Wedding veil: is it rayon or is it silk?

C

C-LDNR

Registered Guest
Hi all,

I searched high and low for an antique veil for my wedding - and I found the perfect one on EBay.

the seller claimed it was 1930s and that it had been kept it storage, so I’m of the view it’s likely an old family veil.

the style and trimming, along with the wax flower bead crown - all feel very 30s to me, or possibly older?

it’s pretty big - rectangular and is about the same size and shape as a king size duvet.

i initially didn’t think it was genuine silk. I assumed it was rayon. But the appliqué horseshoe designs are almost certainly silk. It feels like silk to me. I can’t be sure on the rest of the veil.

is there anyway to know which material it is? I want to make sure I clean/store it properly.

(on that note, cleaning and storage tips welcome. So far I have gently steamed it. No real obvious signs of wear and tear and one very minor mark).
 

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The best way to tell if it is silk is to do a burn test on a small snippet or thread. But looks like there is no way to get s snip or a thread on that veil. If it is silk it looks like silk organza. It could even be nylon but you might know that from handling it. Feeling it works for me also, but that we cannot do via a photo. Silk has its own feel and movement versus rayon. The blossoms crown might not be from the 1930s, it has a more late 40s 50s or even 60s look to it but if you can show a close up that will help determine the age of it. Is it real wax or is a coated pearly type of material? The style of the veil, to me, looks 1950s at the oldest and I think it may be even newer, with that type of chain stitch embroidery on the veil.

The crown and the veil may even be, pardon my pun, a marriage.
 
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Yes the crown came with the veil - I separated them as I didn’t want to risk the crown ruining the veil, plus I don’t intend on wearing it.

I was able to get a tiny snippet of thread and it lit up and burn with a tiny bit of an ashy residue. But I didn’t smell much of a burnt hair smell, and it was a tiny snippet.

interesting that you think the style of veil is newer - I thought 50s/60s veils were a lot shorter!

I’ve seen very similar styles on antique sites which have claimed they were 1910-1930s so I guess the 1930s claim made sense on that front.

I’m 90% sure the flowers are wax, I’ve taken a close up photo though!

Is the rectangular shape unusual? I got the sense that it was designed to be worn as a veil on a wedding day but then maybe repurposed. Interested to know your thoughts!
 

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Is there just the one horseshoe at the bottom, or are there more of them? Wondering what the entire veil looks like. Are all edges finished the same? Long chapel and cathedral length veils never went out of style so the length is not a good clue overall. It is interesting but somehow I am not sure it is a wedding veil due to the rectangle shape. When I said a marriage I meant that the seller put these together as a set and they did not start out life together.

Also, yes, a rectangular shape is not common, it would not drape and hang correctly and softly, to me. I have made wedding veils and never made one that shape. But it could happen. There are rectangular veils called Unity veils traditional in some cultures and these are placed over both the bride and groom while they say their vows. Filipino Unity veils often have chain stitched embroidery like yours. but is sounds like yours may be too wide for that? What is the exact size of it?

The horseshoe is a traditional symbol for brides, however.
 
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Rue_de_la_Paix said:
Is there just the one horseshoe at the bottom, or are there more of them? Wondering what the entire veil looks like. Long cathedral length veils never went out of style so the length is not a good clue overall. It is interesting but somehow I am not sure it is a wedding veil. When I said a marriage I meant that the seller put these together as a set and they did not start out life together.
Click to expand...

sorry the photos aren’t bigger - it’s pretty large. Maybe 2.5metres by 2.2metres.

the horseshoes are at each corner, so there are four. The crown was sewn in so I think they were used together originally. It was placed so that it sat diagonally on the head if that makes sense?
 
I can't tell from the photos what it's made of, either - but I can say that all of the '30s veils I've seen have been silk. The coronet does look like wax orange blossoms, which was a popular style of the time. I see no reason to doubt the date, although note that it appears similar to '20s styles too.

From my experience, vintage silk tulle veils are very delicate and easily damaged: I would air out rather than wash, but if you did want to launder, you could create an envelope of flyscreen material, insert and gently wash in the bath with minimal agitation. Rinse well. That should protect the delicate fibres. If they get damaged, you can replace the silk tulle with a modern material of the same type as there is little difference. Just attach to the coronet using the same method.

Nicole
 
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