Everything you need to know about saying YES to your bridal veil, jewelry and more!

Hi there and welcome to the MaeMe Bridal podcast. I’m your host Melissa Estess, and I’m super excited your are joining me today because we are going to talk about selecting the finishes touches to your wedding day look and what you need to know about veils, hair accessories, and jewelry!

So, if you’ve been following our podcast, in previous episodes, I’ve really focused mostly on the wedding dress and all the things there are to know about the dress itself! And, sometimes, the dress is all a bride can commit to during her bridal appointment. I mean, let’s face it, saying YES to the dress is a huge win! And we fully understand how much pressure there is to find THE dress out of the hundreds of beautiful wedding gowns; however, we strongly recommend trying on veils, jewelry and headpieces with your gown so that you can see the entire ensemble together! As we dive deeper into selecting your accessories to complete your wedding day look, you’ll understand why we recommend that our brides book a styling appointment with their expert stylist to shop specifically for the finishing touches! 

Today, we will focus on:

• Veils

  • Types of veils
  • Placement of veils
  • Detail elements

• Jewelry

  • Style and design to compliment dress
  • Custom options

Show notes:

Bridal Veils

Our brides love veils, and so do we! In fact, over 80% of our brides purchase a veil with their gown! Veils come in all different styles to suit a variety of different looks and bridal styles. Many of our brides wear more than one veil for their wedding because they love the look of a cathedral length veil for the drama when walking down the aisle, but you cannot walk around the reception with a cathedral length train for the entire evening, so they also opt for a shorter veil that they can wear for the remainder of their wedding celebration following the ceremony. Some of our brides wear both the shorter length veil and the cathedral length for their ceremony, and pull the shorter veil over their face as a blusher when walking down the aisle. If you opt to wear a blusher, when the doors of your church or ceremony venue open or when your guests see you for the first time, the blusher veil will cover your face. Once you get to the end of the aisle, typically, your father or whomever is giving you away, will lift the veil from your face and flip it to lay behind your head. If you are wearing both a cathedral length veil and a blusher, you can opt to have the blusher on a separate comb, or the two veils can be attached on the same comb. If you choose the veils to be on separate combs, then after the ceremony, you can take the cathedral veil out of your hair, and leave the blusher veil in, for that bridal look throughout your reception. If you opt for the two veil to be on the same comb, then after your ceremony, you would have to remove both veils.

Another option is to select a two tiered veil, which sounds like the same thing as having a cathedral veil and a blusher, however, it is a different pattern. I will do my best to describe the difference; however, it may be most helpful to take a look on the maemebridal blog at the show notes for pictures of what I’m describing!

The 2 different veils have a comb attached to the end of the tulle or illusion fabric. The veil material is gathered onto the teeth of the comb and sewn in place. If you are wearing two veils, you would place the longer veil in the hair first, and then place the shorter veil comb directly above the other comb in the hair, so the shorter length veil would sit on top, or above the longer length veil. In contrast, a two tiered veil has the comb placed in the center of the material, and the veil is then folded over itself. The best way to describe this type of veil is to imagine an oblong oval shape piece of fabric. Instead of the comb at the very end of the fabric, the comb is placed in the center of the width of the oval and about 1/3 of the way in lengthwise on the fabric. The comb is then attached to the illusion material by hand with the needle going through the illusion and around the teeth of the comb. Once attached and you lift the comb and hold the comb, the fabric folds over itself from that point, and creates a two tiered veil. Since the comb was placed 1/3 of the way up the fabric lengthwise, the top layer is 1/3 of the length of the fabric, and the Bottom layer is 2/3 in length, making the bottom layer of the veil longer. Often times, this style veil is flatter in nature at the comb, and has a less gathered look.

Veils are available in a variety of styles and with many different design elements! It is important to coordinate the design elements so the veil compliments the wedding dress. It is also important to consider where on the veil the details will be placed, as it will greatly effect your overall look. For example, if you are electing for a lace veil, you can have the lace start at the very top by the comb, and edge the entire veil. This look has a very traditional look with lace framing the bride’s face. A slightly different option is to select the very same lace, but start the lace around the edging at the bride’s elbow, and then circling around the veil, so that the veil around the face has a raw or unfinished edge with a very soft look, and then incorporating the design element around the bottom portion of the veil. Similarly, if you are opting for a blusher or for a multiple layer veil, the design element can be incorporated on the blusher, so it would then be in front of your face, or you can opt to only have the design element on the longer veil behind you, and leave the blusher with a clean edge, as to not distract from your face.

Mantilla style veils are the flatter veil look typically worn at the top of the head, and often have a slightly Spanish or traditional look with lace surrounding the face. Cascading veils are cut with the edge of the veil mimicking a waterfall shape vs and round cut veil which will lay flatter and in a single layer… as you can tell, veils come in a wide variety of options, and that is why we recommend a bride shops for her veil while she is in boutique and her expert stylist can guide her and show her the different options while she is wearing her wedding gown!

