The Vine: July 10, 2013
I am a bridesmaid in a wedding at the end of the month. Unfortunately, I injured my finger three weeks ago and found out this week that it’s a tendon injury that requires a splint for at least eight weeks, 24 hours a day.
I can’t even take it off for a few hours. Pretty much, if my finger tip bends at all, it restarts the eight-week clock and may result in me needing surgery. So, I feel bad that I’m going to have an ugly splint on my finger for my friend’s wedding. I’ve been Googling ways to decorate a splint, but everything I find are either covers that aren’t that pretty or things for children. I was thinking that there would be no way that I’d figure something out, but then thought of the Vine. Maybe you and your readers have some ideas. We’re wearing long, bright-pink dresses and silver jewelry and shoes, but I am open to pretty much any ideas. It doesn’t have to cover the splint totally, just make it look a little prettier or not as obviously ugly.
Thanks,
Jen
Dear Jen,
Before you go crazy with the craft glitter, call the bride up and ask her what she thinks. “I feel terrible that this medical clonker is going to screw up the consistency of the bridesmaids — I’m so sorry. Would you prefer that I make/find a little cover for it, or just leave it be and put my arm behind my back in the photos?”
Chances are you care way more about how hideous you think it is than the bride does. I’m assuming, perhaps overly optimistically, that she’ll be like, “Oh my God, I don’t care at all, I’m just glad you’re okay,” and/or that she’ll see this is one of those things that’s much more obvious the more you try to hide it. My feeling is that any sleeve or cut-out sock or whatever that you fashion to dress it up is going to look budge. I speak from experience, having attempted to dress up a medical-supply cane for a performance. Better to let it be what it is. Bones break.
Unless. If you can get a wide, well-made fabric ribbon — quality satin or grosgrain — that matches or complements the dress, and a handy friend who can wrap the splint completely and securely and maybe top things off with a little bow, that could look cute. Do a test run beforehand to make sure it won’t start unwinding during the ceremony, and doesn’t get too grubby, but if you can make it look Martha instead of Regretsy, it’s something you might consider.
Readers?
Tags: Ask The Readers etiquette health and beauty
Seems just easier to hide the hand behind the bouquet, yourself or another person in the posed photos, and just not care for the candids. You’ve still got one good hand for any kind of pose with hands in a circle, and honestly the couples’ hands are the ones the photographers really zoom in on.
Agree with telling the bride about it, but it seems like a non-issue from here. I hope it heals without surgery!
I like the ribbon idea, and certainly hobby stores will have a wide variety of ribbons to choose from.
I would also think that flowers (if you’re carrying them as attendants) might cover your hands (or provide some overlay). My frame on reference is the splint I used when I broke one of my fingers years ago, so my apologies if I’m getting the size/shape wrong.
If you have a bouquet, you could hold it with that hand and it would probably not be very noticeable at all.
I agree with Sars that any attempt to decorate or embellish it will only make it more obvious. I think your best option would be some type of subtle camouflage like wrapping it with Coban in a color close to your skin tone.
Exactly what Maria said. It’s amazing what a bouquet can cover. I took a brutal slash to my wrist in hockey about a week before a friend’s wedding and had an absolutely horrendous bruise covering the better part of my forearm. I just strategically held the bouquet over top of it for photos. (Granted, a splint is obviously harder to hide, but it’s worth a shot.)
I think that trying to cover it will only make it more obvious. Accidents happen. No one wants to have a finger in a splint for a friend’s wedding, but it happens.
One of my bridesmaids had a minor motorcycle accident before my wedding. She was in a walking boot for the ceremony. She was really upset about the boot, but frankly, I couldn’t have cared less about the boot. I was just glad that she was there and on the mend!
May you heal well and rapidly!
I don’t know if they’d fit, but what about a pair of gloves? They make them out of stretchy satin-like stuff, that might be a way to go as well. But speaking as an up-coming bride, I wouldn’t care, unless you didn’t feel comfortable.
What the others have said about covering it with flowers would work great as well, but talk with your bride about it. It may be a non-issue, or she might have another suggestion that would work even better.
Let me tell you, I never would’ve thought such a niche market existed, but here you go:
http://www.castcoverz.com/finger-splint-cover-broken-fingers/
Could you convince the rest of the bridal party to wear Michael Jacksonesque sequined one-handed gloves? Then you’d all match!
Okay, maybe that’s an awesome idea only in my head.
If it’s only a digit, bouquet coverage is the easy answer. Don’t overthink it. Also, you could pull the photog aside before the candids start and ask him to mind your mitt. No worries.
A lot of bridesmaid-type bouquets have ribbons wrapping the stems, so if you wanted to go with the ribbon solution, you might ask the bride if you could speak to the florist and get something to match, which would have the effect of your hand blending in with the stems of the bouquet. (But I suspect leaving it alone will be just fine, too.)
