Now you’ve said ‘yes to the dress’, it’s time to find the perfect necklace to compliment your wedding dress for the Big Day.
Choosing your wedding jewellery can be daunting, so we’ve put together a guide to help you select a wedding necklace that matches your gown, your wedding and engagement rings and your overall wedding theme.
How to choose a necklace that compliments your wedding dress
To create a cohesive look, it’s important to find a necklace that compliments the design and style of your wedding dress. One of the biggest things to consider when choosing your necklace is the neckline of your wedding gown.
Sweetheart, strapless or off the shoulder
Necklaces that sit on, or around your collarbones can help to enhance a sweetheart, strapless or off-the-shoulder gowns, as this will help frame the décolletage elegantly.
A choker style necklace can also mimic the strapless neckline beautifully and is a great option for this style of wedding dress.
V Neck
Pendant or drop necklaces follow a ‘V’ neck’s natural angularity and can help to accentuate the clean lines of your dress. Similarly, visually it helps to direct the eye to the neckline and creates a clean silhouette.
Back-less
Modern brides may opt for a backless style dress, and this is a perfect excuse to try something more experimental with your wedding necklace. Opting for a necklace that has the detail on the back, like a back-drop style necklace, can help to enhance backless wedding dresses and add even more focus to the backless detail.
High Neck, halter neck or one-shouldered dresses
If you have a high or halter neck wedding dress, or an asymmetric, one-shouldered dress, you may want to instead focus on statement wedding earrings, bracelets or bangles to avoid the necklace trying to compete with the neckline.
What kind of necklace should brides wear?
When it comes to finding your wedding necklace, there are many styles and designs to choose from, from traditional to contemporary, simple or statement.
Classic Pearl Necklace
A pearl necklace is a classic choice when it comes to wedding necklaces. Pearl necklaces are a timeless option, and can complement traditional and modern wedding dresses.
Pair your pearl necklace with some simple pearl stud earrings to create a complete look.
Statement Necklace
Create a contemporary look with a statement necklace. Structured, chunky or angular necklaces can help to create a real focal point.
Statement necklaces look best with strapless dresses or dresses with less embellishment, so the statement necklace can be the centre of attention.
Name Necklace
What’s in a name? If you are choosing to change your name once you are married, it’s a fun idea to get a name necklace with your new surname for the evening.
Alternatively, choosing an diamond set initial pendant necklace featuring your future spouse’s initial, or your new married surname initial can be a stylish and sentimental nod to your new married name – a definite conversion starter!
Locket Necklace
For a sentimental option, a traditional locket pendant allows you to add a photograph of you and your future spouse and hold them close to your heart. You can also add a photograph from your wedding in there afterwards, as a lasting memory that you can carry around with you.
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LocketsBuy this locket £650 |
Something Blue
Jewellery is a great way to incorporate your ‘something blue’ tradition in a way that matches their style and wedding theme. Choosing a sapphire necklace can subtly nod to something blue, while also acting as a beautiful piece of bridal jewellery.
Layered Necklace
Some brides opt to layer multiple necklaces of different lengths for a unique look. This works best with deep ‘V’ neck dresses, as you can really vary the length of chains you wear, layering choker style necklaces and longer chains too.
Varying the thickness and even style of the chains can create a really nice textured look. The layered look is best paired with a more simple wedding dress to avoid creating a very busy look.
Vintage necklace
Choosing a vintage necklace will ensure you have a unique necklace that is on-of-a-kind and steeped in history. Vintage, or vintage-style necklaces suit more traditional or period-themed weddings perfectly.
Finding a vintage necklace for your wedding can serve as your ‘something old’ and your ‘something new’, as although it is old, it’s new to you!
Gemstone necklace
Although many brides-to-be have classic diamond engagement rings, if your ring features a different, colourful gemstone, like Ruby or Emerald, why not match your wedding necklace to your engagement ring? Choosing a vibrant, colourful gemstone necklace can help tie your engagement ring into your overall look.
Alternatively, picking a gemstone that matches other elements of your wedding, like the overall colour scheme, your bridesmaids dresses or floral arrangements can help to create a cohesive colour story for your wedding.
What to consider when choosing your wedding necklace
Alongside your wedding dress style, there are many other factors you may want to consider when it comes to choosing your perfect wedding necklace.
Wedding theme
If you have decided to go for a specific theme for your wedding, it’s a good idea to ensure that your wedding dress and accessories match this style.
If your theme is 1920s glamour, you might want to look for a graphic art deco necklace design. Modern, minimalist weddings may lend themselves more to sleek, simple chain necklaces.
Dress details and embellishment
Another thing to consider when selecting your bridal jewellery is the overall look of your wedding dress, including any key details or embellishments. If your dress is heavily embellished, with sequins or beading, you might not want to detract attention away from this with an overly detailed necklace.
If your dress has any details, like a belt or patterns, make sure to consider this when choosing your additional accessories, like bags and of course jewellery.
Metal choice
We recommend matching your wedding necklace to your wedding band metal and your wedding dress tone.
For example, if your dress is brilliant white, or oyster grey, silver and white gold will work well, whereas if your dress is ivory or champagne, gold will bring out the warm tones.
Similarly, if your wedding and engagement rings are yellow gold, you may want to match your other wedding jewellery by opting for the same metal. However, if you are opting for a mixed metal approach, feel free to pair yellow, white or even rose gold together to create a contemporary bridal jewellery look.
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Mixed metal pendentBuy this pendent £3495 |
Other jewellery
If you are thinking of wearing statement drop earrings or bangles on your wedding day, ensure that your necklace compliments these other pieces. Try not to overdo your jewellery stack as this can be distracting or uncomfortable on your big day.
Final Thoughts
When it comes to finding your ideal wedding necklace, selecting a necklace that helps to accentuate your wedding dress, matches your wedding theme and expresses your personal style will help to ensure that you look and feel amazing on your wedding day.
Finding it hard to find your perfect wedding necklace?
Why not treat yourself to a bespoke necklace. Find out more about our bespoke jewellery design service.
