Styleboard: Red and Black

When we were getting married, I was pretty cautious with my colors. Everything I bought ended up being silver or pale blue. So, when I announced that I was going to have my attendants wear all black, people were surprised. A few commented that I was being very brave, since our wedding could turn out to be a bit grim and gothic with all those people in black standing around. Of course, it all turned out to be fine and I think my attendants looked pretty classy on our big day.

Now, having seen so many weddings, I know the difference between being a little brave with your colors and being very brave. I've been pleasantly surprised by so many color combinations that I would have shied away from during my planning, like this one from Laura's wedding:

If a bride were to tell me that their wedding colors were red and black and that all of their attendants would be wearing both of those colors, I'd get a bit nervous. But I think Laura's wedding party pulled the look off beautifully and I thought I'd pull together a styleboard for anyone else considering such a daring choice or just in case someone was looking for a little secret vamp to add to their wedding day.

Note: The thing about red and black seems to be that you have to be careful not to wander into Hot Topic territory or you need to embrace the Hot Topic-ness and just go with it. I'm not keen on that kind of style at weddings, so this styleboard is more old Hollywood glamour.

Red & Black Rose Handtied Wedding Bouquet - Bridal Bouquets - Handtied Posies - Red & Black Rose 37 GBP - sarahsflowers.co.uk, Kat Von D Painted Love Lipstick Homegirl $18 - sephora.com, Red and Black Drape Column Dress, Jonathan Saunders, size: 8 670 GBP - liberty.co.uk, Moulin rouge costume flagshipfancydress.co.uk, Love 100 suede pumps$995 - net-a-porter.com, Patent Wallet $45 - yesstyle.com, Red and Black Garter in Organza - or Custom Colors - Garters: Bridal Garter - Wedding Garter - So...$15 - advantagebridal.com, House of Harlow 14KT Gold-Plated Red Cabochon Stone Bangle$180 - shopthetrendboutique.com