Over the years Weddingbee has grown to become one of the top bridal communities, offering a space for brides to get inspiration, ideas and chat about all things wedding. Lover.lyis considered to be the new big thing in the wedding industry offering a place for brides to save inspiration they find.
Cathleya is a motivated girl who helps both of these companies thrive day in and day out. And if that wasn’t challenging enough, she still had time to chat with the COLOURlovers community a bit about trends, colors and how she got here. So, let’s get started.
First up, why don’t you tell the community a bit about who you are and what you do.
Hello COLOURlovers community! I’m Cathleya Schroeckenstein, the Editor in Chief of Weddingbee, a bride to bride blog and wedding community. I’ve been with Weddingbee since 2007, running the day to day operations of the site which includes a blog that updates 20+ times a day, a thriving bridal community and user generated galleries. In 2011 I also joined the startup team at Lover.ly, a curated wedding search engine and cloud scrapbook for brides, as Director of Community Relations.
What colors and color trends do you think we will see a lot of in wedding in 2012?
Nude is the new black!
In the warm months I think we’ll see over the top bright colors—fuchsia, poppy, sunshine yellow, apple green, peacock teal. Rather than pairing 2-3 colors, I think we’ll see more use of shades of one color—from bridesmaids being in a range of blue-greens with varying saturations, to flowers being all various shades of one color. Where the past few years, these colors were being paired with grey, I think we’ll see these brights being paired with nude and beige.
The Wedding Chicks / Aaron Shintaku Photography via Lover.ly
In the cooler months I think we’ll see a lot of neutral palettes paired with sparkle! White, cream, beige, blush, black, paired with gold, silver, and even gilver—the cross between gold and silver.
Inspired by This / Jose Villa via Lover.ly
What patterns and trends do you think will be big in 2012?
Ombre was a big hit in 2011 and will infiltrate further into the mainstream in 2012.
Bridal Musings / Sweet Little Photographs via Lover.ly
With a more successful holiday season than previous years, sentiment seems to be leaning towards a positive economic outlook, and people may be more comfortable with lavish details – gold trim, gilding, and metallic sparkle will shine!
Which colors, patterns & trends are you personally most excited about seeing?
White, white, white! I’m excited to see brides step back to weddings of yesteryear and focusing less on a color scheme and more on the idea of mixing whites, creams, and neutrals for a classic look.
Snippet and Ink / Elizabeth Messina via Lover.ly
What are some color palettes you love to see in a wedding?
Yellow and grey is so modern chic and is a color palette I never tire of that we’ve seen a lot.
Every Last Detail / Natalia Zamarripa Photography via Lover.ly
Peach, cream, white, dusty-miller grey are seen fairly often in rustic weddings, but is the ultimate palette for the vintage bride.
Grey Likes Weddings / Lori Paladino via Lover.ly
What colors do you not often see together a lot, but would like to see more of?
Couples avoid vibrant pink because it’s a tad on the girly side, but paired with crisp white and turquoise I think it makes for a really fun and funky color scheme!
Inspired by This / Cramer Photography via Lover.ly
Peach sometimes gets a bad wrap as being a dated color…but I love it paired with cream and vibrant orange for a modern look.
How important do you think patterns are to a wedding design? What are your favorites?
Patterns are a sweet way to bring together a theme! Swiss dots have always been a favorite of mine, a pattern easily carried from the bride’s dress, to trim, to the wedding cake. I also love the use of modern geometry – simple use of circles, squares, triangles, or bold stripes.
Grey Likes Weddings / Jen Huang Photography via Lover.ly
What’s the best design-related advice you’ve ever received?
Declutter your wedding design! Pick a color or two, two fonts, and stay true to them throughout your entire wedding. It’s OK if everything isn’t one exact color. Play with saturation…if you don’t exactly stick to one color, it’s easier on you to find matching design elements, and your scheme and design will appear more organic.
The Bride’s Cafe / Jill Thomas Photography via Lover.ly
When you are feeling stumped, where do you turn for inspiration?
Lover.ly offers a super easy way to search by color…when I’m in the mood for pink, a quick pink search in the search bar gets me lost in a sea of hues, from blush to fuchsia.
And, for additional bridal+color inspiration, there’s no better place to turn than Snippet &Ink! Kathryn posts beautifully crafted inspiration boards weekly that never go out of style.
What past experiences do you think have contributed the most to where you are now?
My passion for the Weddingbee community stemmed from my own experiences as a bride. I was looking for a place where I could converse with real brides, rather than have professionals or experts talking to me. Weddingbee’s focus on the journey, rather than just the big day, was something that really appealed to me. I became engrossed in the community and blog…my passion eventually lead me to head up the site and turn my hobby into my career online in weddings!
Thank you for you time Cathleya!
Are you getting married in the near future? If so, have you used Weddingbee or Lover.ly? What wedding sites have you found helpful?