Something else to keep in mind with veils is proper placement of the comb. Now, some brides want their veil on the very top of their head, and some brides want their veil low on the nape of their neck… this is simply bridal preference! No matter where on your head you want to place your veil, you want to ensure that you are putting the comb in properly!

I am going to walk you through how to properly place a comb in a bride’s hair. The comb is a concave in shape, so the center of the comb caves in in the middle. If you imagine being the stylist with a bride in front of you, holding up the comb parallel with the floor with the smooth side  of the comb closest to you and the teeth side pointing away from you, it will create a “u” shape with the middle of the comb lower than the two edges. The material of the veil will then be closest to your body, and the teeth of the comb closest to the bride. When you go to place the comb in the bride’s hair (again, this is the bride’s preference pending the look she wants and how she is wearing her hair), you will place the teeth of the comb in their hair first, and then angle the teeth downward. The “U” shape of the comb will follow the curvature of the bride’s head. The teeth of the comb will then be place into the bride’s hair, and the fabric of the veil will be at the top of the comb hanging down toward you. If the comb shape is opposite of the curvature of the bride’s head, you have the veil upside down!

Video of placing a veil in the hair

It is usually best to place the veil into an area of the hair that either has a bun or some sort of pins to keep the veil in place. If a bride is opting to wear her hair down, we recommend teasing the hair where she plans to insert the veil comb, as well as add a few bobby pins or hair pins to secure the veil.

Veils steam out really easily, and we recommend steaming all veils before wearing them on your wedding day! Also, veil Tulle is available in many different tones and colors. The majority of our brides order ivory tulle, even if their gown has a darker colored lining or undertone. Very few, in face, almost none of our brides, order white wedding dresses; however, if you are wearing a white wedding dress, you would want to make sure to order a white veil, and if your veil has any design elements, like lace or beading, you would also want to features to coordinate with the tone of your wedding gown and veil tulle color.

Bridal Jewelry

Jewelry is going to be reflective of your style and natural fashion tendencies along with the style of your wedding gown! Some of our brides elect to wear a statement earring and possibly a bracelet and forego the necklace. Others wear a simpler earring and a dramatic necklace, possibly with a dramatic lariat trailing down their exposed back with a delicate pearl or Swarovski crystal stone anchoring the bottom. Many of our brides wear an ornate comb or hairpiece that ties in their veil with their jewelry.

We work with one of my favorite people on the planet, Heidi Hull designs, and she creates custom jewelry for our brides! So literally, any stone, any metal color, whatever shape you like on your frame, earrings, necklaces, head pieces, bracelets, you name it…. If you can imagine it, she can create it…. And even if you can’t imagine it, she can! Side note, her jewelry sales help fund a ministry for human trafficking, which is an amazing, life-giving, change the world platform… so, we LOVE working with her on so many levels! In fact, she is coming to New Orleans at the end of January for an exclusive trunk show at MaeMe, so if you already purchased your gown and need jewelry for your wedding, call us to book an appointment with her to design one of a kind jewelry for your special day!

Heidi Hull Trunk Show at MaeMe

January 31-February 1 by appointment

Book now!

You will LOVE her as much as we do, I promise!

Whatever your preference for jewelry is, I strongly encourage you to try on the jewelry with your gown. Again, we want the metals and the tone of the stones of your jewelry to coordinate well with your gown, and for one not to overpower the other. Your accessories should do just that, accessorize the main feature, you, THE BRIDE!

Remember, most brides also carry florals down the aisle, and you will have your hair and makeup done, your bridal shoes on… Oh, it gives me goosebumps just thinking about how gorgeous our brides are! I don’t say all of this to overwhelm you, I’m chatting about this with you so that you feel comfortable with us walking you through all of these decisions, that will come together in the most beautiful and perfect way for your most special day!

So, I hope this gave you some really great ideas and feedback on selecting the finishing touches to your wedding day ensemble! The takeaway here is that there are many many options and details to consider. So don’t wait until the last minute to make these decisions, and try to order from a boutique that is full service, where you can try on all of these elements at one time to see your entire wedding day look all put together with a stylist team familiar with all of these details and special finishing touches! I really did my best to describe the details of the veils and jewelry to you, but head over to the show notes on the MaeMe blog for pictures and more detailed explanations of what I’ve mentioned here today, and feel free to shoot me over an email if you have any questions at all at [email protected].

Thank you so much for joining me today, and if you know a bride who would benefit from this information, please send her the link to the podcast so she can be best prepared for her special day! Thanks again, and have a wonderful day!

Xoxo, Melissa