wedding planning: hairstyle

Finding a wedding hairstyle is more of a process of elimination than a search.

Browsing magazines and beauty blogs is a deeply ingrained part of my weekly internet wandering, and as such I regularly come across hairstyles that make me swoon. Sifting through all these to find one that would actually suit my face and work with my hair type is where the real effort lies.

Although I'd love to wear my hair in ringlets, if there is a hint of humidity or rain on the big day, those coils would be flattening out in seconds. I'd love to wear something elegant and sleek, pulled right back off my face like a ballerina. Unfortunately, I was not blessed with the best bone structure. My face shape is that of upside-down egg (in Brian's words), and more puffy than chiseled. As such, I'm better of with something more voluminous.

I started to consider a Texas beauty pageant-inspired style, or different variations on a beehive. This was quickly shot down by my friends who convinced me that "you want people to notice you when you walk down the aisle, not your huge hair!"

The photos below represent the final collection of images I took my stylist, so we could narrow it down to the style that would work best with my face, hair and outfit.

As we discussed the options, I suggested the idea of a convertible hairstyle: updo for the ceremony, down for the reception. I'd gotten the idea from Laura + Billy's CreativeLive wedding, and loved the idea of having both the elegance of an updo and the party style of loose curls. Luckily, my stylist was willing and excited to do this.

We decided on an updo that was a hybrid of the top two images, though a bit more loose and less shellacked. She showed me how to take down the updo and restyle it slightly so it resembled something between the images of Kristen Bell and Lara Stone. She did an excellent job, and I'm confident she'll make it look even better on the actual day.

To find the perfect style for you, I suggest considering the following factors:
- hair length
- hair texture
- face shape
- season (read: humidity factor)
- tone of the wedding