Now that you have booked your beach wedding and decided on your dress, it is time to decide what to do with jewelry and headpieces. Do you need or want either one? What does a bride wear for a beach wedding? It depends entirely on your sense of style, your wedding dress and what will work with your beach-y look. When you wear a wedding dress, jewels can add a touch of glamour. It doesn’t matter whether you are having a small beach wedding or larger celebration…every bride wants to look and feel special. Whether it is modern neutral decor, a rustic romance feel or exotic tropical ceremony, jewelry can enhance your natural beauty. From the necklace to the earrings to the veil or tiara, we offer some tips from our retail bridal experience. You will be the most beautiful you can be on your beach wedding day! All of the following photos are from our real Florida beach weddings. We start with Denise and Ivan in Clearwater Beach. She chose glamour from top to bottom for her special day.
Choosing a necklace
This accessory that accompanies a wedding dress is popular, but not every dress needs one. If your dress is ornate or has some color in it, or if you have a tattoo, you may wish to leave your beautiful neck bare. However, a necklace can be the central focus of your style. It helps to look at the neckline of your wedding dress and overall style or theme: is it Boho, Classic, Minimalist, Princess, Mermaid? For a beach wedding you may also want to consider necklace materials: do I want shells, pearls, flowers?
Neckline matters
If your dress has a ‘V’ shaped neckline or sweetheart neckline, a bridal necklace could work perfectly. The right necklace will enhance your bust and can even be sexy. Take a look at this Miami Beach bride below: even with a colorful dress, flowers and tattoo, Miranda’s simple ‘v’ shaped necklace enhances her beauty and brings out the obvious sparkle in this bride’s personality!
Choosing a round necklace
A simple string of pearls is a tried and true favorite of many brides. Pearls come from the sea therefore they are a natural choice for a beach wedding ceremony. Of course, you have chosen the Florida beach as your wedding venue, so half the styling job is done – your backdrop is already breathtaking, crafted to perfection by Mother Nature! See Cathy below who got married on Daytona Beach.
Your next step is to find the necklace, if desired, that compliments this and pearl and shells are a top choice. Are you a one strand or two strand gal? You might even choose one pearl or stone alone or several dropped along a strand. Whatever stone or materials you wish, it’s up to you and it will look lovely no matter the style.
‘Y-shaped’ necklaces may also be appropriate for beach jewelry. We have seen many brides with starfish or silver flower round necklaces and they look sexy and carefree. You can also use a long knotted necklace to symbolize “tying the knot”. See our Siesta Key bride Emma below:
Tiaras and diamonds
Can you wear a necklace, earrings and a tiara all at once? Of course, and you can be stunning! The natural beach landscape including the ocean is full of color and variety. It sparkles on a sunny day so why shouldn’t you? You may have even received a wedding jewelry set as a gift that you want to wear for your beach ceremony. Below you will see two of our brides wearing all three who look amazing and nothing can take away from their joy and beauty!
Lubova’s choice of muti-colored stones adds beach-y glamour to her wedding dress:
As previously mentioned, there is a close relationship between the choice of necklace and the style of your dress. If you have a dress that doesn’t show cleavage, you might just choose earrings. Here are some tips to find the right earrings for your dress:
How to choose earrings
When choosing earrings, they should be in harmony with the color and style of your necklace, if you are wearing one, or your dress. The main thing to consider is how the shape and style highlight your face. If they are too long, they may distract from your wedding dress, so make sure you try them on with your dress when attending any fittings. If you have received earrings as an heirloom, this might be the perfect day to wear the to honor your family history.
Now, let’s not forget about your hairstyle! Can we talk hair? I’m sure you noticed how beautiful all these brides are with incredible hair! Short or long, up or down these brides made mastered their wedding day look for the beach. have How will your hair be on your wedding day? Given the sea breeze you may choose to have your hair in an updo. So be sure to choose your earrings accordingly. With an updo or a bun, you can opt for dangling earrings: perhaps they contain stones (diamonds, pearls, turquoise, emeralds.) On the other hand, if you want to keep your hair down then you can choose studs or earrings that hang close to your ears.
Viola chose gorgeous pearl earrings and an understated veil – breathtaking!
Maria is beautiful with red accents and glittering earrings in St. Augustine:
Our beach bride Heather has a high neckline with beautiful earrings and headband below. Perfect for her dress and St. Pete Beach wedding:
Do you need a bracelet?
Not many beach brides choose to wear bracelets, however when doing so the key is in simplicity and lightness. An elegant gold or silver bracelet may just be what you are looking for to complete your look, especially if it is vintage wedding jewelry passed down through your family. Perhaps you do not need a necklace so this one simple touch is perfect for a seaside ceremony.
The Headpiece
If you decide to have a hairband, veil or headpiece, wear your hair in the style you wish to have it at your wedding when you choose your headpiece. Even if you have already decided on which style you prefer, try on a couple of different types of headpieces. Your hair style, facial features, figure, and gown style should all be considered when deciding which headpiece best suits you. This is definitely a very personal decision and there are no rules! It doesn’t have to be a white veil, although Samantha, our Clearwater Beach bride, chose one. This is the beach where anything goes as long as you love it!
