Wedding Jewelry
Selection and Face Shape
Not every bride has a significant face shape that
needs balancing by her wedding hairstyle and gown
but you will run across some brides that will
benefit from this knowledge.
The face shape is determined when all of the hair is
pulled away and the outer edge of the face is
studied. At the same time the features within the
face can be soft or angular. Just think for a moment
how everyday each of us looks at our face over and
over, year after year. Subconsciously we chose
things in our lives such as cars, jewelry, artwork,
china patterns, etc. that reflect what our eye is
used to. If a bride of mine has a perfect oval face
and her diamond ring is a marquee, I can be pretty
sure her fiance picked out her ring. I have fun
asking. Let's look further into this important
dimension necessary to pull together the brides
"Total Bridal Look."
Face Shape Information
Oval, Round, Oblong, Heart, Diamond, Square,
Rectangle, and Triangle
The first four face shapes are soft and curved. The
last four face shapes have more angles and corners.
An oval
face is slightly longer than is it
wide with curved soft edges.
A round
face will have equal distance all
around with the nose as a center point. It will be
as wide as it is long with rounded edges.
An oblong
face is an elongated oval shape.
Many oblongs are mistaken for an oval. But placed
next to a true oval you can see that they are
oblong.
A heart
shape is wider at the eye, temple,
and cheek area with a narrow chin. The edges are
soft and curved.
A diamond
face shape is widest at the cheeks,
narrow at the chin and forehead. It has sharper
features.
A square
face is basically straight across at
the forehead and along the side of the face. The jaw
is strong and square. The chin may stick out a bit.
When the distance from the top of the face to the
chin matches the width, this is a square face.
A
rectangle face is similar to a
square. But the face is longer than it is wide.
A triangle
face is similar to a heart shape.
But the lines and edges are sharper and more
angular.
A face shape is not set in stone. Someone's
seemingly oval face may look more round next to
someone else's oval. Two people can both be square
but one will be squarer than the other will.
Wedding Gown Necklines:
A great rule of thumb is "opposites attract." A
round full face needs a deep V to elongate and thin
out the face. A square jaw line needs the softness
of a lace edge or scoop neckline. An oblong face
shape is complemented by a Sabrina neckline, off the
shoulder or strapless gown. A heart shape or
triangle needs width at the jaw line; hug the
shoulder or a wide scoop would be a great choice.
Note: A diamond face and an oval have perfect
proportions and are symmetrical so their choices are
limitless.
JEWELRY SELECTION FOR FACE SHAPES
Before we begin discussing which jewelry is best for
each face shape, lets think for a moment about the
difference between a diamond shape and an oval.
Whether it is a jewel, a picture frame or a face
shape there are distinct differences between a
diamond shape and an oval.
A diamond has edges and corners.
An oval is soft and curved.
As in a face shape, a diamond, triangle or square
face has edges, corners, planes, and angels. By
planes I mean the surface, structure, and profile of
the face. Are the eyes deep set with a strong brow
bone, a sharp nose, prominent cheekbones, and a
distinct jaw line? This is an angular or sharp face.
This face is best surrounded with jewelry with
similar angles; sharp detail or corners, like
triangles, square cut stones or straight lines.
An oval, round or heart shape face has no distinct
lines or edges. A soft face may be flat. The eyes
are closer to the surface of the face, the nose is
rounder at the tip, the lips are fuller, cheekbones
are less prominent, and the jaw line is soft. This
face shape is complemented by oval or round shapes
and soft edges. A face may be a combination of both
angular and soft lines, but have an over all feeling
of being one or the other.
Most people are subconsciously drawn to a
complementary jewelry shape. You are used to looking
at yourself everyday. Subconsciously you are drawn
to certain shapes. Many times a hair stylist or a
friend will try to impose a look on a bride
complementing to themselves and not the bride. This
happens without thinking. You are naturally drawn to
what you like. As a specialist and consultant you
have to learn to train your eye to see these
distinct features in your client. To be truly
professional you need to be able to read a client,
meet her design needs, and separate your personal
tastes. You will limit your client base if you
"specialize" in one style.
