Restyling Mom’s 80’s Bridal Headpiece
The reasons bride want to wear their mother’s bridal headpiece from the 1980s vary. It has to be pure love, as wedding veils from the eighties were a bit on the wild side.
It is easy to spot an eighties bridal headpiece. Wreaths, halos, and forehead styles were the most popular. If it has a pouf veil on the back, pearl filaments, and a side spray of leaves and flowers, you can bet the wedding date was somewhere in the mid to late eighties. The wedding industry was booming, with estimates of 20 million performed in that decade. During this time, bridal headpieces were made in fashion hubs like New York City and Los Angeles.
Luis and Patricia Balarinni, March 21, 1987
“I have restyled so many 80s headpieces that I have worked on exact duplicates brought to me from different brides. Bridal accessories were being churned out in the NYC Fashion District. Tiny store after tiny store offered an array of bridal headpieces being made in back rooms. Hardly any of those stores exist now.”
North Carolina bride-to-be Amanda Balarinni found Headpiece.com on Google while searching for veil restoration. Once she saw our vintage restyles on our website and Instagram, she immediately knew this was something she wanted to do.,
“When I found Headpiece.com, I immediately fell in love with Marie’s work. I reached out to Marie, and we were on a video call less than 24 hours later. The process was so seamless that I knew it was meant to be.”
What I love most about restyling (or repurposing) a 1980s headpiece is the incredible transformation. I change it from a very recognizable eighties headpiece into something distinctly beautiful, unique, and meaningful.
“One of my signatures as a designer is designing the headpiece in components so it can be placed in the hair however the bride wants. She can wear the pieces clustered to appear like one headpiece or separately as hairpins. The best part is you never have to pack it away like we did as eighties brides. You can wear it again!”
Designs such as these are why I have been recognized as the leading expert in the USA for the restoration, restyle, and repurposing of vintage wedding veils and bridal headpieces. No one produces couture bridal accessories like headpiece.com!
1980s Vintage Headpiece Restyle for a North Carolina Bride
Wedding Photography by Long Yau Photography
GOWN / Essence of Australia CEREMONY / JC Raulston Arboretum RECEPTION / Glass House Kitchen VINTAGE HEADPIECE RESTYLE / Headpiece.com HAIR / Erin Razzaboni MUA / Dark Hearts Artistry FLORIST / Fallons Flowers
After finding Headpiece.com, Amanda felt she didn’t need to look elsewhere.
“My parents have been married for 37 years, and I wanted to include a piece of their love story as I started my own with Chandler. I began to look for veil restoration, which is how I found Headpiece.com. Once I saw the headpieces, I knew I wanted to restore and restyle my mom’s 80’s headpiece. I fell in love with Marie’s work immediately.”
With Amanda living in North Carolina, she left it to her mom and sister, who reside in New Jersey, to meet with me to evaluate the headpiece. They kept the final design ideas a secret from Amanda to surprise her.
“During our virtual consultation, Marie asked me how I wanted to wear the headpiece. Apart from choosing the physical style, I completely trusted Marie to design the piece on her own. I was excited to see what her creativity would bring to life!”
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Amanda’s dad got to see the restyled headpiece his bride once wore as he danced with his little girl before the ceremony to “Give Me Away” by Riley Roth.
“Since our wedding reception was more non-traditional, we would not be doing first dances. A first dance with my dad was something I knew I wanted to do regardless, and I knew it would mean a lot to him. So we did our first dance before the ceremony with just my mom and sister beside us. I am so glad we did it that way!”
Amanda found a special way to have her grandmother with her on her wedding day. She created a “Stay Happy” heart and sewed it into her dress lining.
“Every time we spoke, my grandmother would say, “Stay happy,” before we hung up the phone. Before she passed away, I asked her to write it on a piece of paper. I had it printed on fabric to use as my something blue. I cut it into a heart and sewed it into the skirt with blue thread.””
“At our brunch reception, we had a newspaper at each place setting. One of the fun facts in the newspaper was that my headpiece was made from my mom’s, which she wore on her wedding day. People asked me multiple times to see the headpiece. I received so many compliments and felt so proud to be wearing it.”
“When the headpiece was put in my hair, I felt so close to my mom. It was truly beautiful that I could wear something she wore when she married my dad.”
“Chandler had no idea what I was wearing at the wedding. It was a complete secret. When I told him the headpiece was restyled from my mom’s, he said, “Wow. Really? That’s so cool!” He took a closer look at it and said how classy it was. He kept telling me I looked beautiful and never stopped smiling the whole day!””
“This was one of my favorite things about the wedding because it had so much meaning. I am sentimental, and having something like this was so important to me. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for my mom, and I am glad I got to honor her in such a beautiful way. It was so worth the investment. Now, in nearly all of our photos, a piece of my mom and parent’s love story will be there front and center in my beautiful headpiece.”
“My sister will be getting married in 2026 and plans to incorporate the headpiece into her look for her wedding. As for me, I would love to wear one or all of the pieces again. The beauty of it is so versatile.”
I will never tire of becoming a part of a beautiful wedding story. It amazes me how much joy a family headpiece can bring to the wedding day, not just for the bride but for the entire family and all who attended. Vintage headpieces hold memories and, once restyled, create new ones.
See you next month on the Fourteenth.