Say, Is it appropriate to wear a vintage wedding veil, vintage gloves or garter during your ceremony? You bet !
Not only are vintage wedding materials beautiful, but they are considered good luck for the Bride. The addition of a beautiful vintage wedding headpiece or vintage veil, vintage opera length gloves… or an antique beaded bag can dramatically change a plain dress into a stunning wedding statement.
With just a little searching, the proper vintage wedding accessories can be found!
“A vintage wedding veil is supposed to bring good luck to the bride and a borrowed wedding veil even more so…”
~English Tradition
How do I choose a Vintage Wedding Veil?
Ah, in the beginning…one must choose a gown!
Simple, huh? Well…once you’ve accomplished that seemingly monumental task, it’s OK to think about accessorizing your head.
Your gown’s style and shade of color will narrow your choices to some extent, but don’t let the style of your dress impose restrictions. It’s your wedding and you should wear whatever you want. The majority of people won’t notice if you choose to wear a cloche from the 1920’s with a gown from the 1970’s. Mix and Match and make it your own statement.
Although fashion historians will applaud you for getting it right, it’s none of their business if you choose to forego historical correctness and borrow from all eras. The fashion police are not going to arrest you at your wedding. That would be rude.
Anything goes, it’s your “look.” Just remember that matching shades between an antique veil and an antique gown can be difficult as the variations of ivory are endless. The key is to consider what appeals to you, and then find a veil/headpiece that compliments your gown in a shade as close to or slightly lighter than your gown’s color. Always choose your dress first. You can then refer to the color of your gown and consider the style and color of your veil and other accessories.
Although it is important to note that changes occurred during the Victorian era until the Edwardian, most antique or vintage veils that we’ll be offering you are from the 1920’s through the 1970’s.
The fragile nature of silk tulle makes it difficult to collect these treasures earlier than the 20th century. Headpieces will remain, but the veil must be re-created from new materials. Perhaps a brief overview of styles will help make it possible for you to go out and create your own reproduction.
The bottom line is that you’ll need to choose a length of tulle for your veil and a shape for that tulle. The headpiece that you decide upon will mostly determine what you need for the tulle. Tulle can be found at any dry goods or notions store; in nylon. If you are wanted silk illusion, you must order it from someone familiar with Heathcoat. Supreme Novelty is one such business.
COLOR
Most antique or vintage veils have aged to a golden cream, off-white or ivory. It is extremely rare if not impossible to find a pure white antique veil. Those that are close to white are often cotton.
FRAGILITY
Vintage Heathcoat veils are made from silk tulle. Earlier veils around the turn of the century are embroidered English cotton net. These are extremely fragile and require extreme care when worn, especially silk tulle, which often suffered tiny breaks before it can be passed down as a heirloom. Please be aware that it is almost impossible to find a vintage silk tulle veil in perfect condition.
Serving Brides on the Web since 1997, Gulden & Brown at Vintagegown.com specializes in finding authentic vintage wedding gowns and period accessories from the 1920's to the 1990's. We love vintage and we're glad you do too!