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Photo by Sposto Photography
One wedding detail you’ve likely been fantasizing about for years? The dress you’re going to wear when you walk down the aisle, exchange your first kiss, share your first dance, and partake in every other special moment during your big day. While your bridal getup is the focal point of your look, it’s so much more—it’s an expression of your personal style, a complement to your big-day aesthetic, and a means of boosting your confidence. Whether you’re newly engaged or you’ve already begun your hunt for the perfect gown, there’s one style to have on your radar: a beaded wedding dress.
A bridal gown embellished with beads, pearls, or sequins is a stunning choice for glamorous brides who want to infuse a bit of glitz and glam into their ensembles. This decked-out design is also an apt choice for formal affairs in upscale settings, like ballrooms, châteaus, or gardens, with luxe or romantic aesthetics, but regardless of the type of celebration you’re throwing, glistening accents will add an elegant flair to your big day. Whether you’re searching for a mini getup for a courthouse ceremony or a ball gown for a castle soirée, beadwork will inject eye-catching texture and dazzling details into any style dress.
If you’re a bold bride who wants to make a statement, don a wedding dress with all-over beadwork that covers every inch of fabric. Keep in mind, though, that a gown covered in beads tends to be heavy, so choose a design that’s movable and relatively lightweight. On the other hand, if you’re more of a minimalist, you can still embrace this style, such as by incorporating a touch of beads on the straps, across your bodice, or along the back. Beaded accents also provide a lot of flexibility: Add a bit of shimmer to fringe, feathers, lace, or floral appliqués, or stick with beads as the sole adornment, arranged in a stylish pattern.
Looking for more inspiration? Keep scrolling to admire 15 beautiful beaded wedding dresses that real brides wore.
Add a Corset
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Photo by Lucy Munoz Photography
Give a sultry, vintage-inspired look a bit of opulence by embellishing a corset with beaded add-ons. Dusting sparkles across this type of bodice, complete with exposed boning and a figure-hugging silhouette, will embed romance into an otherwise alluring feature. Top it off with floral embroidery, a sweetheart neckline, and a tulle skirt (like this bride’s Galia Lahav dress at her French château wedding) for a truly elegant take.
Include an Organic Motif
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Photo by Amber Gress Photography
If you’re tying the knot in a natural setting, such as a lush garden or a sprawling meadow, a beaded wedding dress featuring leaf-like designs will beautifully complement the site. At her pink-themed nuptials in Westhampton, New York, this bride’s Tony Ward gown with a mermaid silhouette and a plunging neckline exhibited 3D foliage interspersed with beads that drew even more attention to the textured additions.
Accentuate the Sparkle
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Photo by Sposto Photography
There are so many different types of beads to work with, but metallic sequins arguably stand out the most. Since these sparkly jewels glisten when they catch the light, in this dress, you won’t stop glowing on your big day. Consider integrating off-the-shoulder straps, silk organza fabric, and an A-line skirt, like this bride’s Cocomelody getup at her cliffside California celebration, for a fairy-tale-worthy feel.
Embellish an Illusion Gown
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Photo by Le Vie Photography
On sheer fabric, ornaments become the primary focus, making beads an excellent candidate for illusion wedding dresses. With a fully beaded, semi-transparent look, this bride’s Pronovias mermaid gown with a plunging neckline at her pink-hued vintage affair in Malibu looked both sexy and sleek.
Infuse a ‘90s-Inspired Flair
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Photo by Alen Karupovic
Attire from the ‘90s is having a comeback—both on fashion show runways and wedding aisles. If you’re a fan of the fresh, minimalist pieces of this decade, beadwork still has a place on your big-day getup. Take this bride’s custom Koviem gown at her regal affair in Barcelona, for instance: Assorted in a geometric pattern, beads gave this timeless beaded column dress some flair—but in a tasteful, understated way.
Incorporate Floral Appliqués
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Photo by Adovasio Photography Studio
Beads often make an appearance on wedding dresses with floral appliqués or floral embroidery, fusing romance with lavishness. Outlining each organic accent with luminous beads will illuminate the flower-shaped designs. We love this look for garden nuptials, such as this bride’s Badgley Mischka frock at her floral-filled wedding in Rome.
Evoke Elegance With Sleeves
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Photo by Sanaz Riggio Photography
A beaded wedding dress with a high neck, long sleeves, and billowing fabric epitomizes royalty and sophistication. When this bride exchanged vows at her romantic soirée in California, she wore a Simin Haute Couture piece where hand-sewn pearls decorated the lace bodice and dusted the tulle skirt. The end result? An intricate, captivating design straight out of a storybook.
Select a Princess-Worthy Silhouette
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Photo by Kristin La Voie Photography
Ball gowns and beadwork go hand in hand: Paired together, the princess-inspired silhouette and the striking accents augment one another’s luxuriousness. A full skirt with a top layer of beads (such as this bride’s Pronovias ensemble at her garden-themed fête in Chicago), is fit for a royal wedding. For the full effect, top it off with a beaded crown or hairpiece.
Deck Out Your Frock
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Photo by Jana Williams
Up the ante in a beaded wedding dress decked out in garnishes from head to toe. Meticulously crafted beads in a variety of eye-catching designs will certainly bring the drama. To intensify the amount of sparkle, sport a full-coverage gown, such as this bride’s Eisen Stein piece with a high neck and long sleeves at her ethereal wedding on the Eastern Shore.
Opt for a Classic Look
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Photo by Beatrice Howell
If you’re looking for a classic wedding dress with a hint of shine, consider a floral-embroidered, beaded column dress, such as this bride’s Lihi Hod gown that she wore to her terracotta-colored wedding in California. Ornamentation will enliven a simple silhouette, producing understated glam that’s perfect for less formal sites, like a beach or backyard.
Channel the Season
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Photo by Erika Delgado
Getting hitched in the winter? Channel the look and feel of the season by using beads to create embellished snowflakes on your wedding dress—like this bride did at her Art Deco New Year’s Eve nuptials in Miami. The silver hand-beaded flakes of snow on this look by Lee Petra Grebenau was an innovative way to embody the brisk temperatures and extravagance of this winter holiday.
Design a Pattern
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Photo by PS Photography + Films
Instead of donning a beaded wedding dress with an equal distribution of beads, opt for one with a concentrated, unexpected design. To embrace this idea, seek inspiration from this bride, who, at her garden wedding in Mexico City, wore a Berta frock, in which the glistening accents created a vine-like image.
Create Contrast
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Photo by Claire Morris Photography
If you’re leaning toward a more subdued take on a beaded wedding dress, use the embellishments to separate different types of fabric. For example, at her elaborate bash on Lake Como, this bride was clad in a Galia Lahav number composed of a crepe strapless bodice and a dramatic tulle train. A trail of beaded floral embroidery highlighted the two distinctive materials, making the transition even more drastic.
Opt for Minimalism
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Photo by Bo Shim
Another subtle option for a beaded wedding dress is a traditional cut with a scattering of beads only on the bodice, not the entire garment. A handful of sequins on the top of this silk A-line gown with a scooped neckline by KYHA Studios added a bit of pizazz to an otherwise simple style. The sparing use of sparkles enhanced the bride’s intimate botanical garden wedding in Brooklyn without overshadowing the foliage-covered setting.
Focus on Fringe
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Photo by Sergio Sorrentino
In some cases, your wedding dress design is already intricate on its own—but beadwork takes it one step further. Take, for example, this Watters number at this colorful celebration in Sicily: The gown was composed of ornate embroidery and layers of fringe, yet every detail was heavily beaded for an especially jaw-dropping look.