Bridal Fall 2015 Hair Trends

New York International Bridal Week isn’t just a great place to ogle gorgeous white gowns; it’s also the ideal place to gather beauty inspiration.  After watching hundreds of dresses parade down the runway and speaking with dozens of makeup artists, hairstylists, designers, and wedding experts, Fashion Reverie has rounded up some of the key beauty trends and surprisingly they’re all very simple!

This season minimalism ruled the runway.  “Bridal is always one of those things, you can go back to the classics but we’re definitely seeing for the eyes, cool tones, heather tones and more matte powder finishes.  We’re not seeing the sparkle in the bridal; soft definition and full brows. So for every bride-to-be don’t over pluck your brows, get them professionally done and take good care of your skin,” shares Kimberly Soane for Bobbi Brown.

Natural, however, doesn’t mean void of all color, Jenny Smith for Nars explains, “We’re definitely still seeing the lip [as a focus] and in any shade.  I think that is always a signature way to go.  If you do a color that’s more red, plum, berry, or even pink, it makes your teeth look whiter, which is always a good thing in pictures.”

Keep it simple

While we all love an Oscar-worthy detailed up-do, a sleek ponytail or a soft bun on the nape of the neck makes an eye-opening statement.  Jay Ree, lead stylist backstage at Dennis Basso’s bridal collection for Kleinfelds, stresses the importance of simplicity.  “A nice low sleek bun [is ideal]; very simple.  Some braids have been incorporated into bridal this season too, but not too many.”   “Nothing over the top, just keep it neat and don’t go crazy with hair; nothing too big,” Ree warns.

Some of the top designers complemented their jaw-dropping gowns with uncomplicated hairstyles.  At Carolina Herrera’s show, models sported a sleek twisted bun (with a few untraditional accents, but you could easily add a veil for a fresh easy take on bridal), Monique Lhulllier opted for an easy knotted chignon with a center part and Dennis Basso made us fall in love again with the high fashion ponytail.

Be true to you

Ree, recommends keeping your hair off of your face.  “You shouldn’t have your hair down and just loosely flowing around unless you’re getting married at the beach.  It has to be off your face or you’ve got to have it up.”  Ree follows up his strong statement with one big exception. “If you don’t ever wear your hair up, then I do not recommend wearing it up on your wedding day … You’ll look at these photos 20 years later [with regret].” It still needs to look like you, just the best possible version of you.

Naeem Khan wanted to create a strong, more natural look, with the help of lead stylist Jae Manuel Cardenas.  Cardenas explains the soft wave, “We really wanted to have that look of a beautiful, natural, strong woman with a center part going into a big day. Think Jean Shrimpton old-school.  It’s such an iconic look too.”  “A lot of designers are continuing to do the hair up, I do, however, find that a lot of brides in real-life are wearing their hair down a lot more … They just want to look like a better representation of what they look like on a daily basis.  You don’t want to go in on your big day looking like somebody else,” shares Cardenas.

Your wedding isn't the time to try out a completely new persona.  It's also important to make sure the entire look makes sense.  "For me, it's all about making sure that the hair, the jewelry, the makeup, the dress, all the way down to the shoes; that all the accessories and everything really tell a story.  Because that's what I think you're doing at a wedding, you're telling a story about you and your fiancé." explains Randy Fenoli of TLC’s “Say Yes to the Dress”  “What are you favorite colors, what are your favorite foods, what are your ethnicities, where do you like to shop, where do you like to vacation, everything that you like to do as a couple I think really should come together and that is what’s going to make your wedding unique and that’s what brides want today.  Every single bride I speak to says I want my wedding to be different from everyone else’s wedding.  If you want it to be different, just follow your story and be true to who you are and it will be, because there’s no one like you.”

—Janine Silver