A Two Veil Bride

I know that for many a bride, a veil is a given. It’s not something they give much thought to or even consider as an option. It just is and therefore they do. For me it has proven a tough decision. I, in one part, long for something traditional, romantic, ethereal, and quintessentially bridal. Yet in large part I also loathe the way most typical veils look. They strike me as being boring, dowdy, rather unimaginative and often serve as a clear indicator that we’ve probably all been beaten over the head by images of the “perfect bride” far too often and for far too long. I can’t apologize for not loving the average tulle confection. I crave the romantic yet I also crave something with a big more sass, a bit more of an edge. I’m into trendy, but I’m also into classic with perhaps a bit of a vintage flavor. I am also one part flower child in love with the notion of finding a field of wildflowers on the morning of our wedding and happily selecting a bloom or two to tuck behind my ear.

Along the way I’ve fallen hopelessly in love with Myra’s creations for Twigs & Honey. Haven’t we all? After literally months of debate and far too much deliberation and calculation, I made an impulse decision one evening to jump on it when Myra announced the addition of a bunch of non-custom pieces to her Etsy shop. The piece that stole my heart is a little bit of everything I was looking for…beautiful, romantic, flowery, a bit edgy, a bit traditional, a smidge vintage, a dash classic. To me, it’s perfection.

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Flower hairpiece by Twigs & Honey

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Shown here in a quick snapshot the day it arrived prettily wrapped and then clumsily stuck into my hair. The layers of silk and organza are so very lovely.

But that wasn’t enough. No, the decision was far from complete.

Later that same week I decided to indulge my inner birdcage-loving self and I happened upon Something Bold, where I scooped up the ever popular Marilyn veil for a whopping $40, shipping including. It was a much more budget-friendly alternative to a lot of expensive birdcage veil options out there today, but still really fun. I went with the ivory netting with no embellishments and while I’m still figuring out how to make it look great, I know it’s going to be perfect.

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Lovely birdcage veil by Something Bold

But, naturally, I still wasn’t satisfied. I still longed for something ethereal and romantic and positively oozing with bridalness. I had long been debating between a flower or hairpiece of some kind versus a birdcage veil or a stunning drop veil, and basically I have come to the conclusion that I shall not chose between them. I will wear the flower and an insanely long drop veil for our ceremony, the flower alone for our Friday cocktail party and the flower with my new birdcage veil for our Saturday reception. I plan to order a long drop veil from Occansey Designs for what seems to be a pittance in the world of weddings and my trio of hair adornments will be complete for less than what most brides I know have spent for a single finger-tip veil at big name bridal salons. To each their own and I can’t knock another girl for loving the ultra traditional veil, but I just couldn’t do it for myself. I am really excited to have [finally] made a decision, to have found really good prices working with independent designers and crafters, and to get to indulge all the many facets of my personality throughout our wedding weekend.

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Image by La Vie Photography by via {frolic!}

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Image by La Vie Photography

Is anyone else finding the question of to veil or not to veil a tough one? What decision have you reached and what fabulous hairpiece (or lack thereof) are you going with?