Manolo for the Brides

The amazing and fabulous Toni, who you’ll all remember is currently planning her nuptials, wrote in to ask:

I’m having the hardest time finding a veil for my wedding. I like the one that they had me try on with my dress but I don’t want anything covering my face, and I think I might want something smidge softer. In other words, maybe made out of regular tulle, not that netting, though that might be too tricky to find. I would want some sort of flower or decorative doohicky on one side. I simply can’t wrap my head around paying $50+ for $1 worth of tulle.

Yes, I suppose I could make my own, and I am a crafty person, but I have yet to find a decent crafts store up here in Arlington (I used to live right next to a Jo-Ann’s SuperStore, sob!) and plus my life is crazy right now. (3-month engagement to wedding timeline, fiance’s kids are moving in with us for the summer starting this weekend, and I am in charge of a big event at work that’s happening the week after the wedding.) That said, if you know of an easy step-by-step tutorial, I might be willing to give it a try.

I did try to cut up my waist-length veil from my first wedding, but that didn’t work so well. Oh, and I know the “not covering my face” part has more to do with how I wear the veil than the veil itself. Basically, I just want a hint of tulle referencing a veil without actually being a VEIL or all up in my face. So, in a nutshell…

1. Should I be searching for any terms other than “birdcage veil?”
2. Do they exist at a reasonable price? Or should I just suck it up and spend the $50?
3. Should I just make it myself?

Well, Toni (and everyone else reading this), I have also balked at the notion of spending umteenbajillianty dollars on what adds up to a dollars’ worth of netting. There are artful and interesting bridal veils out there that I believe are absolutely worth the money, but I also believe that there are plenty more that can be replicated at home by anyone with even the smallest aptitude for the crafty arts. And since you’re open to the idea of DIYing a veil – and a naturally talented soul – let’s take a look at that option first.

The simplest possible DIY bridal veil?

I found a great DIY bridal veil tutorial at CraftStylish that will walk you through making a very simple, custom-length veil. I’d wager you could easily modify the tutorial to be quite short, so you’re only, as you put it, referencing the veil. And the simplicity of the design makes it easy to add the sort of embellishments that seem most appropriate. The comb ensures you can place your DIY bridal veil and have it very much NOT hanging down in front of your face. Only drawback? The tutorial suggests rolling the hem with a serger. Satin bias tape to the rescue?

Jane from Sara Gabriel veils

I’m picturing something like the Jane veil, except a bit shorter and with a little something more going on in the embellishment department. And heck, it has raw edges so you don’t need the bias tape or the serger!

For more embellishment, try this!

As for what kind of “flower or decorative doohicky” you’re thinking about, the sky is the limit. CraftStylish also has a pretty easy DIY veil tutorial – this time a fascinator – that features feathers, buttons, and some little wirey beady things that you could take or leave depending on your preference. Too much? Only you can say, but it certainly offers a satisfying amount of decorating in the doohicky department! Find the tutorial here.

But three months is one helluva short engagement, so maybe you don’t want to be futzing around making DIY bridal veils but you also don’t want to spend the above mentioned figure of umteenbajillianty on a veil, which is why in the end I suggest looking at Etsy for a seller who has something close to what you’re looking for and is willing to do a relatively fast custom order. In high quality bridal tulle, of course.

As to your specific questions, here are my answers: 1. I’d try short veils, simple veils, tulle veils, etc. in Google image search just to see what comes
up. 2. Like I said, Etsy! So many veils cost way too much – I’d try DIYing it before spending $50 if you’re not OMG VEILS VEILS like some brides
are. Not that there’s anything wrong with loving them or hating them. 3. Doesn’t hurt to try!

And perhaps, now that this is posted here, my fantastic readership can weigh in. Know any uber fab sources for short and sweet bridal veils that are reasonably priced for the bride who wants a veil, but would rather put those extra few hundred dollars into the cake budget? How about excellent DIY bridal veil tutorials?

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 5th, 2011 at 5:27 am and is filed under Accessories, Veils. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.