Darcy Miller's Tips for Picking the Perfect Party Palette

Every party I throw starts with two things: making sure the guests have an amazing time, and celebrating with personal touches. But when it comes to the nitty-gritty of throwing an unforgettable celebration, picking a color palette is a key early step.

A color scheme makes a party look better, because everything works together. But having a palette in mind also streamlines the process of making other decisions. Choosing items—from decor to flowers to favors—becomes so much easier when looking for things in a particular color or to complement that hue.

How to Pick a Color Palette

I’ve thrown parties where the color is the theme, like a Purple Party for my daughter’s birthday when that was her favorite color. And some events lend themselves to color schemes: Golden or silver anniversaries, for example, or a rainbow party for Pride (or any time of year, because everyone loves rainbows—and so many party items, from balloons to ice cubes, come in rainbow hues).

Even if color isn’t the theme for the party, or the event has no theme at all, a color scheme helps keep everything cohesive. Here are just a few of the things that can inspire color palettes:

• The graduate’s school colors or someone’s favorite color.
• The setting (blue and white for a party by the sea).
• The season. Yes, the colors of fall leaves are beautiful decor for Thanksgiving, but I’ve also thrown a cherry-themed party when those were in season, making red the primary color.
• The flowers. Choose a flower in season that might lead to your whole palette: Pink peonies or blue hydrangeas could be your jumping-off point.
• Something the honoree loves. If that’s daisies, yellow and white. Or if they love a particular brand, take their colors: Hermès orange and brown, Tiffany blue and white, or McDonald’s red and yellow (who wouldn’t love a tray of fries in those iconic cardboard containers alongside red and yellow napkins?).
  

When I threw a bridal shower for my friend Dylan Lauren, the candy queen and founder of Dylan’s Candy Bar, I chose a bright color palette inspired by candy. Candy comes in every color, but I wanted a more focused look. So I chose gumball pink, Lemonhead yellow, and Tic-Tac white, because you always need a neutral to make the other colors pop.

Using a Color Palette

How much you want to lean into the hues you decide to use is entirely up to you. They can subtly set a tone, or you can make the palette a major focus for everything from décor to favors.

Color can be the main theme or an accent. You might want to have a dress code, like a black-and-white party, use multiple shades of one color for an ombré effect in décor, or try a two- or three-color palette, similar to mine for Dylan’s party. Here are a few other ways to incorporate color into your celebration.

Décor

With Dylan’s shower, I wanted the color palette front and center, so I made it a major part of the decor. The color scheme of pink, yellow, and white was bright, fun, and unexpected, a modern twist on the traditional bridal shower color palette of whites, creams, and pastels.  To set the tone right away, a mural made of Chiclets in the color palette stood in the foyer, making it the first thing guests saw as they entered the party. Real and sugar flowers in the palette lined the mantle.

Scale plays a role here. If you want your color palette to shout, use it in noticeable items like a tablecloth or this mosaic. If you want it to whisper, the color might just be on the front of the invitations, in flower arrangements, or on the cake icing.

And, of course, every decor moment doesn’t have to be in that color. Over the years, I’ve collected many serving items that are clear glass, white, or metallic. Those neutrals work at party after party; the same glass cake plate will work whether I’m hosting a candy-colored shower or a rainbow party. And remember, gold and silver go with everything—and make any celebration a little more festive!

Invitations

Picking a color scheme early will help you select invitations—whether mailed or digital—that give guests a taste of what’s to come. For Dylan’s shower, I took that idea literally and mailed a chocolate bar wrapped in the invitation. It’s a fun surprise—not just that the invitation is a bar of chocolate, but that the strawberry-flavored chocolate is pink.

Food and Drink

I’m not suggesting that you ONLY serve food that’s on-palette—no one wants blue chicken—but color can easily be brought into drinks, sweets, desserts, fruits, and vegetables. A signature drink with a colored ice cube, like this Blue Moon martini, is always fun.

At Dylan’s shower, a candy bar filled with pink candy (in clear containers shaped in the couple’s initials) doubled as an activity, treat station, and decor. For this moment, I took one of the most noticeable colors in the palette (pink!) and used multiple shades of it.

Even if the food isn’t in the color scheme, you can always bring in accents in the serving trays. Here, pink jelly beans were placed between clear trays, bringing the palette into the food and making the mini milkshakes pop.

Favors

Edible items make great favors—partly because you can always get candy, cookies, macarons, or other treats in a variety of colors. Present them in a clear package, and you’re set. 

For Dylan’s shower, favors included a cellophane treat bag, printed with my art, for guests to fill with candy from the display table. Clear cylinders were filled with jelly beans in our color scheme, adding to the décor when lined up on a table.

Be Flexible

Just because you’ve chosen a color palette, it doesn’t mean everything has to be in those hues. Don’t make yourself crazy buying a new wardrobe or slipcovers for the dining room chairs! When I threw Dylan's shower, which was all bright colors, Dylan and I wore neutrals, which let the decor pop.

And if the anniversary couple loves chocolate ganache cake, even though your color palette is silver, go ahead and serve it! You can carry the theme elsewhere, so they can have their cake and eat it, too.