The Finishing Touch

The most romantic styling tips for your dream day

Shopping for your wedding dress is never just about shopping for your wedding dress. Whether you’ve had a Pinterest board since before you got engaged, or have never even considered what you might want to wear on the big day, it’s a safe bet that when you go shopping for your outfit, you are searching for how you want to ‘look’ on your wedding day, which is so much deeper than simply finding a dress (or jumpsuit, separates, you get the idea…)

Shoes? Jewellery? A bejewelled crown? Fresh flowers in your hair? There’s so many decisions to be made, but fear not, these should all be fun, self-expressive decisions and not stressful or anxiety-laden. It’s a time to truly express yourself, find your own style and let your true self shine through, after all, whoever you’re marrying loves you for all of your nuances, so why not translate these into your wedding day look?! Scrap any traditions or wedding ‘must-haves’ that don’t sit right with you or your style and embrace a whole new freedom of dressing for the wedding YOU want.

Some blessed people have such a strong sense of their own style and can sniff out their final look a mile off, with their eyes closed and all before breakfast. Some (read: most of us) find it a little more difficult, and even overwhelming choosing an outfit to personify everything you might possibly want to represent on your wedding day. For those of us, it really does help to get some sort of mood board. Whether it’s a mental one, a scrap book or good old Pinterest - it really does help to put all of your inspiration in one place and you should start to see a running theme.

Whether you opt for finding your dress first, or have your heart set on an iconic pair of shoes that everything else needs to tie in with, here are a few suggestions of beautiful accessories that are well worthy of making it onto your mood board:

Shoes

From seriously chic ivory satin bow mules 1. to a pair of high fashion strappy pearly beauties (2. YSL & 3. Mach & Mach), wedding shoes do not need to be traditional and they sure as hell don’t need to be tboring. Think about buying a statement pair of shoes that you can wear long after your wedding day.

As with whatever you wear on your body, you want your feet to be comfortable too, so if heels aren’t usually your thing but you still want some height, try a show stopping pair of platforms which are deceptively comfortable due to the front platform making them look a hell of a lot higher than they feel. These ballerina pink ones by Prada (4) are a little bit special. And never underestimate the true comfort of a pair of shoes by a specific wedding shoe designer. Case in Point is any pair by Charlotte Mills, as all of their styles are designed with a long day’s wear in mind so are super comfortable as well as super stylish (5). Although if you’d really rather skip the heels altogether, flats are such a good option and there are so many beautiful styles on the market now it really doesn't feel like a compromise to ditch the heel. Take these elegant velvet flats as a prime example (6).

Boots will forever be having a moment, and you can’t really go wrong with a sturdy pair of white leather boots, which will afford you a zillion more wears post-wedding day! Any boot with a nod to a cowboy aesthetic seems to make a good match with a wedding dress (7), or go for a more modern approach with these super cool vegan apple leather boots by Sylven (8)

Any online wedding shoe hunt right now will lead you to designer of the moment Loeffler Randall who seems to just get it right again and again with all of their styles, whether its a classic ivory, baroque gold (9) or even vibrant emerald green iteration of their signature style, there’s a rainbow of styles to choose from.

If ‘something blue’ is a tradition you’d like to stick with on the day, then channelling it into your shoes is a great idea, and also *bonus points’ means they’re less likely to get dirty than an ivory pair. These velvet beauties in dreamy shades of blue (10. Hudson & 11. Mulberry) would have any feet feeling anything but blue.

Crowns

Attempt to wear a crown on any other day of the year and you may feel a little too ‘extra’, but your wedding day is screaming out for this kind of behaviour and it would be a crying shame to not at least consider your options with a bridal crown.

A head full of fresh flowers (1. Real Kindling Bride Becka’s full flower crown) which any good florist should be able to muster up, ideally in locally grown, seasonal flowers for an extra style statement (2. Real Kindling Bride Beth’s locally grown flower crown by The Yorkshire Flower Patch), makes a beautiful accessory for any bride swaying towards the boho vibe. Alternatively, if you wanted something a little more permanent, a preserved flower crown is absolutely stunning and no one makes them better than the very talented Sophie and Luna London (3 & 4).

Flower crowns aren’t for everyone though, and for those who would prefer something a little more regal, look no further than Tilly Thomas Lux, who make the most stunning crowns by hand in London, like these sparkly beauties from her most recent collection (5. Delphine Crown & 6. Sophia Crown).

Jewellery

Unless you’re lucky enough to have an heirloom piece already set aside to wear on your big day, it’s likely that you’re on the lookout for a timeless piece of jewellery to style with your  wedding day outfit. For a statement pair of earrings you’re sure to love Kiri & Belle’s beautiful pieces (1), which are all made right here in the UK. 

They’re so beautiful and we’re so happy that we get to stock them in the Kindling showroom as they team up so well with our designs, as featured in the shoot for our Move Mountains collection (2. Sia Earrings & 3. Annalise Necklace + Mini Cara bracelet).

As for rings - if you follow us on Instagram you will have noticed a deep rooted love for Sofia Zakia’s delectable finger candy! All of her creations are pieces of art, and each ring looks super special (4. Diamond Wandering Star Supreme Ring).

Veils

To veil or not to veil? That is the question! And what a question it is. They are the marmite of the wedding world and some people are a flat-out NO when it comes to this accessory, but if you ask me, I’d say veil all day long for your wedding day! Nothing feels more bridal than a veil, and there are so many iterations of a veil these days, that I’m sure that there is a veil for everyone.

At Kindling Bridal we make all our veils in-house and can make any design your heart desires. From one end of the spectrum - the full-on, bridey bride high-impact veil of cathedral length, blusher tier, lace edged Virgo veil (1), to the more simple Lupin veil of shoulder length, spotty tulle (2). 

A cowl-back veil is a new favourite amongst our brides, which brings a modern romance to any look (3. Pyxis Veil & 4. Pyxis Pearl Veil). The Meadow Veil (5) is a more traditional veil, with its blusher tier and delicate Nottingham-made lace trim. If you have a very detailed dress and want to keep your veil super simple, then the raw-edged sequoia veil may be the one for you (6). And the Heather veil keeps that super simple and clean look but with the addition of a narrow Nottingham-made lace edge trim if you just want a little something extra (7).

And although not technically a veil, the Maya Bow (8) is another great option for those of you who are not a fan of the veil but still want a little something special in hair to tie in with their outfit. We have it available in pure sandwiched silk or a silk organza, but it would look lovely made in any fabric to match your dress.

And there you have it, a round up of some beautiful accessories for your wedding day. Hopefully some of these make it onto your mood board and you feel inspired to opt for whatever you want to wear on your big day, and not for what you think you should wear. 

Happy Styling!