Jennifer Leigh has always been interested in fashion and design. When her close friends were getting married in their 20s, she was the one who made all of their hair pieces, veils, and jewelry.

 

This eventually led to making a business out of her interests. She and her husband, Jeff Koll, both had ideas for different business ventures when they first met. He came home one day and saw all of the pieces Leigh had made over the years, and that was when they decided to start Jennifer Leigh Veil Design in 1998.

 

“I had a bridal salon for several years and made all of the veils and hairpieces,” says Leigh, 49, who grew up in Kirkland. “We would go to trade shows in New York and Chicago to buy gowns and looked at lots of the bridal accessory designers and thought, ‘We’re going to do this.’”

 

They sell to more than 100 retailers internationally in the U.S., Canada, Japan, South Korea, and Thailand. They’ve also been featured in publications such as Vogue and as costume designers on television shows and movies.

 

“One of our greatest salons we provide veiling and bridal accessories for is Mark Ingram in New York City,” Leigh says. “He and his great staff, [who are] great friends, have exclusivity to our line on all of Manhattan island.”

 

She says veils are still used in the majority of weddings. Sometimes a tiara is worn instead, but it’s not as common. Their studio is located just blocks from their home and their children’s schools in Bellingham, which Leigh says is outstanding. She says they prefer to keep a low profile with their work and don’t mention it a lot, but that they also provide veiling and accessories for people that many have heard of. They just made a piece for New York clothing designer Kenneth Cole’s daughter.

 

Leigh says one of the things they love about the business is that most of their customers are mom-and-pop salons across the United States and Canada and that many of the people they do business with have become close friends.