Veil or no veil?

Initially wearing a veil on my wedding day seemed like an irrelevant little detail in the whole scheme of wedding dress shopping. The dress was, in my opinion, the biggest and most important part of the process and so, up until just recently, I hadn't particularly dedicated much thought to my head wear for the day.

I was happy to think that a veil was no big deal and, with a budget in mind, I made the decision not to look into having one.

However, somehow it came up in conversation one day that I personally wasn't intending to wear a veil on my wedding day. I got shot looks of pure anguish from loved ones who explained that I simply must wear a veil as it is tradition. This surprised me, I really had no idea that veils were such a 'big' deal to other people and that they seemed to be a traditional 'must-have'.

That got me thinking, maybe I should wear a veil? After all I did like the look of some of them and perhaps they would compliment my dress. On the other hand I was cautious of not making my outfit look too 'fussy' and princess like on the day. I wanted elegance and class not a big frumpy mass of white tulle stuck to my head.

There was only one option, I had to try on a veil and see for myself what all the fuss was about.

Once at the bridal shop my thoughts were solely of the dress however I distinctly remember a mass of sparkling, cathedral veils hanging over and around the over sized shabby chic mirror standing in front of me. One veil particularly caught my eye, dripping in swarovski crystals, I fantasized over the beautiful gleam that could adorn my head on my special day.

As I climbed into one dress the shop assistant asked if I would like to try a veil on with the dress. I almost jumped for joy as she gently picked up the crystal encrusted veil and lifted it above my head, carefully putting it into place.

As I faced the mirror my reflection almost astounded me. I absolutely fell in love with the veil. It complimented the dress beautifully and fell into place wonderfully. The full length single layer of tulle made it look elegant and classy, it wasn't too full or fussy, it was perfect.

The crystals that crawled over nearly every inch of the veil were discreet and small, but gave the veil a touch of glamour and distinction.

The top of the veil fell over my shoulders, just revealing a teaser of pink flesh, and sat on the top of my hair perfectly. The comb was hidden by the diamond tiara which completed the ensemble.

So my mind was made up. A veil was a must!

Even the price tag of £1000.00 didn't put me off as I knew I could find a similar veil online for a reasonable price (not that I told the shop this, of course!).

So off to eBay I trotted, willing to trawl through the good, the bad and the ugly for most of the evening. I didn't have to trawl through much as once I had hit the 'UK Only Sellers' button I found an array of veils that fitted the bill.

I found a gorgeous cathedral length veil, with tiny crystals lining the edge for a bargain price of under £20.00! I was amazed!

Now safely in my 'watching' list, I will almost definitely be looking into ordering the said veil once I have my dress safe and sound in my possession. I want to try the dress on first, just to make sure there is room for a veil after all!