Bridal hair and makeup

As any bride will tell you, the dress and your hair and makeup go together as much as love and marriage do – you can’t have one without the other.

Bridal hair style ideas

There are so many choices of wedding hair styles that a girl is spoilt for choice, but of course you know your hair better than anyone else and know how it will behave under the crimpers. Start out by looking in magazines, on the internet, even at your favourite film stars for that first piece of inspiration.

Why not start a scrap book of bridal hair style ideas so you can keep them all together and keep looking back at them. Tastes can be fickle so make sure the bridal hair style you want now is still going to be the one you want a few months down the line. You don’t have to buy endless bridal magazines for your inspiration, these days an Oscar-style hair do would be fit for any bride and things don’t have to be so formal anymore.

The Three Ts when choosing your bridal hairdresser

So you have decided on your hair do for the day and don’t want the added stress of doing it yourself, time to find a hairdresser. Here the three Ts principal applies – Trust, Trial and Time. You are going to put a lot of trust into your hairdresser; not only do they have to create the perfect hair for your day, but you also need to trust them if they say your chosen style just will not work for your hair. They know hair and if an adaptation of the style you wanted is required, you need to trust they know what they are doing.

It goes without saying, just like you wouldn't buy your dress and try it on for the first time the day of the wedding, you need to ‘try on’ your hairstyle too. Not only do you want to know how it will look on the day but you also need to ensure that it will work with the tiara, veil, flowers, or whatever you want to put in your hair for the day. This leads us nicely on to the final T – time. Planning is key. You need to know how much time to allow for your hair to make sure that it is not rushed and spoilt. Time how long it has taken then add on another 20 minutes for any bad hair day ‘issues’.

Do-It-Yourself wedding hair

If you are doing your own hair on the day, or one of your trusty bridesmaids is stepping up to the task, again the three Ts apply. If you are not paying then you do have the advantage of practicing as many times as you like to ensure whoever is taking responsibility is a dab hand on the day. If this is the option for you then try and choose a very simple style that you are confident you or your bridesmaid is confident with. Simple can look stunning too and you will make quite a saving to the budget.

Stealing bridal makeup tips

Your makeup is just as important as your hair and needs just as much consideration. Take advantage of the makeup counters for free trials. They will show you how to use the makeup and give tips on what works best for you. If you are going to do it yourself on the day this is a great way to go about it as you get the best of both worlds, a make up artist to show you how to do it but not at the cost of one on the day. You will then have the make up to practice with to get your own technique up to standard.

Choosing a bridal makeup artist

Choosing a bridal makeup artist is a real luxury as it really cuts out much of the stress during the getting ready part of the day. You can sit back and relax while the magic is worked. Again going for a trial is definitely advisable, of course you can remove it and start again but this can eat into your perfectly timed schedule for the day and of course up the price. Take pictures to the trial to give a good idea of what you want. Make sure you have a camera handy so you can see how it looks.

Bridal lipstick on your collar

There is nothing worse than your gorgeous red lippy all over the grooms face, or giving him his first kiss of married life and covering him with sticky lip gloss. Best to go for a lip stain that will stay the distance without marking every guest and wine glass that meets your lips.