Your wedding day should make you feel a million dollars and choosing your bridal makeup for the big day can be a daunting task. Some brides have a very clear vision of how they see themselves on their wedding day – having already imagined their dress, hairstyling and makeup since the first date (maybe the second – as well as practising their new signature?!)… obviously I never did this (!)….anywaaaaay…. for some brides, choosing suppliers can feel a bit like “where do I start?”. Firstly, I fully recommend doing your research. Ask around for recommendations, look for recent reviews on social media and websites and choose your supplier based on your preferred style. If for example, your makeup or hair style is natural, book someone who reflects this in their portfolio. If you prefer a big hair and a very full makeup application, look for someone who specialises in this style or at least reflects they are experienced and versatile in different types of styling.
Bridal makeup is a very specialist area and I recommend doing your homework. So often I meet clients at bridal trials who have been to various people for trials and come away feeling deflated about the end result. Most commonly, the reasons for this is because a) they have not been listened to in terms of the result they were wanting to achieve and b) they come away with a trend look i.e. large structured brows, heavy eye makeup… and this can often be due to not being experienced in bridal makeup. I am not saying that some brides won’t request a trend look, of course they will and if that’s the look they’re wanting to achieve then its personal choice – its not for me to suggest this look isn’t appropriate for bridal makeup. Infact, bridal makeup should be applied to make you feel your best on the most special day of your life. If you go natural, full glam or yellow with pink spots its really personal choice – but my job is to advise you based on my experience and expertise in this area and the main piece of advice I will always offer to clients is to just think carefully about the look you choose. In my opinion, unless you are going for a particular theme i.e. alternative makeup styling, I always recommend classic and timeless makeup. Makeup that won’t look outdated 2 years down the line…. but still looks beautiful in 20 or 30 years time. For me, this rules out heavy contouring, excessive highlighter, large structured brows. These are all trends of this current period of time… but like with all fashion, it will quickly pass and look old fashioned. Even as quickly as 12 months time.
That said, I am a fan of a beautiful brow. Brows frame your face… a defined brow will always look beautiful, the same as a lovely glow on your skin. I love highlighter and I use it on brides if we’re not going for a matte look! It can look stunning, especially on brides – a glow makes you look radiant and healthy, so I’m not saying highlighter is a no-no. I’m all for creating a cheekbone that could cut glass… a bit of gentle bronzing/contouring can add warmth to your face and add a little structure – but it only takes some subtle placement to get results and still keep the look soft. My point being, makeup can still incorporate some of the things that are currently on trend but can be applied in a way that still makes the look timeless.
Bridal makeup is probably 60% of my clientele and over the years I have worked on so many amazing weddings. I have made friends through bridal clients, I have visited amazing venues and I have worked on some amazing themed weddings from a Mexican Day of the Dead wedding, a goth wedding as well as the very traditional venues. I have had brides request looks from barely there (some requesting nothing more than mascara and Vaseline on their lips, to other brides who have gone for a black and red smokey eye to compliment the goth themed wedding). I feel so lucky to have such variation in the work I do and particularly thankful that my clientele is so varied and I am trusted to complete the desired look, whatever the theme.
By the way, last year I wrote a blog about the value of a bridal makeup specialist – check it out if you are looking to book your supplier or know someone who is…
So as we approach the crazy wedding season which grows even busier year on year I thought I would share some of my favourite bridal looks from the last couple of years… Please click on the images to scroll through the slide show.
If you are looking to book, I am taking bookings up to 2 years in advance.
Thanks
Gemma x
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