WAIT SO YOU’RE TELLING ME, PLANNING FOR MY WEDDING ISN’T JUST PICKING A GORGEOUS WHITE DRESS AND MARRYING MY PRINCE CHARMING ? ANNNND I can’t just have a wedding planner take care of these things for me? WEEELLLLLL yes it’s not just picking that dress and marrying your future hubby, in the grand scheme of beauty things we have just a few tips for you personally that your wedding planner maybe can’t control. Let me tell you one thing you can certainly learn a lot of those who have walked the aisle before you and avoid any potential disasters.
DOING YOUR OWN WEDDING MAKEUP
Uh uh honey, YES we know you do your makeup regularly, we also know you may even be a makeup artist and attempt to DIY it. If you’re a makeup artist yourself, babe today is YOUR DAY to pamper yourself, you may know all the tips and tricks in the book BUT you already have so much to think about, why add your makeup to the mix right ? sit back, have a glass of wine and enjoy the pampering time with your bridesmaids.
And if you’re not a make-up artist and are considering to DIY it, please know there is more to wedding makeup than meets the eye, a true wedding makeup artist doesn’t just know how to make you look stunning, she also knows how to apply the products so they last all day and night and how to make it photograph perfectly and generally will have an array of products used specifically for weddings.
MAKE UP TRIAL
Hoping to just turn up on the day to your makeup artist with a few inspo pics from pintrest and think they’ll nail it first go and if not, they can just change pieces as you go ? I THINK NOT, whilst YES your makeup artist is GREAT the issue we are dealing with here is, you may not look like that model on pinterest, you may not suit that makeup, you may even come to realise your makeup artist has had a lot of experience with different face shapes and will be able to create a similar look to your inspo’s but ofcorse there will need to be changes to suit YOU, and FINALLY you may even decide to quite frankly scrap that whole look and go for a different one and what this requires is TIME, because let me tell you that couple of hours before your wedding certainly isn’t the time to be “experimenting” with your makeup.
What do we recommend ? schedule your make-up trial anywhere from 3-6 months out, this gives you time to find another option and experiment if needed, another hot tip is wear white to your trial, this helps get a better idea of the overall effect and contrasts for on the day. After you have decided on your look and the makeup artist is finished, take photos in different lighting and poses to really get the feel of how it will be on the day, making sure you’re doing this while the artist is present incase you have any questions or suggested changes.
Another hot tip is, if you’ve never had your makeup done before and are nervous about being present with a makeup artist and feel as though maybe you’ll move too much or be uncomfortable perhaps make use of the free makeup sessions in Sephora or mecca and any other department store, this assists in removing any confidence issues and fears you may have before going to your wedding makeup artist.
AFRAID OF BEING TO NATURAL OR DRAMATIC ?
Wanting natural makeup is ofcorse fine, however if you literally use minimal makeup to achieve that look, you may just find yourself disappointed with how the photos comeback. What we’re trying to say is what looks good in person may not look good in camera and for a wedding we need BOTH and ofcorse super natural minimal makeup wedding looks tend to be one of those things. Soooo when going to your makeup artist perhaps mention you want faux natural (they should know what this means) think, flawlessly filled brows, with a nude tone lip stick and our lash in style “cute as” for a delicate enhancement.
Pick a makeup style you feel comfortable in, some brides think this is the time to be super dramatic (which is all well and good if you’re use to super glam meaning you wear a lash like Donatella to your 9-5) buuuuut it’s not the time to be experimenting with a jet black Smokey eye with a long winged liner and a dark red lip if you’re not use to that, often doing something like that will lead to photos where you “don’t look yourself” and may look back on those photos in 6 months and think WHY, you certainly want the look that is effortlessly gorgeous and you feel comfortable in and look yourself and undoubtedly your makeup artist will be able to create a look that is still you but just a little more of a refined version.
Also remember to finish your makeup with MSL lashes as our lashes are fluffy and don’t have that “cartoonish” look you sometimes see, adding a fluffy lash can be the ultimate finisher. Also keep in the mind you don’t need to be covered in obviously thick coated makeup to achieve any of these looks, with the right makeup artist and tools you will get the perfect end result.
WATERPROOF MAKEUP
Ofcorse your MUA will already know this but we just want to lay out some reasoning, soooo choose waterproof everything. Like every Bride, you’re certainly going to be shedding some tears down the aisle to your prince, so you want to give your makeup the best chance of staying put, a good primer and setting spray will add to the water proofing and a quality water proo, zero smudge mascara (that’s if you’re wearing mascara with your lashes however we recommend applying your lashes in reverse on the day so you don’t need to) . we also suggest a waterproof lash glue which we ALWAYS have in stock ! and we are sure your MUA has a waterproof foundation and will use the method of building cream and powder eye shadows and blush together to combat any tear marks and lid creases.
