Tips for your wedding day –

SKIN ~

Your skin and the glow you want for your wedding day (and everyday) really does come from the inside out. Drink plenty of water, at least eight glasses a day. It’s not a secret that adding skin friendly foods to your diet at least a month before the big day. Skin-plumping avocado, glow producing carrots and hydrating berries and melons. Cucumber slices, cantaloupe, radishes, apples, jicama are all very hydrating to the body and skin ~ asparagus and green beans act as diuretics and will help to eliminate toxins and help to flatten your belly.

SMILE ~

You will be smiling all day, if you would like to have a brighter smile, schedule a professional teeth cleaning at least two weeks prior to your wedding day, and crest whites strips work great too!

PICKING YOUR DRESS ~

Be open to choosing the color of your dress ~ pick one that complements your skin tone and hair color. You have so many more options to choose from now, maybe even a color other than white or ivory.

CHOOSING YOUR BOUQUET ~

Don’t get stuck in the trends, make sure the bouquet you choose works for your body as well. Larger bouquets will be heavier, hide your body and you will be holding it in many photos and it gets heavy. If you are petite, a long cascading bouquet will cover up your beautiful dress.

SHOES! ~

I know you want those sexy four-inch heels…they are gorgeous! BUT really think before you decide. Think about your venue and how much walking you will be doing? Are you walking downstairs to the beach? Are you hiking a mountain top to get that perfect sunset? You will be pulled in every direction the day of your wedding be sure you find something you love and realistic. Don’t forget, go comfy for rehearsal too….I have had so many brides with blisters from the night before they are hurting before the wedding even starts.

TANNING ~

If you are choosing to get a spray tan prior to your wedding, I suggest you first do a trial run and make sure you love the look, really watch how it colors your skin ~ is it beautiful or do you look too orange. Look at your hands too, does it wear off too quick and look blotchy? If you do tan I recommend you tan all of your body including your face. Be sure to prep by waxing and getting your manicure and pedicure beforehand. You MUST exfoliate your entire body to remove dead skin followed by moisturizing dry or rough spots, but don’t slather your entire body this only creates a barrier that prevents the tanning solution getting into your skin.

WAXING ~ THREADING ~ DERMAPLANING ~

Be sure to have your hair removed one week prior to your wedding day, just in case you have any reactions. If you haven’t already been doing one of these, you might want to try it. Give it a test run months before your wedding ~ This is important because I also use airbrush makeup, any hair above your lip, or excess hair on your face, it will show more with airbrush. I highly recommend dermaplaning a week before your wedding. Also, dark underarm hair, even when freshly shaved, can cast a shadow in photos. A quick wax one week before will pull the hair out from the root, eliminating any underarm darkness and ensuring a razor burn free wedding day.

MAKEUP ~

Make sure you have a design trial, try and coordinate your trial on the same day as your engagement photos so you can test out contouring, lashes, lip colors ~ it’s a great way to see what your makeup will look like with professional pictures. As a professional makeup artist, I am not only putting on beautiful makeup to enhance your beauty, but I am also thinking of how you will look on camera ~ it is so important to make sure you are using a specifically formulated setting powder like Make Up For Ever HD Microfinish ~ setting powder can look invisible in person, but it can also leave a powdery white trace that can reflect under a flash. Makeup needs to last through kisses, tears and sweat so be sure to fill your lips with your lipliner first so if your lipstick wears off you will have at least a little color on your bare lips.

HAIR DO ~

If you can’t make up your mind between and updo or leaving your hair long ~ you can always do both. Wear your hair down for your ceremony and up for the reception. Having your hair back will leave you looking polished, and sometimes depending on the weather, curled hair tends to fall flat quickly. I have many clients who choose to do a natural makeup and soft hair down look for the ceremony, and then do a quick updo and smokey makeup look for the reception.

TIME TO GLOW ~

If you want your skin to glow you need to exfoliate with a gentle body polish or scrub. Don’t forget to lip scrub and hydrate your lips this will also ensure a smooth look for your lipstick ~ (a little olive oil and sugar will do the trick!) Be sure to invest in a great moisturizer to keep your skin plumped, hydrated and recharged. Your body will shine!

SLEEP ~

Get as much sleep as possible, you won’t be getting much sleep the night before the wedding so the sleep two nights before is crucial ~ you don’t want under eye bags.

OH NO I HAVE A PIMPLE!

If you get a pimple a week prior or few days prior to your wedding day, leave it alone! At most, apply a warm compress to the area and make sure you wash your face morning and night. Do not apply any pimple spot treatments to the area. This will only dry out the skin in that area and make it more difficult to cover dry flaky skin with makeup, It is much easier to cover a big red pimple with makeup, than a pimple that has been picked and dried up from medication. You can cover a lot up with makeup, but you can’t cover up texture.

BE PREPARED ~ DON’T WAIT UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE!

All the bridesmaid dresses and your dress should be steamed and ready to go before you even arrive to your bridal suite…the steam in the air in the room can effect the hair and makeup.

Please Please Please….take the time to write your vows before your wedding day ~ don’t save it for the last minute, I have seen time and time again where the bride is sitting in my chair and their bridesmaids are trying to help her write her vows. It never goes well and the constant interruption takes so much longer for your makeup or hair to finish ~ which will affect your timeline.

DAY OF WEDDING ~

It’s time to show up on time and let your hair and makeup team pamper you and your wedding party. It’s a time when you want to giggle with your girlfriends, take selfies and relax. Speaking from a Makeup Artist point of view ~ it is so important you and your wedding party arrive on time. In todays world where hair and makeup have large bridal parties, we want your day to run smooth. We are the first vendors you get to see on your wedding day, we want to work hard and be on time so when your photographer arrives,(and I know you are paying a lot for every hour you have hired them for), I want you to be ready so you don’t waste a minute. You have gone to great lengths planning this day, trust your vendors to do their magic.

PUT DOWN YOUR PHONE ~

In a day where we are constantly on our phones, we need to take a break for a few hours ~ let your makeup artist work on your face. If you are constantly looking down it takes more time and interrupts what they are trying to achieve for you, ha ha don’t you want your eyeliner to match?