Veil materials

[Philomel]

Can I get away with bridal tulle?  I love that it doesn't need a hem...

[ArielCallista]

thats actually pretty common...most store bought veils are just a really fine very lightweight version of bridal tulle

[Rani Zemirah]

Assuming that you're using it for a bridal veil...  If you're wanting it for something else you might need to consider another type of material.  Bellydance veils are generally silk, while face veils are often very sheer chiffon. Hat veils are commonly done in tulle, though, and there are several different types, from very fine to very large open "weave"... just depending on the use you need it for.

[ArielCallista]

Rani is right...I was assuming you meant bridal veils lol

[Cilean]

Might I suggest very thin Voile or very thin Silk? Even Organza would be a better option.  Thai Silks has several lovely veil thicknesses, some as low as $2.35 per yard and they are 3 momme so I guess that is a gauze, they also have chiffon which is if I remember a 6 Momme.
www.thaisilks.com


Cilean

[GirlChris]

There's a whole lot of things that are called "Veils." What are you looking for?

There's bridal veils, veils that attach to french or gable hoods, medieval veils that cover the hair and/or neck, and belly dancing veils which don't cover very much at all. Nuns wear veils, many Muslim women weir veils, and some western women wear them while in mourning.

[DonaCatalina]

silk gauze is probably the best choice if you are doing large veils for medieval/renaissance wear.
For the veil on the back of a french hood, I would recommend black silk charmeause.

[Lady Kathleen of Olmsted]

Here is a good source for Hat Vieling.

http://www.judithm.com/shop/?page=shop/browse&category_id=ca75dc47bf817f098841f55b94790a11

[operafantomet]

I agree with others: bridal tulle is good for bridal veils, but not so much for historical veils. That is, if you're aiming for historical accuracy. Fine nettings did exist in the past too, but the weave was different from tulle. Alas this portrait is small, but you can see how open weave the veil of Bianca Cappello is:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v31/operafantomet/renaissanceportraits/firenze3/alloricapelloembr.jpg

Weave aside, the colour of a bridal veil would also probably be white. White veils is, as far as I ca tell, uncommon in period portraits. There's a lot of head scarfs and wraps, but then we're talking fine linen. For veils, transparent silks or thicker silks and velvets seems to be the preferred choice. The transparent veils were often attached to the top of the head, as a part of the hair arrangement, and flowed down the back. For specific hats and headwear, thicker fabrics was used. The French hood is a good example.

What about finding a non-ripping fabric, if you're dreading the hemming? Or what about using fray-stop at the ends?

[Rani Zemirah]

I'm not even sure if she's still checking this thread...