TOUCH UP’S AND MAKEUP EMERGENCIES
first things first assign your maid of honour to be on touch-up duty, she can subtly let you know when your wedding makeup starts looking a little tired because you seriously want to be looking just as beautiful at night time for photos as you were during the day! Soo now let’s talk, what will I need for touch ups ? well 2 options here, 1 being some make-up artists will stay for your whole event for a small fee and a free meal which is excellent because then they can professionally provide any service you need ! however if you are unable to do this, make it your maid of honours duty to have 2 touch up kits (1 being a lipstick, blotting paper and a makeup brush) and (2 being a whole kit of makeup for an emergency somewhere accessible and ready to go) , some brides really under estimate and pop a lipstick in their clutch and be done with it, which in our opinion isn’t enough. I mean we trust that your MUA has done a brilliant job buuuut sometimes you might just get a bit oily or need to re-apply lippy.
SKIN CARE
Every bride wants that flawless skin so her makeup looks just perfect for her wedding day, we’ve been there, done that WE GET IT, you want to be FABULOUS. This leads to brides experimenting with fancy new skin products they’ve never tried before, and if you’re someone who suffers from acne you may think “I’ll just add a few more acids and anti-acne products to my routine 2 weeks prior” LET ME TELL YOU, THIS IS NOT THE TIME !! YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW YOUR SKIN WILL REACT annnnnd the last thing you need is skin irritation, so let’s be firm, no new skin treatments, products you may be unfamiliar with or peels close to your wedding date. No matter how tempting it might be to get a peel 1 month or even 2 weeks out from your wedding DON’T. Generally with skin enhancing products your skin gets worse before it gets better.
Soooo when is the right time to start doing these treatments, should you want to do them? Minimum would be 4 months out but we recommend 6 months in advance so that your skin is well and truly use to getting that particular peel or facial meaning you will have gone through the “recovery stages” by the time it’s your wedding day. We certainly recommend before undergoing any of the treatments to get a skin consult and advise the consultant of your desired outcome. Furthermore if you aren’t someone who is crazily into facials etc, just stick to your normal routine and focus on really hydrating you skin by drinking lots of water etc.
WAXING
Now, makeup artists aren’t miracle workers, they can cover redness but a bumpy rash? Uh oh, they can’t zap those bumps away in an instant. Your brows frame your face, they can really change your whole look. Sooo we would recommend getting this done MINIMUM 4 days out however a week would be better, this will allow your skin to “calm down” after just in case you go through that bump rashy stage.
More over on body waxing (should be done a week or 2 out) and shaving should be done at least 48 hours prior to getting your tan because the last thing you want is a patchy tan right or dry skin because you have a razor rash !! don’t take those risks ! however we certainly recommend getting a wax over shaving.
TANNING FAUX AND REAL
Let’s start with faux tanning, get your tan minimum 48 hours out from your wedding because after 24 hours even though you may have showered etc the tan hasn’t completely “set” and will cause smudges and un wanted stains on your “shows everything” white dress. LIKE WHO ARRIVES ON THEIR WEDDING DAY with some stain remover? Not something you should be worrying about… so GF do not get that tan 24 hours out because it will be disastrous… besides an airbrush tan always looks better the second day anyway, also we recommend you get your tan technician to contour your body with tan to. (just ask for a tan contour they’ll know what you mean) One last thing on faux tanning (I’m sure your tan tech will be so aware but just in case she isn’t) we want that tan to be super light on your hands and feet but still in contrast with the rest of your body so putting moisturiser on prior to putting the tan on those parts will stop the build up and over processing happening.
If you’re a tanning bed gal or you like the natural sun, start this process weeks before hand so you can gradually build up your colour but GF be so mindful of tan lines because they do hang around for a while … so be conscious of what you tan in. when you are natural tanning, you do run the risk of burning which certainly won’t be a good look, you’re wedding artist may also charge an extra fee for the time spent covering the sun burn up to … if they can do it.
NAILS
Noooow make sure you try a few nail artists before your wedding or at least maybe have your regular nail tech do your set for your wedding. For those who don’t have a nail tech, a good testing technique is even on your trial day tell the nail tech “it’s my wedding tomorrow, I was unable to find a nail tech” this will often ensure you’re able to see the nail tech’s full potential (I mean every nail tech I go to, I tell them I always have a big event the next day so I get a brill set, even though that shouldn’t even be a factor it just is in this day and age). A safe set to choose for your wedding is a fine white tip or a French ombre both of these colours will coincide with any other colour because most of the time our brides maids will be wearing a colour and ultimately you do want to focus on those finer details for when photos are happening, also a French tip on your toes is super delicate and photographs well, should you be wearing an open toe shoe.
If you have any wedding do’s and don’ts be sure to email us and let us know so we can add them to our blog !
Love the MSL team x