It’s an exciting time to be getting married! Well, we suppose it usually is, one would hope, exciting to marry the person you love. However, from a fashion perspective, the options brides have today are astounding, from gowns to bridal jewelry and hair jewelry to bridesmaid jewelry. Here at Blufashion, we are bringing you couture and inventive bridal jewelry and hair jewelry designs, some sweet, some showstopping, all gorgeous and fabulous and creative… just like you! Yes, we love brides and our daily mission is to make you even more gorgeous on your wedding day.
Bridal Jewelry Trends: Color
Whether it’s something blue, a touch of champagne to coordinate with a gown, or fuchsia – just because it’s your favorite color – add color and personality to your bridal jewelry! Gone are the days when only pearls or clear crystals were “bridal”. Adding color to your accessories is an excellent way to bring out your own personal style on your wedding day.
All bridal jewelry can be customized for you. Swarovski crystals are available in any shade you can imagine, not to mention the gorgeous natural hues of gemstones and freshwater pearls.
And don’t forget about black! A black crystal beaded necklace can be a very bold and dramatic statement.
Perhaps best of all, colored crystal bridal jewelry can be worn very easily after the wedding with anything from a little black dress to jeans.
Bridal Jewelry: Chandeliers
The Austrian crystal company Swarovski is widely recognized as producing the finest crystal in the world. The cut and clarity is unmatched, which is why Swarovski crystals are used so much in bridal jewelry. Did you know that Swarovski also produces crystals for chandeliers?
Swarovski chandelier crystal is as perfectly cut as the bridal jewelry components, but they are bigger and bolder. We love using Swarovski chandelier crystals in wedding jewelry. They work beautifully as pendants on necklaces drops on earrings, and charms on a bracelet.
Chandelier drops come in all different shapes and colors. We especially love the pineapple, marquis, and octagon shapes. We’ve even seen a huge cut crystal heart up to 40mm (Titanic, anyone?)
Return to Gold
When our designer Mandy Greenan began creating custom crystal bridal jewelry back in 2000, she would often encounter the problem of a bride with a gold engagement ring or gold in her dress/other jewelry, who didn’t want the rest of her jewelry to be gold. Would it be ok to mix metals? These women did NOT want gold accessories, period, and were endlessly perplexed at the design challenge.
Fast forward to today. Gold is definitely making a comeback. Something about the richness of color and warmth has won us over.
Now, you can easily get a gold look without using gold metal in your bridal jewelry. Silver metal with gold stones is a lovely option. Above you can see the chunky faceted citrine gemstone earrings and necklace are made with sterling silver and the metal really sets the color off.
Most couture bridal jewelry offers a gold option. Handcrafted bridal jewelry can be made. However you’d like, so in most cases, gold would not be a problem, unless a needed component isn’t available in gold.
Finally, there are a few different types of gold jewelry you should be aware of. Most people know what 10k, 14k, 18k, and 24k gold are. The karat indicates the amount of pure gold in the metal, the higher, the more pure gold. There is also gold filled and gold plated jewelry. Gold filled jewelry, which is what it uses, is made when a layer of gold is fused to another metal and it looks and wears like solid gold. It is much more valuable than gold plate, which tends to tarnish and can even turn skin green!
The Naturals
Leaves, flowers, vines… nature has been inspiring bridal jewelry since the first bride put a flower in her hair.
For an outdoor park or garden wedding, or just for the nature-loving bride, leafy and floral designs are perfect. We think the secret for pulling off a metal leaf or flower looks is to incorporate a little sparkle with either crystal or gemstones. In the above examples, the leafy chandelier earrings are set off with briolette cut Swarovski crystals, and the viney filigree earrings incorporate a large Swarovski pineapple drop.
You can also look for accessories with beads or gemstones put together in floral shapes, as in the above bracelets. The top center bracelet is made with a very pale rose quartz stone and Swarovski crystal accents, and the bottom right is made with white topaz briolette cut stones with pearl details.
Cuff Bracelets
Intricate cuff style bracelets are an excellent bridal jewelry choice, particularly if you’re not wearing a necklace but you want to have a statement piece of jewelry. We like to pair them with chandelier style earrings.
One option for getting extra wear out of your wedding jewelry is to use the cuff style bracelet as a bun wrap. It can go over or under the bun, depending on the effect you’d like to create. Lower buns look great with the bun cover over/on top; higher buns can have the wraps underneath. Voila, you have a fantastic versatile headpiece that you can wear as a bracelet on your honeymoon.
One trend that we’re seeing particularly in Europe, Japan and Brazil is to wear the cuff on the top part of the arm – yes, even for bridal. All of the cuff style bracelets can be made at a larger custom width for the upper arm – if you dare!
Beach Bride
Attention beach brides: YOU HAVE JEWELRY OPTIONS! Just because you are getting married on the beach does not mean you can’t wear jewelry, even headpieces! Here is our take on beach bride jewelry.
You can go one of two ways. Most likely, you are wearing a fairly simple sheath style gown. So, you can either go simple with your jewelry to match – something fairly delicate and feminine, maybe a gorgeous necklace with a strand going down your back? Or forego a necklace all together and choose some fabulous chandelier earrings and a simple coin pearl bracelet? We love coin pearls on a beach bride.
Option 2, take advantage of the simple gown and go for a fun, chunky gemstone necklace like the one above. The bracelet and necklace featured on the model use rose quartz gemstones, chunky Swarovski crystal chandelier parts, mother of pearl stones, and seashells. Another gorgeous option is a natural colored mother of pearl necklace to pick up any champagne or gold tones.
No, we probably wouldn’t wear full rhinestone crowns to a beach affair, but that doesn’t mean you can’t wear anything! This is a casual, fun environment, so have fun with your accessories! And if a full rhinestone crown on a beach is you, then we say go for it.
Go Vintage
Deco sparkly hair brooches, feathery fascinators, birdcage veils, fun mini flyaway birdcages, and showstopping rhinestone bracelets, necklaces and chandelier earrings are making a bold statement this season. Unleash your inner hollywood starlet and rock some vintage glam hair jewelry on your wedding day!
Whether you’re looking for one of a kind vintage jewelry or a vintage style with a modern twist, we’ve got you covered. Blufashion specializes in repurposing vintage elements like sparkly rhinestone brooches and shoe clips into one of a kind modern hair clips and bridal jewelry. We also have a wide selection of new vintage glam designs which we add to every week!
Flowers, Feathers and Tulle
Handmade silk flower combs, feathery fascinators with rhinestone accents, and light as air tulle birdcages and clips are timeless. Whether your hair is in an elaborate updo or down, clip in one of these and you go from every day to the bride. Here are some of our favorite flower and feather fascinators.
Feminine Filigree Bridal Jewelry
Light, airy, feminine, with a vintage vibe, filigrees are a classic in couture bridal jewelry. Modern filigree jewelry designs incorporate chandelier styles and unexpected twists like the feathered brooch above. Wearing a deep V neck gown but don’t want to show off too much, if you know what I mean? Position the brooch at the center of the V with the feathers up. Gorgeous, inventive, stylish, and fun!
We love the filigree look with elaborately detailed gowns. Pick up on embroidery in your bodice or train. Customize it with colored crystal for an entirely different look!
Iskra Banović is our seasoned Editor-in-Chief at BlueFashion. She has been steering the website's content and editorial direction since 2013. With a rich background in fashion design, Iskra's expertise spans across fashion, interior design, beauty, lifestyle, travel, and culture.
