What are the traditional symbolic meanings of the colours in a traditional handfasting cord?

What about including other symbolic and personal tokens? 

The colours used for handfasting cords or ribbons can have symbolic meanings that reflect the couple’s relationship: The colours and their symbolic meanings are as follows:

• Gold: Energy, wealth, intelligence, longevity, unity, prosperity & strength.
• Silver: Creativity, inspiration, vision, treasure & values.
• Brown: Earth, grounding, talent, telepathy, home, nurturing, skills and hearth.
• Pink: Unity, honour, truth, romance, happiness & love.
• Grey: Neutrality, balance and compromise.
• White: Purity, clean beginnings, concentration, meditation, peace, spiritual purity, truth, serenity and devotion.
• Black: Strength, wisdom, vision, success, empowerment & pure love.
• Purple: Power, piety, sanctity, sentimentality, healing, health and strength.
• Blue: Tranquillity, patience, devotion & sincerity
• Green: Prosperity, health, fertility, finances, charity, nurturing, beauty & love.
• Yellow: Confidence, joy, balance, harmony, charm & attraction.
• Orange: Attraction, kindness, encouragement, adaptability, stimulation & plenty.
• Red: Passion, fire, strength, fertility, courage, love, health & vigour.

In addition to the colours of the cords, there is symbolism attached to the number of cords used too. There are no rules about the number of cords or ribbons that you can have for a handfasting ceremony. People sometimes think of the Bible quotation, “a three-fold cord is not easily broken”. From that, some couples will opt to use three cords and three cord vows for their handfasting.

For a three-cord handfasting, coloured cords are often braided. Colours often used are white for purity, blue for fidelity and red for passion. Other colours may be chosen, for example, green for fertility & growth, purple for spiritual strength and gold for wisdom. The “right colours” are the colours that are right for the couple.

If using braided handfasting cords, choose a size that will let each colour stand out and be seen from twenty feet ( x metres) away by the wedding guests.

To add further symbolism – either personal to the couple, or a generic symbolism – beads or other objects can be woven into the cord. If adding objects into the cord, a smaller diameter cord will need to be used. Some people have used Celtic knots, elephants, shells, flowers and Chinese double happiness charms.

The type of cord used could also represent the hobbies or pastimes or professions of the couple getting married. Fishing or parachute cord have been used as single cords within a braided cord to represent the husband’s profession and the couples pastime respectively.