Outfit for October wedding in London

[PaleBlueEnglishRose]

I’m looking for an autumnal wedding outfit. Bridesmaids are in chocolate and we are asked to co-ordinate with that.

I am 5.7, size 8, blond, fair, brown eyes. Suit strong colours and fitted shapes.

Budget upto £500.

This is over budget but caught my eye:

https://www.victoriabeckham.com/products/cap-sleeve-dress-in-blackcurrant-22418

“Coordinating with chocolate” is a little ambiguous. Given dark brown is the current neutral, it can go with (and has been paired with) a huge range of colours. The obvious autumnal ones are burnt orange, mustard, olive, and chartreuse, but this SS was all about pairing brown with bright blue and red. Brown also looks good with soft blush/rose pinks and burgundy.

Is the bride asking you to look like an autumn festival or just asking people not to base their outfits on other neutrals like navy or black?

I think it’s a gentle steer. This is the wording:

We ask that you dress in smart formal clothes that make you feel confident, comfortable and ready to party. No jeans please. Please note our bridesmaids are wearing chocolate brown so choose something that would be complimentary please.

To me, that sounds as if they absolutely don't want you to wear plain chocolate brown - as you might look like a bridesmaid ...

If they specifically wanted everyone in autumnal shades, I think they would have said so? Although it may depend on how up-to-date they are, fashion-wise ...? They may not expect catwalk-style pairings with bright blue or red ...???

(I do hope they got the spelling right on the invitation though!!)

Do they know what either complimentary or complementary mean? Is this just a pompous way of saying "don't wear brown"?