You only wed once. That bittersweet truth motivates every bride to make the most of her wedding. You shouldn’t be an exception. Your makeup, skin, dresses, wedding hairstyles, and everything you wear on the day you say “I do” should be on fleek.
It’s the day you and your better half profess your love for each other in the presence of family and friends. It’s also that special day of your life where all eyes will be on you as you exchange marital vows. Hence, you should give your guests a good reason to keep their eyes fixed on you. And that includes looking beautiful from head to toe, starting with your hair.
As a bride, if you wear the most expensive dress but fail to groom your hair properly, your investment in that dress will be in vain. But since we don’t want that to be your lot, we’ve curated the best wedding hairstyles to help you achieve the wedding of your dreams.
Whether it’s a traditional, civil, or white wedding, you’ll find the dreamiest inspos in this post. And if you wear any of them on your day and take pictures, you just may inspire another bride to recreate.
Black Brides and Wedding Hairstyles
Black women are gifted with a unique hair texture. While we may not have the long, straight, and soft hair of other races, ours is versatile with different curl and coil patterns. It’s why we have various for different occasions. If you pay that much attention to your tresses on a regular day, how much more a day that means so much to you?
As a black bride, your hair is that crown that beautifies you and helps you make a style statement on your big day. From natural hairstyles to sleek weaves, low cuts, dreadlocks, attachment hairstyles, faux locs, wigs, or any African braid, your options are limitless. Once you wear any of them, you’ll ooze sophistication as you walk down the aisle.
Wedding Hairstyles for Different Brides
More often than not, your hairdo lets people know you’re the bride. But sadly, deciding on the perfect bridal hairstyle doesn’t always come easily.
With so many options to choose from, you may get indecisive. But not to worry—we’ve organized the diffferent categories of bridal hairdos for black women below.
So, are your traditional or white wedding bells ringing already? Choose from any of these styles and let your face beam with smiles as you achieve another great milestone.
Introduction/Engagement Wedding Hairstyles
Before a Nigerian bride says “I DO,” her man visits her parents in the company of his family members. On this day, he gets the marriage list, as the case may be, and their relationship becomes more official than it was.
If your introduction is coming up, consider it a mini wedding. You have to look great from head to toe, as that may be the first official event you’ll have with your in-laws. So, go for a hairstyle that complements your face. There’s a high chance you’ll be blushing on that day as your parents ask you if the guy in front of them is the one you’ve chosen to spend the rest of your life with.
Don’t wear a stressful coiffure. For instance, avoid anything that’ll take your hands to your face every minute. You want your in-laws to see their new daughter clearly, don’t you?
So, if you’re going for braids or weaves, pack them into an updo so no strand falls on your face and smears your makeup. But if you want a long, free-flowing hairstyle, use accessories to tuck your hair behind your ears. And if you’d rather not show your hair, grab on a nice headwear that complements your outfit and go kill the show.
Traditional Wedding Hairstyles
In Nigeria, different tribes have unique traditional bridal hairstyles. However, they share in common the use of hair accessories, which could be coral beads, combs, or headwear, as the case may be.
1. Yoruba Brides
What’s a Yoruba bride without her gele? Once you tie a gele, well-wishers won’t see what you have underneath. Hence, your focus should be on the gele styles you choose to rock on your day.
Many styles abound today. And with the trend of auto gele, you don’t need to sit after dressing up to prepare your gele. You can have it done days before and wear your pre-tied gele like a cap when it’s time to step out as the bride. Nonetheless, let these Yoruba bridal hair looks inspire you.
2. Igbo, Delta, Edo Brides
For Igbo, Delta, and Edo Nigerian brides, since you’ll wear beads on your hair, your hairstyle has to be in an updo fashion for the beads to serve as a statement piece. Your hairstylist will weave your hair into chunky cornrows, buns, Bantu knots, ponytails, or any manipulation that’ll allow your beads to sit pretty like a crown on your hair.
3. Efik Brides
If you’re an Efik bride, after doing your hair, you’ll attach brass combs (known as Edisad Awan Ndo in Efik) and crown (Etinehe) to accessorize your hair. But if you don’t wanna do your hair, weave it into cornrows and wear the Efik bridal wig. It’s the signature look of every Efik bride, especially when you wear your Oyoyono and Ofon Ukot Awan.
Therefore, your hairdo should be dense and long. It should go all the way to the back to accommodate the combs and the crown you’ll wear. But an updo would still work with your crown if you don’t want that. Feel free to drop some knots in front and adorn them with brass combs, too.
4. Hausa and Fulani Brides
Hausa brides also wear beads to decorate their wedding hairstyles which are mostly braids or cornrows. Some wear veils and gele too. If you’re a Hausa or Fulani bride, let these wedding hairstyles inspire you.
White Wedding Hairstyles for Brides
When the wedding bells start ringing, excitement and stress come knocking. While it’s a beautiful experience for every woman, wedding preparations can be very tiring.
Even the most minute thing as choosing a bridal hairstyle is not as easy as it seems. For instance, there’s half-up half-down, bejeweled hairdo, ponytail, high bun, avant-garde hairstyles, etc. You can as well go for coiffures that fall in a graceful cascade.
For most white weddings, weaves come to the rescue. But this doesn’t mean you can’t rock other hairstyles on your wedding day. To make it easy, choose from our best pick for your upcoming white wedding:
Court Wedding Hairstyles
When the wedding bells start ringing, excitement and stress come knocking. Even the most minute thing as choosing a bridal hairstyle isn’t as easy as it seems. For instance, there’s half-up half-down, bejeweled hairdo, ponytail, high bun, avant-garde hairstyles, etc. You can as well go for coiffures that fall in a graceful cascade.
For most white weddings, weaves come to the rescue. But this doesn’t mean you can’t rock braids, dreads, low cut, or even Brazilian wool on your wedding day. So, choose from these your upcoming white wedding:
Bridal Hairstyles Remain Undefeated
As more and more women get married, new styles come on board. Regardless of the one you choose, one thing remains true: your accessories. They’ll set you apart from the crowd and let your guests know that you’re the bride. So, get the beads, tiara, hairpieces, cowries, combs, gold cuffs, etc. You’ve got many days on earth, but only one wedding day. Do all it takes to look alluring as you enjoy that unforgettable moment with your groom.
