Wedding Styling Guide

The Wedding Silk Edit

How to style a silk shawl for a wedding

A silk shawl is the most quietly elegant thing you can wear to a wedding — bridal, bridesmaid, mother of the bride, or guest. Here are five ways to wear one, with hand-dyed pieces from our edit.

Blush pink hand-dyed mulberry silk shawl, draped — Silk and Bears Wedding Edit

For the bride

Grey to white ivory toned ombre silk shawl for bride — Silk and Bears

Look 01 — Ceremony

The ivory or pearl shawl

Timeless. Worn draped open across both shoulders for the procession; folded once for portraits; fully wrapped if the evening turns cold. Look for a hand-rolled hem so the edge falls cleanly against the dress.

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Sage green ombre hand-dyed silk shawl — modern bride styling — Silk and Bears

Look 02 — Reception

A coloured shawl as your "something blue" (or sage, or rose)

The modern bride's quietly subversive choice. A soft ombré in dusty blue, blush rose, or sage green — worn over the dress at the reception or tied lightly at the waist for the dance floor.

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For the mother of the bride

Burgundy ombre hand-dyed silk shawl for mother of the bride — Silk and Bears

Look 03 — Mother of the bride

A jewel-toned shawl, over a column dress

The mother-of-the-bride uniform has been quietly modernised. Wear a deep emerald, garnet, or midnight silk over a neutral column dress. The shawl becomes the colour story. Let one end fall slightly longer — symmetry is for stiffness.

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For the wedding guest

Phoenix paisley printed silk scarf for wedding guest — Silk and Bears

Look 04 — Dress-saving

The shawl that rescues a dress you've worn before

Take a silk dress you love (or a simple sheath). Add a printed or brushstroke silk shawl. The outfit reads entirely new. This is the wedding-guest secret editors don't tell you: one silk shawl, three weddings, one summer.

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Ice blue hand-dyed mulberry silk shawl for garden wedding guest — Silk and Bears

Look 05 — Garden wedding

The lightweight wrap for outdoor ceremonies

For an outdoor or garden ceremony, a lightweight hand-dyed silk shawl is the rare accessory that is beautiful in the photographs and practical when the wind picks up. Soft pastels for spring; deeper hand-dyed tones as the year turns.

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Five ways to tie a silk shawl

  1. The classic drape. Open, both shoulders, ends fall naturally. Easiest. Most photogenic.
  2. The Parisian. Fold lengthwise, drape, loose knot at the front. Stays put through dinner.
  3. The single-shoulder. Drape across one shoulder; pin under the opposite arm. Sculptural; works with a bare-shouldered dress.
  4. The wrap. Fully around both shoulders, ends tucked. Warm, romantic, good for evening churches.
  5. The belt. Folded to a long band, tied at the waist over a column dress. Unexpectedly chic for the dance floor.

For more ideas, read 7 ways to style a silk scarf in 2026.

Choosing the colour

Ivory & pearl — timeless, bridal, photographs as a soft halo.

Blush & dusty rose — soft, feminine, flattering on every skin tone.

Sage & dusty blue — modern, restrained, editorial in photographs.

Emerald, garnet, midnight — jewel tones for mothers of the bride, autumn ceremonies, evening receptions.

Hand-dyed ombré — the colour change reads as movement in photographs.

Caring for your silk after the wedding

Spot-clean small marks with cool water and unscented soap. Never tumble dry. Store folded with tissue paper, away from sunlight, and your wedding shawl will be worn again in twenty years. Full guide: Silk Care.

Shop the Wedding Shawl Edit