Unseen Beautiful Vintage Headpiece Restyles
My brides pour so much love into the idea of restyling and repurposing a loved one’s vintage headpiece, often never to be captured on their wedding day.
While I work closely with my brides creating such meaningful and emotional designs, life happens and isn’t alway perfect! Many discover after their wedding, the headpiece they dreamed of becomes just a memory. For one reason or another there are no photos.
“I am amazed at how many brides come away from their wedding day without photos of their custom-made headpiece and veil. ”
As a bridal accessory designer for over a quarter century, I have heard it all. One of my brides left for her wedding ceremony without her grandmother's crown, which she so lovingly had restored. Another thought her silk bow had been placed in her hair, and she realized as she was walking down the aisle, it wasn’t. Reflecting back on a moment like this is undoubtedly painful. The scenario that causes my brides the most sadness is receiving their wedding gallery filled with stunning photos, but not one of the bridal family heirloom that brought them so much joy to restyle and design.
80s Bridal Headpiece Restyle
When Christine bought her wedding dress for her Westchester, New York wedding, she surprised her mom with a future appointment at Headpiece.com for a memorable mother-daughter trip.
“Christine told her mom, as she said “yes to the dress,” that she wanted to restyle her 1987 headpiece into a modern headpiece for her wedding day. ”
Driving down from Connecticut, she brought some framed wedding photos of her mom and dad to the shop, which set an emotional tone for their appointment.
Christina’s new headpiece took an extensive amount of work to create. Her mom’s headpiece was in pretty good shape, except for the black, tarnished wires threaded through the crystals. The problem with her mom’s piece was the volume of glue used when it was originally made. The old glue was super resistant to all removal methods during deconstruction.
“The final design was lightweight, rid of globs of thick glue, and absolutely gorgeous!”
Christine’s headpiece wasn’t secured properly on her wedding day and fell out. It was never placed back in. This is the only close-up photo she possesses.
Repurpose 80s Bridal Hat
Caroline and her mom came to me to discuss ideas to repurpose her 1984 floral and lace cap.
“They loved the lace and the flower. So did I. But I was NUTS over the pleated ruffle!”
I suggested we use the ruffle as a flounce for her new accessory design. Delicately beading the edges with vintage Czech crystal added a richness and elegance to the already beautifully made vintage floral. Accenting her bridal hair clip with additional crystal hairpins created dimension, texture, and “the only one in the world” kind of feeling.
Caroline received a beautiful wedding gallery with exquisite photos at the Pleasantdale Chateau in New Jersey. But there were no photos close enough to appreciate the elements and detail of the wedding hat her mom wore 39 years ago.
Repurpose 60s Pearl & Crystal Wedding Crown
“I am a lover of 60s wedding crowns. It is my favorite decade for vintage headpieces. ”
If it were up to me, I would pass a law that you can only restore crowns and headpieces made in the 60s, and not restyle them. The crowns from this time period were of high quality and stunning with any hairstyle. Of course, the biggest issue with these beauties from yesteryear is hairspray damage. Hairspray attracts airborne dirt. It dulls and pits the crystal, changing it to hues of gray or orange, and turns the coating on pearls gold. Most of my brides don’t even realize the beads they possess aren’t plastic but gorgeous vintage crystal.
“The condition of Maddy’s family crown was typical for a 1960s headpiece. Stones were missing, crystals were dirty, pearls were golden, and the wire was tarnished. I was confident that I could give it new life for another trip down the aisle.”
Maddy loved her grandmother’s 1960 crown, but didn’t want to wear it as a crown. I told her I could redesign it into a headband style. I hand-cleaned the pearls and crystals creating an exquisite headpiece that could be worn with her hair up or down.
“We got the headpiece, and it is absolutely beautiful! My parents want to wait to see it and be surprised on my wedding day. It is beyond special, and I truly love it.”
Life happens. I reached out to Maddy several times after her Florida wedding, but I didn't get a response. I know she loved her headpiece, and that’s what matters most.
50s Swiss Dot Wedding Veil Restyle
Lauren was very close to her grandmom and wanted her wedding veil restored and turned into something new for her wedding. The most important thing to her was that her cousin would be able to use it when she married.
“My obsession with restoring and repurposing vintage headpieces and wedding veils stems from the fact that each one tells a story and every piece is unique. When I opened the box with her grandmother’s vintage headpiece, my heart smiled seeing the combination of Swiss Dot and velvet bows. It was so 50s, yet so unique.”
Her grandmom’s headpiece was discolored. After removing the Swiss dot and velvet bows from the frame, I bathed the vintage textiles to revive the color and bring them back to a bridal white.
“This 50s bridal restyle was feminine, dainty, and sassy at the same time. ”
Lauren received no formal photos of her headpiece in her photo gallery from her wedding in Charlottesville, Virginia..
50s Bridal Millinery Redesign
Dani wanted to wear her grandmother’s 1955 lace millinery in some fashion for her wedding, but had no idea how. The piece was out of style and quite discolored.
“Glue is a major reason for the deterioration and oxidation of vintage headpieces. If this millinery piece was originally hand-sewn and stored correctly, it would most likely be in pristine condition today.”
“When I opened the crown shipped from California, my first thought was that this would make a beautiful crown.”
I told Dani I could make her grandmom’s headpiece into a crown as long as I could delicately remove the glued lace from the frame without damaging it.
“It truly took my breath away. It is the perfect height and sparkles beautifully. I’ll be showing my grandma next Friday and can’t wait. I’ll be sure to get great shots on the big day!”
The last I heard from Dani was when she received her lace crown.
I love working so closely with my brides to create beautiful, meaningful pieces. I hear their stories, touch the old, and create anew. I become a page in their life story. I know that wedding days are not scripted. They are fluid, and life happens. Make it a priority to take a snapshot of your heirloom headpiece or crown in your hair on your wedding day once you are dressed. Memories are beautiful and rich, but one day the memory may fade, and it will be hard to tell the next generation about the history of something that was once so dear. ~Marie
Photo tips for capturing your vintage headpiece on your wedding day:
Discuss portrait style close-ups with your photographer of your headpiece in your hair once your are dressed and in your gown.
Consider replicating a wedding photo of your grandmother or mom wearing her headpiece on her wedding day.
Take photos with your grandmother or mom placing the piece in your hair.
Have a close-up photo taken holding your heirloom headpiece in your hands.
Always say “No” to hairspray photos. You will damage your headpiece for a lifetime!
See you next month on the Fourteenth