My inner 12 year old wants to know if it’s your middle finger … All kidding aside, Sars is right, don’t over think it. The bouquet will probably hide it. Kristen’s finger splints discovery might be fun for the reception!
@Kristen, that is AWESOME. I’m telling you, we have got to start a Nation store that carries fashiony splint covers and out-of-print weird movies nobody’s heard of and eighties YA novels and “tandem pope-hat” bras.
…. and bumper stickers that say “CHAIN MAIL IS FOR DOUCHECANOES”.
Mild hijack: When my sister was in high school, she broke her middle finger a few days before the school play, which she had not only written but was starring in. There was no way anyone could’ve stepped in for her. So she played her role, with her middle finger covered in a white splint and proudly extended throughout. There’s a VHS tape of it somewhere that she used to bust out at parties, to great amusement.
I found myself wearing an ugly aluminum finger splint for my last set of concerts this spring, and ended up wrapping it with skin-tone athletic tape. Close up, it didn’t look much better, but it was less noticeable from the seats in the auditorium.
I would guess that your bouquet will provide additional means of obscuring your splint. My fingers are crossed for speedy healing, and enjoy your friend’s special day!
I think if it would amuse and please you to cover it with ribbon, cover it with ribbon. Otherwise, don’t. Honestly, weddings aren’t, for sane people, about making people their matchiest and most photogenic–it’s about bringing together the folks you care about in a reasonably well-scrubbed manner to celebrate a new step in life. Many of these folks will have dings and scrapes, either temporary or permanent, but that’s part of who they are and what life does to us all. I don’t think there’s any need to pretend you’re ding-free, because that’s not why you’re there.
@Kristen. Sheesh, just when you think the internet couldn’t be more weird, haute couture splint covers show up.
If you’re worried about the splint standing out in photos, what about wrapping it in some cloth or bandage the same color as your skin? That might help it blend into your hand in the photos. Definitely agree with others that this is easy to hide in photos and decorating it will just draw more attention, but flesh-tones are the way to go if your mind just refuses to let it rest.
I think you want to downplay it, not draw atention to it, if you’re worried about it being big & ugly. You can make a cover out of spandex that matches your skin tone–you’d basically be making a gloveless finger. It will look a little swollen in real life, but should blend for pictures.
That said, I would hope that the bride won’t care–it will just be another quirky story about her incredible day surrounded by fabulous friends. One of whom cared enough to try to match her finger to her gown…
I second Bridget’s suggestion about your splinted finger being fodder for a great quirky story later. The best man at our wedding had his dress shoes stolen from the hotel room right before the wedding (by the housekeeper, I guess? Never knew that was a thing…) and didn’t get a loaner pair until seconds before the ceremony. The shot of him and my husband, both in their tuxes, and the best man wearing a pair of teva’s with his dress socks is STILL one of my favorite wedding photos.
I’m getting married in two days, so I’m way into wedding mode. I’ll preface this buy saying I’m not the kind of bride who wanted people to match or even has specific shades for colors.
But … I wouldn’t care if you were my friend. I would think trying to cover it might make it worse, but I would just be happy you’re OK. Explain it to the photographer so that in photos, you can hide that hand behind another person or your flowers, and during the rehearsal practice standing in a way that your bouquet hides it. Chances are your friend will just love you and want you to be OK.
When my brother got married I hobbled down the isle with a walking cast one foot, a sneaker on the other, and a strong groomsman on my arm.
I used sparkly wrapping paper to cover my cane to match the dress, and painted the toenails of my broken foot the same color.
I thought about painting the walking cast or something, but my SIL was being a huge asshole about the fact that my painful and unexpected torn ligament was taking attention away from her, so I didn’t bother.
Get all the bridesmaids to wear splints on the same finger. Assuming everyone has a good sense of humor of course.
I don’t know if something like this would work with your condition, but it looks like it wouldn’t be real noticeable, unless someone were looking for it:
http://www.prognotions.com/
No one seems to have said this yet, but you could also arrange with the photographer to reshoot your arm/hand in a few months, and Photoshop away the splint. Might cost a bit, but if the bride just wants a few key shots perfected and you can show up for a session just to shoot your healed arm in similar position and lighting… you’d be amazed what they can seamlessly clone in.
My retouching work is focused more on commercial building photography, but I’ve photoshopped many a person that wandered into the shot as well.
See if you can get a corsage for your wrist instead of a bouquet? Or just hide it behind the bouquet.
Just getting back to reading this, but if it’s not too late, I love Adie’s advice! :)
I would use washi tape and wind it all over. It’s paper tape so it will not leave a sticky residue, and it comes in every imaginable pattern/color/style.