Tammy is beautiful in veil, jeweled headpiece and earrings at her Siesta Key gay marriage ceremony with a Nautical Knot package.
If you love the Boho bride look and want to be a free-spirit, there are many chic hair pieces you can choose. Hair chains are very popular for Bohemian brides and crystal is romantic and easy to wear. Hair vines and wedding halo headbands are chic and can be jeweled or flowered…or both! Your hairdresser can incorporate it into your hairstyle such as a romantic braid. Perfect look for the beach as our bride Danielle illustrates below:
If you have longer hair, you may wish to put all or part of it up. Even the smallest swirl created to frame your face can blow into your eyes during a beach wedding. However, don’t worry if you want your hair down, just use lots of hairspray and we will make sure you look beautiful in your wedding pictures!
Here are a few of our past brides choices for headpieces, veils, tiaras and hairbands. Caroline in St. Augustine dressed her lovely hair in flowers:
Martha’s free spirit is surrounded by flowers, an understated veil and a short, lace dress in Daytona Beach:
Okay – so now we will cave in and give you some traditional guidelines since you are taking the trouble to read this and may need help. But remember, these are not rules. Here are suggestions for hairstyles and headpieces according to the shape of your face:
- Long face: Anything that will widen your face will best suit you. This can include a tiara of flowers, or a full hairstyle.
- Round face: A high tiara will create length will look great. A veil with some height above your face will also help lengthen your face. Keep in mind it might blow about on the beach so another type of headpiece might be more practical.
- Oval face: Since this is considered the perfect face shape anything goes! Try on what you love and enjoy.
- Square face: You will want to create height on top of your face. You can do this with your hairstyle or with a headpiece which sits further back on your head, or an understated veil will look best on you. A longer necklace can also be beautiful.
- Heart shaped: You should choose a veil which is full at your jawline to add width or longer drop earrings. Minimize the height of your hair. You might want to keep it down to give fullness but remember the beach sea breeze!
Veils
These can be made of nylon or of silk, and you’d be surprised how many beach brides choose them…even with the sea breeze and heat. However, the veil is often kept away from the bride’s beautiful face and just used as an accessory to soften their look and add a traditional or romantic feeling. If you choose a veil, you may try to match any lace in your gown on your veil. We suggest a detachable veil so you can remove it after the ceremony. Make sure it is well secured with bobby pins! Furthermore, you do not have to put it over your face. Here is an example of a bride, Lucchese, that has a veil and it is softly flowing: the perfect accent for her beachfront wedding day look.
Cosina has a long, flowing veil which goes with her package on Daytona Beach: the Simply Tropical Deluxe.
Do keep in mind however, that there can be a strong breeze along the coast. Even the Gulf beaches have a sea breeze so you may wish to think twice about a veil. If you do choose one, make sure you can detach it after the ceremony photos. As you can see by Delicia’s smile in Palm Coast below, it can be truly romantic.
Other jewelry
Ankle bracelet anyone? Why not show this modern bridal jewelry off with your shorter length wedding dress. There are also barefoot sandal anklet chains that sparkle with rhinestones, pearls, crystals beads or shells. Although many brides go barefoot at their beach ceremony, these jewel encrusted sandals and bridal anklets can be a glamorous accessory. What a beautiful way to give your beach wedding dress some bling! Just remember, shoes can be a hazard on the beach. If you must wear them, choose wedge type heels for stability when walking down the sandy aisleway.
Can we talk belts? If you are going for glamorous, then a bling belt is for you! One strand or a wider sash can be just the right touch for your wedding dress to add texture or define your silhouette. This sparkly accessory can have pearls, crystals, flowers and even be a different color. Pink might go with the sand color on Cocoa Beach and blue might accentuate the Gulf water on Fort DeSoto Beach near St. Pete/Clearwater. Ashley looks lovely during this Siesta Key Beach wedding sunset.
Wedding jewelry from your culture and traditions is also wonderful for getting married on the beach. Although wearing bridal jewelry for fashion and style is reason enough to adorn oneself, a bride or couple may choose to wear jewelry that has meaning in traditions and customs as well. These customs can only add to your beach wedding ceremony so choose the pieces that have the most personal meaning to incorporate into your special day like Katherine below. We don’t mean the dog although he/she is a cute accessory!
Jewelry to avoid
There is one type of jewelry we suggest you avoid at a beach ceremony…wedding cake jewelry. Unless you want a melted cake with sand in it, cake is not a great a great idea on a hot beach! Save your beautiful cake for your reception venue or special dinner post-ceremony. You will be glad you did.
We hope this brief guide will help you decide how you want to dress for your beach wedding, how you might style your hair and how to find the best beach bridal jewelry for your special day! Congratulations! Contact us to reserve your date today.