Showing posts with label Veil. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Veil. Show all posts

10 October, 2008

And more wedding goodness arrives at my house...

...which is beginning to look like a disaster zone. Luckily (?) my house is always in a mess, which makes the epic pile-up of wedding goodness not as noticeable. Silver lining here, people!

So aside from the eight boxes I've been purloining from work over the past few weeks (eh, they usually get thrown out, anyway), and which are full of random paraphernalia like the crystalised hanging table cards, the cake toppers, the confetti cones (those I've actually done so far), the blinged-up candles, my shoes, garter, the guestbook, and so on and so fifth, there are also three green supermarket bags full of extra candles which a work colleague gifted me from her daughter's wedding; the wooden cardbox, which is too big to fit in these boxes; a big plastic bag of photo frames for the table names; the clapperboards which were such a good idea until we decided on the classic actor table names instead, which means we have to find another way to use them because I abhor waste; twelve ice-cream tubs full of golden Oscars; and a big kitbag which I'm going to use for my emergency kit, jewellery and general "don't forget this" items on the day. Then lying on the shelf near my bed are the two BM dresses (which I can't hang up because they're strapless AND stretchy), and my veil is hiding in a cupboard so Mr Ruby Slippers doesn't see it, together with the GM ties. Then on the door to the computer room I've hung the damask table runners (they were too long for the cupboard). On top of this the computer room itself (known to us as the Spare Oom) has test-run printouts scattered everywhere, of everything from the menus to the programs to the placecards, as well as lists with headings like "don't forget this" and "parents to take to venue". Aaargh, so many teeny details to organise! It's frightening.

So the actual point of this post was that last night my seamstress dropped off the BM dresses, veil and ties at my house. I promptly had a mini dress-up in my veil (which would have been a full-blown dress-up if my dress wasn't off enjoying its last few weeks of freedom at the alterations place (probably boozing it up with the other gowns) and tried to recreate some flying veil shots (note: this doesn't work inside). I didn't get any photos, because it was impossible by myself to hold the camera whilst my veil covers my entire body, but this is pretty much what it's going to look like:


This is Mrs Jelly Beans from Weddingbee. My veil even has scattered rhinestones like hers, to give that extra dash of sparkle without being too blingy, but while hers was long in front and cathedralesque at the back, mine is just above ankle-length all the way around, if I keep it even. The beauty of a drop veil is that it can be adjusted to be any length! It also looks really pretty with the front at waist-length and the back trailing on the floor, but I *think* I've decided against this in case it covers and detracts from my beautiful train.

Here is a picture of the bridesmaids' dress. Again, I don't have one of them in their actual dresses (this is from the net somewhere), but I love the fabric we chose and the colour matches my Ruby Slippers perfectly! Oh, the serendipity of it all - because I didn't take the shoes along when we bought the dress fabric. It just happened!

The only thing is we didn't get brooches to put at the side where the dress gathers up, and I think it's necessary for a bit of dressy sparkle. So now I'm going to have to find two costume brooches from somewhere easy and close (I really don't feel like travelling somewhere just for brooches at this point..)

Oh, and one more piece of wedding goodness - I finally found white parasols! Which means we can take scrumptious photos like these:



I've lost the source of this one, but isn't it yummy? It even matches my colours and everything! Only my girls are going to be a little less - ahem - free with their womanly assets.

Is wedding stuff taking over your home?

17 August, 2008

Veiled in Mystery

So a while ago I posted about the dilemma of a birdcage veil versus the long, flowing veil of my dreams. And the long veil won out! I'm so sorry I can't have two weddings and wear two veils, but I really want the flying veil shots. Someone suggested that I wear the birdcage for the reception, which is an excellent plan. But I just think I'm going to be too attached to my veil to want to let it go so soon! So a long veil it is :-)


Now there was only one huge, massive decision to be made. What KIND of long veil are we talking about here? Long, like floor-length, or long like it's still coming in the door when I'm already at the altar? And once the length is decided, what about a blusher? Chin-length, waist-length, floor-length? Do I even want a blusher? Mantilla veils look really pretty, have great lace edging, and don't cover the face. How many layers of veil? One, two, or three? Square-cut or rounded? What about edging - crystals, beads, sequins, or lace? Or no edging? Scattered sparklies all over or just plain? Embroidered patterns or nothing?


Aaargh!!!


So I turned to the best resource I know - photography blogs! Nothing like seeing what works at a real wedding to find out what is best for you. Now I don't have any limiting facors like a beach, for example, where a long veil can be impractical. It could rain but I like to feel that it's unlikely to, so I'm not letting that sway my decision. No, my only factor in my decision is What Do I Want? (I love that! It's all about me!!)


Here are some examples of my dilemma. My NEW dilemma (do they ever stop?):

I quickly discounted this short blusher veil because it's too short:


My bridal consultant seemed to think an elbow or fingertip length would look good with my dress, but I wasn't convinced:


Meh. Not long enough! But my dress does have a gorgeous embroidered train, which it would be a shame to hide. Then I started looking at mantilla veils. How stunning is this:


And then I found a great fingertip length mantilla, which looks really pretty:


But, ultimately, not long enough. So I looked at long mantillas:


Wow, Wow and WOW, right? I couldn't get over how beautiful these looked! But something was wrong...I realised after looking at these that I really, really wanted something to cover my face. But I hated the big, bushy, poofy veil that grows out of your head like a great meringue:


I liked the sleekness of the mantilla veils; and I loved the fact that they were flat on the head, letting their beauty come from their soft cascading fall. But I wanted something over my face, and I still wanted a long veil that we could 'play' under and get great sweeping veil shots like these:




And then I discovered the Drop Veil. Basically just a huge circle of fabric that you can place on your head however you want - even all the way around, or short in the front and flowing as a train at the back. It was when I saw these pictures that I was hooked:

Gorgeously stunningly wow! I love the flowing simplicity of it all. My search was over! Bring on my drop veil!

Here are some other beautiful photos:


My veil is sorted! Fiiiiinally!

08 July, 2008

Birdcage or childhood dream?

Now 'fess up: I know I'm not the only one who used to stand in front of a window and pretend the net curtains were a wedding veil. My mother's bedroom had a perfectly positioned mirror where I could do this and see only myself and the veil, and not the fact that said veil was still attached to the curtain rail!

Ok, I was eight. But I always knew I wanted a long, flowing veil, just like those curtains, only less, well, curtain-like.

Today I stood in front of that same mirror in my wedding dress, twenty-one years older, but still with that same dream. A veil that can envelop and cocoon me, flow behind me in the wind, and swish behind me as I walk up the aisle to marry the man of my dreams. *Sigh* A dream only exacerbated by pictures like these:




Ok, can you say WOW? Seriously, I WANT this.


But then I started planning a vintage Old Hollywood feel to my wedding. And suddenly, everywhere I looked, THIS started cropping up:

(Via VintageGlam's knottie bio)

Image Source


Image Source



Ladies and gentlemen, I give you The Birdcage Veil. Elegant, sophisticated, vintage, glamorous, and so old Hollywood I could just scream.

So NOW what do I do? The flowing white classic childhood dream, or the sleek, elegant classic film star look?

Help!