Wedding Colors: Blue and White

White makes right in this elegant and undeniably feminine bouquet, in which butterfly-like sweet peas flutter between bright white Amazon lilies. Delicate hand-wired cattleya orchids flaunt their milky ruffled edges among flirty sprays of fragrant white lilac. Tied in a loose, languorous bow, a wide striped vintage ribbon of steel and slate blues decorates the slender stems wrapped in grosgrain. Bouquet by Belle Fleur of New York City

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A robin's egg, transferware china, and other objects offer color cues. A beribboned cornflower bag (foil-stamped by ForYourParty.com using lettering by Nancy Sharon Collins, Stationer) holds a favor.

A guest book is made for personal notes -- why not personalize the outside, too? Buy a cloth-covered unlined journal, or have one made with your own fabric. Michael Roger Press covered one book in striped cotton shirting and embossed another with a monogram. The light-blue book is from Flicka Boutique.

Other fabric options: blue-and-ivory floral, aquamarine with ribbon blooms, sea-blue with cream florets, and muted azure.

For this suite of stationery, we reinterpreted the hues and regal patterns of transferware and its identifying back stamps. Clockwise from top: Blue vintage postage matches the calligraphy. A monogram personalizes a crown-topped emblem on the invitation. The reply card bears a stamp-inspired laurel and a wave borrowed from a plate rim; the envelope repeats the wave. Calligraphy by Deborah Delaney. Invitations from Paper+Cup Design

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It's a tale of two pretties: No, not the story of the bride and groom, but the way a blue and white palette can wend its way from invitation to dessert buffet. Made of white chocolate by Christopher Norman Chocolates, these nibbles are displayed in miniature striped blue and white paper cups and set out on white china. As an alternative to a dessert buffet, the caterer could set a plate of the chocolates at each reception table.

Here's a seating directory that's a blue-ribbon winner. We chose envelopes in various hues, and then mixed and matched ink and ribbon colors. Inside are cards with calligraphed table numbers. To hang, knot ribbons underneath envelope flaps; suspend from white ball pins on a baby-blue linen-covered bulletin board, staggering colors. Cards and envelopes by Les Papiers Jean Rouget. Calligraphy by Gail Brill Design.

A traditionally shaped bouquet becomes more unexpected with a profusion of blues, including azure miniature irises, and a variety of textures. Muscari resembles small bunches of grapes; feathery scilla in the palest blue gives a sense of delicacy. The picot-edge bow reflects the flowers' wispiness.

A parasol is the perfect accessory for the romantic bride, nostalgic of Antebellum garden parties and floaty ball gowns. It will also keep fair skin as white as a wedding dress and by adding a personalized monogram in blue like this one, it can also serve as your something blue for your big day.

With its fitted bodice, full skirt, and chapel train, this duchesse-satin gown by Amsale could have been made for a princess. It has a touch of something blue in the form of a taffeta sash.

A dainty azure bow pinned discreetly to the underskirt of your wedding dress is a charming way to honor an age-old tradition. Choose any pretty blue ribbon you like and fasten it to the inner layers of your gown or undergarments with a tiny safety pin. It'll be your little secret: something blue that's hidden from view.

In this bouquet, ice-blue leaves encircle a silk poppy.

The six-tier cake at Elizabeth and Barton's wedding was covered with buttercream and filled with fresh-blueberry and white-chocolate buttercream.

For a wedding by the beach, a coral motif is always in fashion. New York baker Gail Watson piped coral branches in royal icing on fondant-covered tiers. Cotton fabric pinned around the cake board echoes coral's other famous hue. Sand-color fondant blankets the board.

These favors are decorated with elongated letters. Print monogram onto rectangular papers; trim with scalloping scissors. Wrap cardboard cylinders with layers of tissue paper; top with monogrammed paper, and secure with double-sided tape. Tie one end with rickrack. Fill with candy, and tie off.

This romantic box is swathed in organdy and finished with ribbon and a monogram sticker.

Love knots in blue silk-taffeta moire ribbon decorate elegant wedding stationery. The knot symbolizes commitment, and blue has long been associated with fidelity. Invitations by By Pantry Press. Calligraphy by Bernard Maisner.

Martha envisioned Jessica's bouquet with two kinds of orchids and white and blue pearlescent beads. The stems were bound with double-faced blue satin ribbon, which was tied in a bow and embellished with rhinestone buttons.

Pale-blue boxes in different shades create a beautiful favor table arrangement.

An orderly arrangement of seating cards can get jumbled as guests seek out their names. Tuck flat cards into the creases of accordion folds, and they'll stay in tidy rows. This display is not only elegant, it's easy to put together.