my wedding Wednesday: bridal jewelry

I thought the task of figuring out what jewelry to wear to be a tough one.  I had been avoiding thinking about what jewelry to wear on my wedding day - mostly because I am not a huge jewelry person (well except for the engagement and wedding rings)!  I tend to wear the same jewelry for years on end - pearl stud earrings, my Tiffany "a" necklace, and my watch.  That about describes my look for the past 10 years.  Honestly, my ideal was to borrow some fabulous jewelry from friends or family - but I didn't really know how to make that work either.

While looking for a rehearsal dinner dress on jcrew.com, I stumbled across some seriously beautiful jewelry that seemed so feminine and bridal.

{Crystal Lattice Necklace from J. Crew $325}

This necklace had me at grosgrain

{Starlight Earrings from Banana Republic $25}

Love the vintage feel. 

I swallowed hard at the price of that necklace - and ordered both the necklace and the earrings to try on with the dress.  When it came I actually thought that it was too dark looking so I returned it.  I really liked the earrings (although not for the wedding dress) and kept them. 

the jcrew necklace at a fitting - not quite right

I tried on some jewelry at the bridal salon, but none of it was just right. 

pearl choker

crystal pendant 

When I left California for Louisiana the week before the wedding, I still didn't know what I was going to wear.  I was pretty sure I was just going to stick with my pearl earrings.  I figured that since I had worn them everyday for 10 years - that they would be right at home at our wedding.  I felt like me in them. 

As for the necklace, my sort of plan was to wear my grandmother's dragon broach as a necklace.  When my grandmother was born - her father gave it to her mother which means it had been in our family since 1914 when my grandmother was born.  When she passed away, she left it to my mom.  It is quite a family treasure. 

the opal dragon broach

However when I got home and put it on a necklace, the pin (being huge) rolled around on my chest and it looked strange.  To get a sense of the scale, here it is on my mom's jacket at our bridesmaid lunch. 

the dragon pin in action

While I was digging through my mom's jewelry something else caught my eye - a small pin that my dad had given to my mom on their wedding day that had been in his family for a while.  It was beautiful - gold with little pearls in the shape of a sunburst.  All I needed was a simple gold chain and it would be perfect.  The day before the wedding my mom and I went to the mall and I found one for $14 at Macy's.  

A close up of the pin/pendant
Photo taken by Celeste Marshall

I loved that this necklace had a special meaning and had been a part of my life since day 1.  It was really special way for me to include my mom and dad.

Photo with my sister
Photos taken by Celeste Marshall

So what did I do for earrings?  Well it turns out that my hubby-to-be surprised me with diamond studs before the ceremony.  It was the one time during the day that I cried. It was SO sweet.  He wrote such a beautiful note to go with them.  I haven't taken them off (except to clean them) ever since!