Wedding prep, its more than skincare…

I know I go on don’t I? Skincare, skincare, skincare, it’s true, I’m slightly obsessive but honestly, its your best weapon to assisting me in delivering a killer makeup for you! And I do want to encourage you to jump on the skincare wagon but this blog covers other things that you might not consider leading up to the wedding day. But can’t you just cover stuff up, I hear you say? Well yes, I can, I can camouflage and conceal, it’s a fundamental in makeup, but I cannot hide texture. Imagine you’re painting your home; you need to prep the surface first, you sand back the rough spots, fill in any gaps (hmm, let me expand on that one in a minute) and you get the surfaces looking smooth and even and ready for the paintwork to go on. If you just slap the paint over the surface without that vital prep work, the paint looks terrible doesn’t it? It soon starts to flake and crack, it just looks like a coat of paint over an unkempt base…so, you begin to understand that skin and makeup need similar treatment.

But what can I do to help my skin leading up to my wedding day? Firstly, just start. You can refer back to my simple skin routine in my previous blog here to get some tips and ideas on what to do and what products you might like to try. The one thing I don’t want you to do is leave it until the 59th second and then start facials a week or two before your wedding. Facials are great, indulgent and luxurious and people do tend to save things like this as a treat before the wedding day however, if your skin isn’t accustomed to treatments, it could backfire! Your skin might decide to purge, have a big breakout or you might have an adverse reaction that actually requires medical intervention! (And yes, I have seen all of these situations in my career.)

To get your skin looking fit as for your wedding day it needs, hydration and exfoliation, minimum. If you want to really amp it up, increase your water intake (yes, boring I know but it works), decrease your alcohol intake (boo, I know) but, you will notice less redness in your face if you reduce alcohol trust me, eat more whole foods, less sugar and less things in packaging – the less inflammation your body has to deal with the more energy your body can help out with rejuvenation of the skin, you might even like to look into beauty supplements (but of course check with your doctor first if you have any health conditions).

Beautiful bride Jahnie and her maids, captured by Daisy & the Duke

The other things I talk to my brides about are their additional beauty preparation that might be in the wings prior to the wedding day. I’m talking facials of course, but also things like waxing, threading, lash extensions, lash tinting, tanning, hair extensions, what to expect, what might happen and timing of these services.

Waxing for example should not be within the week of the wedding. Why? Because it can remove that top layer of skin (and hair), particularly on the upper eyelids where the skin is incredibly thin. It can create too much slip and the eyeshadow has nothing to grab onto, the area above the eyebrow too or on top of the lip can be troublesome when trying to get foundation to stick here if its freshly waxed. Similarly, threading can cause irritation and breakouts, especially if you’re just adding this to your beauty routine now.

Tan for your trial. Tanning should be done for both your wedding day AND your trial. Now, any makeup artist worth their salt can colour match you, but your chosen makeup can look completely different with a darker toned skin and “saving” your tanned look for just the wedding day may leave you feel less than happy with your makeup. Don’t roadtest your tan on the wedding day, be certain you love the colour on your skin, it’s not patchy or orange, that you don’t have a reaction to that particular tan brand and it looks beautiful with your hair and makeup. Or, break the mold, be your best self and go tan free!

Savannah Lee captured by GG Photography

Lash extensions are very popular but choosing to add these too close to your wedding date can be an absolute disaster! Case en point, my very own client, did just that, the day before her wedding….emergency phone calls and messages, her eyes so swollen she could not open them, antihistamines, trip to the doctor, and finally found a new lash technician who was open (it was a public holiday) and willing to remove them and was still incredibly swollen the day of the wedding, her eyes were (understandably) incredibly sensitive and she could barely stand eyeshadow and mascara! So choose a reputable lash tech, please don’t choose on price, have your lashes done a few times, not the week before your wedding, I even suggest having them applied 4 weeks out and then having a refill the week before, that way, should the worst happen, you have a buffer. But, also be aware than reactions can occur suddenly and at any time to even seasoned lash extension lovers.

Hair extensions are another popular addition for the wedding day; who wouldn’t want to look like they have amazing hair for days? Aside from ethical questions (not all extensions are created equally and many are sourced from stolen hair!), extensions should be a quality product – definitely real hair, not synthetic, good ones can last years and years with proper care and management. Decide your extension style to suit your needs, inform your hairstylist you wish to use them and, use them at the trial to achieve your desired style, and of course matched to your hair colour. While its not as common, extension application can cause irritation from tape glue, or bead application, the weight of the additional hair itself and even wearing clip-in extensions can be less than comfortable. Please don’t rock up on the wedding day with a bag of extensions (brand new, dirty or otherwise) and inform your stylist you’ll be using these too; the reaction you get may be less than pleasant. The styling and application of hair with extensions can require different hair prep than you have been advised and will definitely add additional time to your day that you and your wedding stylist has not planned for. This can create a domino effect for other wedding day providers and leave everyone with a bad taste in their mouth.

Beautiful Tiarna photograhed by Keira McCall Photography for BecomingOne Bridal Magazine

Now, back to skin and that “gap filler” I hinted at…truthfully, there’s no gap-filler for skin, at least not one that’s not semi-permanent or surgical. And tbh, you’re human, you’re skin has texture; it has pores, its normal, its natural, even with intervention, its STILL going to have texture. However, choosing to dedicate yourself to a decent skin routine will really help. It will even out tone and texture, plump up those fine lines. And, if you do that, and I bring my makeup A-game (which of course I do!) then you’ll have a beautiful look, radiant and amazing with makeup that lights up your face (no crazy space highlights though, I promise) and will have everyone ooohing and aahing over how gorgeous you’re looking and not just the precision of my eyeliner or bold lip.

Thanks for reading, Carly xx

Brisbane Makeup Blog

Posts tagged with skincaretips-makeupartistips-weddingreadyskin-bestskincareformakeup-

Wedding Preparation Tips, More than skincare.