7 Wedding Makeup Tips For Looking and Feeling Your Best On Your Big Day!
The day has finally come when you get to say “I do!” You want it to go perfectly, and we don’t blame you. You’ve spent months planning for this day. You found the perfect venue, vendors, dress… but did you find the perfect wedding makeup? Your wedding day makeup often goes overlooked, but it actually plays a huge role in your the outcome of your wedding photography. If the products don’t work with your skin, or a product is missed, it can cause a disaster.
Our expert wedding photographers see this all too often. Brides perfect every detail of the day, but forget to consider their wedding makeup. Your wedding day will most likely be the most photographed day of your life, so obviously you want it to be top notch. We spoke with our wedding photographers and local wedding beauty professionals to get their tips for ensuring your wedding makeup looks perfect on and off camera.
1. It All Starts With Pre-Wedding Prep
Believe it or not, your wedding day look starts weeks before your actual wedding day. Staying hydrated, keeping a proper skincare routine, and doing any beauty treatments needs to be prioritized before the week of your wedding.
Do not try any new products or treatments too close to the wedding. That new facial at the spa sounds like a dream come true? Try it after the wedding. Having a spa day with your bridesmaids? Plan it weeks (maybe even a few months) in advance of the wedding day, just in case. The last thing you want is any reaction on your wedding day.
2. Stay True To Yourself
Your wedding day is not the day to experiment with new looks. If you normally wear minimal to no makeup, don’t think a dark smokey eye look is a must. Clean, classic, and natural makeup ensures you look and feel your best. You don’t want to look back on your wedding photos and regret the look you chose. The most important thing on your wedding day is to look and feel like yourself.
Lena from Lena Shkreli & Company in Rochester shares “Over a decade of pampering brides, the one thing I can say that applies to all brides no matter what their style is, hair color, eye color or what their dress looks like is: stay true to yourself! That to me, is the most important thing. If you’re not comfortable wearing your hair up on a normal day, why would you where it up on your wedding day?! Don’t try to make everyone else happy if you don’t feel comfortable with what you look like. You’re the one who will be walking down the aisle and you have to be able walk in confidence!”
3. Use The Proper Products
Whether you are doing your own wedding makeup or booking a professional, ensure the proper products are being used. Your wedding day is long and you want your look to last through it all. The key to long-lasting makeup is using the proper products. A primer, setting powder, and setting spray will help prolong your look. Also, ensure you or your makeup artist is not using any product with SPF in it. Your photographer will most likely be using flash, and SPF and flash photography do not work well together.
You also want to consider your eye look. False lashes are optional, but waterproof mascara is not. Think you are not a crier? Use waterproof mascara anyway! Trust us.
4. Don’t Skip The Trial
Want to be confident in your wedding makeup look? Schedule a trial run! You will likely already be doing a trial run for your bridal hair, so don’t overlook the makeup. A trial run gives you the opportunity to test different products and looks until you find the perfect look and product combination for you. Don’t be afraid to book a few trial runs until you find the look that makes you feel most confident.
Lena from Lena Shkreli & Company shared “Another thing I can recommend, when shopping around for your hair and makeup artist, book someone who’s portfolio fits your style, and do a trial with them. If you’re wanting a smokey eye and high glamorous bun and you’re looking at an artist’s portfolio that only show cases soft makeup and boho hairstyles that might not be the right pick for you. Do your homework, schedule consultations, be open minded and trust the professional. If they suggest something different that you were originally envisioning, be open and willing to see their vision too. They do hair and makeup every day, numerous brides yearly, so trust the artist you end up booking; promise it will make the process so much better for both parties!”
Pro tip: Consider scheduling your makeup trial run for the morning of your engagement photo session. This will allow you to see how the products wear throughout the day, test how they look camera, and see if you like the look!
5. Book a Professional Makeup Artist
Wedding photographer, wedding videographer, wedding DJ, florist, caterer… you hired these professionals, so why not a professional makeup artist? A professional makeup artist is sure to have the proper tools, products, and knowledge to make your makeup wedding day ready.
Hiring a professional also takes away some additional stress on the morning of your wedding day. You want to relax, enjoy the time with your bridal party, and feel pampered! Hiring a professional wedding makeup artist will make you feel like the star on your big day.
Chrissy from Primp Beauty in Plymouth shared, “In the 18 years I’ve been in the beauty industry, I’ve seen so many trends, so many things changing. I think the most important thing for every bride is staying true to their style and vision. Enhancing what they have, but not being afraid to give your artist control of what will enhance your features best, especially for the photos. Lighting and flashes drown out about 40% + of the makeup in your photos. So, if you’re working with someone experienced, they’ll be able to do just enough to make you look flawless in photos, but not over done in person.”
If you truly want to do your own wedding makeup, book a few lessons. Many salons and cosmetic stores offer application lessons. This will leave you better prepared and more knowledgeable on the proper products and applications for flawless wedding day photography.
6. Have An Emergency Kit
The best way to ensure your makeup looks great throughout the day? Pack an emergency kit! Having translucent powder, blotting sheets, lip liner and lipstick are just a few of the essentials to have on hand throughout the day. Having these items quickly accessible means you can touch up your wedding makeup in between the ceremony and reception, before your romantics, or before that grand exit that is sure to be photographed.
7. Schedule Cushion Time In Your Timeline.
Save yourself from any last-minute stress by adding some extra minutes to your getting ready time. Start by calculating how long you expect your beauty to take for you and your bridesmaids, and don’t be afraid to ask the artists you’ve booked. Then, add an extra 30-minutes to an hour to your wedding day timeline. This prevents you from rushing or breaking a sweat if things take a little long than expected.
Mike Staff is the founder and CEO of Mike Staff Productions, one of the most highly acclaimed wedding services companies in the country, providing award-winning Wedding DJs, Wedding Photographers, and Wedding Videography for over 25 years.
