific monochrome moment: Perhaps your bridesmaids wear varying shades of blue or your ceremony arch features a blush gradient that nods to your springtime event. Ultimately—like the rest of your big-day decisions—how you choose to integrate monochrome colorways into your big day is entirely up to you. Use the following couples' interpretations as a guide. We think you'll like what you see.

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Golden Sienna

Paco and Betty
Unique Wedding Color Palettes That Will Set Your Big Day Apart

A warm rust palette, complete with infinite shades of the color—Tula Rosa Flowers used everything from its redder iterations to its paler hues that read more like gold—works best at a late-summer or fall event.

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Purple, Two Ways

Someplace Wild

If you don't want to commit to an overarching monochrome color palette, but still want to integrate the trend in some way, consider homing in on one big-impact big-day element—like your ensembles. These grooms coordinated their looks by wearing purple; they chose different shades, however, for just the right amount of differentiation.

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Orange Gradient

Taralynn Lawton
30 Monochromatic Wedding Bouquets

The best way to add nuance to a single-bloom bouquet? Create a gradient using an expected shade—Wilder Flower Co. chose orange for this clutch, which was comprised of garden roses ranging from pale peach to tangerine.

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Monochrome Cube Cake

Trynh Photo
Cube-Shaped Wedding Cakes for Your Contemporary Dessert Table

This Qualcosa di Dolce confection embodies monochrome's most iconic colorway—tonal gray. Its cube-shaped tiers only enhanced its modern vibe.

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Slate Stationery

Jérémy Froeliger

Everything about this gray-blue Graphikkart stationery flat lay speaks to its collective slate color scheme, from the dove gray envelopes and cerulean illustrations to its on-palette backdrop.

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Merlot

Whiskers & Willow Photography
Bold Ideas for a Red Wedding Color Palette

Looking for a monochrome counterpart to pink? Consider merlot, a shade on the deeper end of the red spectrum. The pairing makes for a high-contrast, but cohesive palette, as evidenced by this McCool and Daughters bouquet.

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Punchy Gray

Charleton Churchill

We love the single-color contrast between Parker Nichols Events and Danielle Roe's dove gray tabletop and Thistle and Honey's dramatic charcoal overhead installation, composed of dried grasses.

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Terra-Cotta

Susanna Nordvall
Trending Now: Terra-Cotta Wedding Décor

Couples brainstorming palettes for their earthy celebration, bookmark terra-cotta's warm color family, which came to life on this tabletop (tonal centerpiece, included!) designed by Nord & Mae.

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Blushing Confections

Sophie Epton Photography
Pink Wedding Ideas That Pack a Punch

Punctuate a mostly blush palette with pops of dramatic cabernet for a monochrome color scheme that—like this textured Frisoni Alessandra Studio Cake dessert, topped with red sugar roses—is anything but one note.

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Shades of Jade

Ether and Smith
Beautiful Ways to Add a Pop of Green to Your Wedding

If you've already chosen a greenery-centric (non)floral palette, let your big-day color scheme naturally follow suit. Take this all-green scene, for example. A jade velvet love seat was the perfect addition to this Events by Talissa sweetheart table, filled with eucalyptus garlands by Modern Bouquet.

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Neutral Numbers

Molliner Photography

There are so many ways to translate a monochrome color palette throughout your event, starting with your bridesmaids' dresses. For a mismatched look, consider dressing your attendants in various shades of one color (these 'maids wore tonal shades of taupe and cream).

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Red-Orange

Ross Kyker

Here's proof that a single-color palette can feel nuanced—this Hobby Lobby bouquet's many blooms may have all been red-orange, but their different textures and subtle shade variations created plenty of visual intrigue.

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Teal Tones

Lauren Scotti Photography

Juxtapose a translucent piece of décor against an opaque one for a monochrome display with unexpected dimension. Boldhouse Creative paired a see-through acrylic teal panel alongside a solid powder blue iteration to create this tonal seating chart.

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True Red

Patrick Moyer

You can't go wrong with a red monochrome palette. This Oak & the Owl clutch's true-red peony blooms gave way to pink, plum, and crimson ribbons. Let this trio inspire your event's full-fledged color scheme.

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Blue Belles

Vicki Grafton
Blue Wedding Color Palettes We Love

These bridesmaids' sapphire, cerulean, powder, and indigo gowns prove just how rich a blue color palette really is.

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Emerald

Just Like Honey by Nadine Berns

Note how this Sinfully Sweet confection's sugar geode accent features both mint and emerald shades (the jewel tone was reinforced by the velvet runner below). On your own green-themed big day, pair these two shades for a balanced light-meets-dark palette.

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Burnt Orange

Dawn Charles
Orange Wedding Ideas for Couples Who Love Color

Orange is an unlikely wedding color—which is why modern couples who love color are so drawn to it. If you fall into this category, recreate this couple's looks (alternatively, let their colorful ensembles inspire your event décor): We love how this groom's rust Topman suit referenced the mustard ribbon on his bride's Good Seed Floral bouquet.

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Blush Ombré

Alisa Ferris

If you're working with a pale monochrome palette, consider working in one dark noncolor (like black or gray!) for contrast. This Bella Figura suite's tonal blush and rose cards popped against the jet envelope, which was finished with a matching pink liner for a cohesive nod to the rest of the set.

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Rust

Natalie Bray

Winter brides, bookmark this pale cream-to-rust clutch by Running Wild Florals, which reinvigorates the brown-and-white palette so common at cold-weather events. The gradiented pairing feels much more modern than the high-contrast classic.

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By Sarah Schreiber