The neckline of the gown, the face shape and the
size of the bride all need to be taken into
consideration when selecting jewelry. The right
jewelry will flatter the bride; the wrong jewelry
will just stand out. To help the bride with her
jewelry selections look to blending the lines of her
face with the lines in the jewelry. To create
counterbalance with the necklace and earrings look
to her face shape and gown neckline.
Earrings:
The perfect earring can light up the face of the
bride.
An oval face can wear any shape earring. Keep the
size of the earring in balance to the size of the
bride, whether she is petite or large. In keeping
with the soft lines of her face, soft shapes such as
pearls, tear drops, circles, and ovals are best.
A round face needs earrings with length to elongate
it. A drop earring works best in shapes that are
also soft like a teardrop.
An oblong face looks best with a button earring
drawing the eye horizontally.
A heart shape face needs earrings that are wider at
the bottom to balance a narrow chin. Shapes such as
teardrops or inverted triangles or button earrings
work well.
A diamond face shape can follow the same "rules" for
an oval. But this face shape can carry a more
dramatic design. Corners, points, and harder edges
complement the angular face. Cut crystals are nice
with the diamond face.
A drop earring, creating the look of length,
complements the square face.
Rectangular faces can do well with a button style,
with lines in keeping with the lines of the face.
A triangular face shape is similar to a heart shape
but with more prominent angles. Balance this face
with width at the bottom.
Necklace:
Necklaces should complement the neckline of the
gown, the face shape and the detail of the bodice. A
very ornate gown and headpiece can carry a more
ornate jewelry selection. Lets consider each face
shape individually with the necklace in mind.
An oval face can wear anything. Match the texture
and designs in her gown when choosing a necklace.
A round face needs a necklace that adds length to
her look. A longer or T-style necklace complements a
round face. Stay away from chokers or short
necklaces. Also stay away from large stones or
pearls. You don't want to add any visual thickness
to the neck with a round face. A deep plunging
neckline can carry a beautiful necklace and is great
for a round face.
An oblong face can carry a choker style necklace
well. This helps to break up the vertical line that
is happening with an oblong face.
A heart shape face also looks great with a choker or
a triple or double strand of pearls. With the heart
face the chin is narrow. Creating fullness at the
neck with the right necklace balances the wider eye
and cheekbone area in the heart shaped face.
A diamond face shape is like the oval face shape but
with corners. It can carry any style. Just keep it
proportioned to the bride's size. Drop crystals look
beautiful with a diamond face.
Square faces need length and softness. A T-style or
a simple strand of pearls that hang a little bit
longer is perfect.
A rectangle face needs softening and width. Shorter
necklaces work nicely.
A triangle face is a heart shape with corners and
angels. Remember you can match the angels for impact
or counterbalance them for softness. Stay away from
necklaces that end with a point. A wider look
balances the triangle face.
Brides will appreciate your knowledge. An educated
bridal specialist should be educated in all areas of
bridal beauty. The more you research the bridal
industry the more knowledgeable you will become. The
more knowledgeable you become the more confident you
will be. You need to be able to address all the
beauty needs of the bride. She will ultimately look
to you to give her the total bridal look she is
after.
To veil or not to veil; that is the question.
Today's bride wants options. If the bride does not
want a veil do you know what to suggest? Many of my
brides are opting to forgo the blusher. Some do not
want a veil at all, while most plan on removing the
entire veil at the reception. A bare hairstyle will
look unfinished when pared with the bridal gown. I
started decorating hairstyles ten years ago. I had
to make everything I used. Today hair ornaments are
sold every where! If your bride is going to remove
her headpiece or even just the veiling, suggest to
her that she ornament her hair. Don't forget to look
in the bridal section of the craft shop. There are
many things that are sold separately for the bride
to use in ornamenting her hair. Brides want to know
from you what is "in", they love to hear about new
trends. Jump on this one! Brides LOVE beauty tips.
