DIY Week Drive-By: Hair Flower

Whereas most of my DIY Week posts are long and explanation laden, there are at least a couple projects that I can show you without all that. A little text a few pictures will suit them just fine. Enter the drive-by post.

Think of these posts as the equivalent of you coming over to my house to hang out, and I pop up suddenly from the sofa to say "ooh, lemme show you something real quick."*

So, lemme show you the flower I made to wear in my hair for the wedding.

{meet my model, my favorite bear Lorenzo}
This was yet another project that I was not willing to pay very much for. Essentially, I purchased a silk flower (I believe it may have been a gardenia) from Michaels, and took it apart. I wanted it to have a little bit of visual interest, so I added some pieces of tulle between some of the layers.

{its amazing to me what a little tulle can do}
After I decided about petal and tulle placement, I hot glued everything to each other, and then added some pearls to the front. I then used the hot glue to add a piece of felt and a pin back to the back of the flower. This way I have the option of wearing it on my clothes or (with the help of some bobby pins) in my hair.

{thanks Zo!}
And there you have it, easy peasy hair accessory!

♥

*yes, this example is based on my real-life behavior - lol.

Hair Twins/Criteria

I have no idea where I got this pic from..sorry.
[By some stroke of divine intervention, Bride-to-be Patti just happens to be within talking-distance of Angela Bassett, while holding the picture displayed above.]

Patti: (trying to play it totally cool) Hello Mrs. Bassett, my name is Patti, and I love your work. Having a good day?
Angela Bassett: Hi Patti, you can call me Angela...and yeah, I'm having a pretty good day.
Patti: Thats awesome. Mrs. Bassett, I mean, Angela, could I ask you a kind of random question?
AB: Sure.
Patti: (while pulling out a printout with her pic on it) Can I be your hair twin?

Scene.

Okay, so I wont actually be walking up to Angela and asking if I can have hair like hers, but I will say this is definitely the front-runner on the wedding hair list. I love how its pulled back, yet still full, touchable, and romantic. It also looks like she could pull out the bobby/hair pins and have a head fully of sexy wavy curls.

I have this thing about not being able to comb my hair. If you see me in my everyday life, I generally am wearing some version of my wrap. I need to be able to control what it looks like. I don't like gel or hair spray becuase you lose that control - when you take that hair down, what do you have? Usually a gelly-sticky mess. No deal. As such, its really important to me to have some semblance of a 'do after the wedding. If that means I'm taking it down for the afterparty, then cool. Even if it only means I can take out the pins and wrap it before bed (wraps can be sexy ya'll), I'll be happy. All that to say...for Criteria #1: workability, it could work.

And then there's the issue of the weather. SoFla in October is still...well, its still pretty humid. And with a press, I know I need to have my hair pulled back. Actually, if were being totally honest, I probably need to have it off my face too - but humor me as I pretend as if my hair hanging on my neck and back are my only potential hair issues. For now, this style satisfies criteria #2: weather.

Criteria #3 is a no brainer: fabulousity. You know her hair is fab.

Last, but not least, what ever I go with has to satisfy criteria #4: accesorizability (yes, just made that up) - specifically, it has to allow for both a veil and a flower "adornment." I love how in this particular picture, she's not only wearing dangly earrings (my current plan), but I can visualize a flower being pinned on the side (like I plan to do). Only thing she doesn't have is a veil. (But why would she have one of those on, right? LOL.) Still not sure which veil I'm going to sport down the aisle. I'm kind of tabling that until I have a gown. Kristin graciously offered to make me one (especially a not too complicated one that I'm considering) so once I have a dress and work out the veil vibes its giving off (yes, just made that up too), she and I can chit chat about design.

I'll probably be thinking about hair more and more as March approaches - I'm planning on being back in SoFla and hopefully working on a hair trial. In the meantime, we'll roll with the idea that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. I like your hair Angela. I like it alot.

♥

Look What I Made

Row 1: Hydrangea bouquet from theknot, lime-ish green crinoline from Google, dangly heart chandelier earrings from eBay. Row 2: my wedding band from Kay Jewelers, Bridal updo (dont remember where I got this from), lovely yet mysterious gown - side view. Row 3: Hair accessory from Etsy, cathedral length veil, ivory pumps from JCrew

This is the working draft of my wedding day look. And yes, that-is-what-you-think-it-is is at the end of that second row...a sneak peek of my gown(!). PHI, if you are reading this post, lo siento - next time I'll put a warning at the beginning. Fab readers, some of this stuff you already know about, but I'm sure you've peeped some stuff I hadn't told you about yet. See, we still have so much more to discuss. Happy Monday! ♥

Bride's Hair Revisited

I've started to give a good bit of thought to my wedding day hair. Not the style per se but what going in/on it. In addition to veils, tiara's or hair combs are the typical wedding hair adornment. I'm definitely wearing some kind of veil (type TBD), I'm COMPLETELY against tiaras (like seriously, its a rant-worthy topic for me) and hair combs are okay....as long as they don't look like mini tiaras (lol). Flowers are also an increasingly popular choice. They kind of add a dainty romantic feel to wedding hair, and can be silk or live depending on your tastes and price points.

The other day at the bridal salon I tried on a hair comb that was covered in pearls, rhinestones and crystals and I was pleasantly surprised. So pleased that I vowed to find something with a similar feel but at a much better price point - the one in the salon was $95 - to wear in my own hair.

Last week I blogged about a brooch, and how I never really considered one before I saw it, AND how it could work in my hair. Well, after talking to some of my friends I was completely convinced that a brooch would work. However, I wasn't quite ready to let go of my flower idea and vowed to find a way to work it all in together if I could (and if it wasn't too expensive).

Well, on Sunday, I found this:


I not-so-randomly popped into Kohl's that evening (I'd been wanting to go all weekend) to look around and randomly found it...on sale. It a flower...in an abstract rhinestone and pearl brooch packaging. Like a 3 in one hair accessory! I also found some serious contenders for earring choices too, but I only bought this brooch. And the best part? It only set me back $12!

Another idea is to attach the brooch to a silk flower (or part of a silk flower) kinda like this one I found on Etsy:


Minus those feathers of course. In fact, I think I have a ivory rose sitting in my bathroom left over from my "flower in the hair" days. Maybe I'll play around with that later on today.

Perhaps when I'm older I'll be the type of lady that wears brooches on my lapel or to hold a scarf or something, but right now this thing only has a future in my hair. The current hair plan is to wear it pulled back off my face and neck with some texture and body - think: curly low updo. I think my new brooch, I mean "hair accessory," will be lovely perched on the side, providing a little bridal bling underneath my veil.

...and what's better than bridal bling? Bridal bling on sale.
♥