I had a bride who wore a hat for her wedding
headpiece. She wanted to be able to remove it at the
reception. She wanted her hair in a horizontal roll
that just showed under the brim of the hat. During
the consultation I learned she had pearls in her
dress, plus she had dark brown hair that is visually
dense. I suggested draping strands of pearls on the
outside of the roll. It looked lovely and even
showed just under the brim of the hat. I also glued
pearls of different sizes to hairpins and placed
them along the seam of the roll. It created a
beautiful personal look and she was comfortable with
removing her hat at the wedding reception.
There is a new trend emerging where the bride
actually changes her entire wedding ensemble and has
a different dress for the reception. You need to
think of her hair and how it needs to complement
both dresses. An ornamenting style under the
traditional headpiece is just right in situations
like this.
The Princess Bride, The Town & Country Bride, The
Period Bride, and The Ethnic Bride
Some brides like to maintain a certain image while
others like to break away from their everyday image.
I have had classic, suit type clients who want to
look like a princess on their wedding day. While
other classic suit types will wear a suit for their
wedding. When having the consultation remember to
listen to the wording the bride uses to describe her
wedding. The following are the four image types I
have defined for brides.
The Princess Bride
This bride is living out a childhood dream or fairy
tail. She will have a lot of details and "stuff"
going on with her dress. Pearls, bows, ribbons,
yards of tulle, and iridescent sequins will adorn
the Princess Bride. They usually like to have a long
veil and many have a long train on the gown. I had a
Princess Bride that spent as much on her glittering
headpiece as she did on her dress. She also had
large glittery earrings and decorated shoes. The
Princess Bride also wants as much attention and
detail to her hair. Curls and tendrils with an
ornate headpiece all make up the Princess bride.
The Town and Country Bride
Her look is understated elegance. Simplicity rules.
She may have the traditional full skirt gown, but
the bodice will not be as heavily ornamented. She
may have some lace and pearls but it will be elegant
and "quiet." She will never have any iridescence.
She may also wear a suit or a sheath. Her jewelry
will be simple and expensive. She is more likely to
wear a designer gown. She will also be more likely
to want an understated hairstyle, but one that is
defiantly "in style."
The Period Bride
Period styles are gown designs reflecting eras in
history, the 1600's-1800's, the renaissance, etc.
Gowns may reflect Greek or Roman times with draping
and empire waistlines. Or the gown style may reflect
a decade, such as the 1920's, 40's or 50's etc. I
had a bride that had a medieval style to her gown.
She did not want a veil to take away any focus from
her hair. I did a beautiful detailed medieval style
with lots of curls cascading down. I incorporated
fresh flowers through out the style which went along
with the "Maid Marion-Robin Hood" feeling. The
bride's maids were in soft flowing floral dresses.
One bride wanted a Victorian hairstyle similar to
Jane Seymour in the television show Dr. Quinn
Medicine Woman. She went as far as to bring me
videotape of the show edited to hair shots!
The Ethnic Bride
The ethnic bride may choose to reflect her heritage
in her wedding ensemble. I had a bride from Pakistan
who came to the United States for an arranged
wedding. The family gave me videotape of a ceremony
that took place in Pakistan so I could see what
needed to be done. The make-up for her eyes was
fuchsia and Kelly green with gold glitter just under
the brow bone. She wore bright fuchsia on her lips.
She wore rubies, emeralds, and diamonds in jewelry
from her ears to her hair and from her nose to her
ears. Bracelets and ankle bracelets and glitter
covered this ethnic bride from her head to her toes.
It was a fun experience! The ethnic bride may choose
a certain colored fabric or cowrie shells to be
added to her hair or gown. Why not suggest something
for her? A personal touch goes a long way. (I
suggest that you purchase a copy of the Ethnic and
Specialty Wedding Guide by Lois A. Pearce, director
of ethnic diversity for ABC.
by Gretchen Maurer, author of The Business of Bridal
Beauty and creator of
WeddingHair.com.
 |
