DIY Bridal Beauty

A bit of DIY is encouraged in almost every aspect of wedding planning apart from hair and beauty. According to wedding magazines and blogs you’d have to be absolutely crazy to attempt to do your own make up on your wedding day. I think it’s a bit silly to be honest. All the groom has to do is wash his face, brush his hair and put on a suit and you’re going to think he looks gorgeous. Women are expected to do a whole lot more than that.

I did my own hair and make up for the wedding and I’m really happy with that decision. The lovely Nikki McWilliams got in touch with me to say that she was thinking of doing the same and to ask for some advice. It got me thinking there must be lots of other brides out there considering doing their own hair or make up, and unfortunately if you look for advice from mainstream sources it’s just going to be people telling you not to do it. Not that there’s anything wrong at all with having your make up, hair, nails, whatever, done professionally at all. If it makes you feel pampered and special then do it. I just don’t think it should be a non-negotiable requirement for getting married.

The thing I reminded myself is that ‘I am preparing to spend the rest of my life with the man I love, and to have an amazing party, I am not preparing for a beauty pageant.’ Doing my own make up was quite an easy decision for me. I don’t wear a lot of make up anyway and I have very sensitive skin. My husband actually asked me not to wear too much make up, he said just want me to look like me. I’ve had my make up done professionally before and I usually end up just wiping it all off because it doesn’t look like me and I hate the feel of it on my skin. So if you are considering doing your own make up here are my top tips.

Go for a makeover or make up lesson

I had a free one hour bridal make up lesson with Bobbi Brown, a makeover with Clinique and a slightly shorter makeover session with Benefit. They were all really helpful and I learned a lot from them. It’s a good idea to take in some photos of the kind of look you are going for, and bring your mum or a bridesmaid with you. I recommended going in the morning so you can see how well the make up lasts throughout the day. The makeovers at Bobbi Brown and benefit were both free, Clinique was £15 but that was redeemable against purchase.

Look after your skin

The healthier your skin is the better your make up is going to look, and now is a good time to deal with any underlying issues. For me the issue was that my skin was very dry and very sensitive and I hadn’t found a moisturiser that was rich enough but also gentle enough. I noticed a big improvement to my skin and I started using this moisturiser from Avene. I also started doing face masks more regularly in the run-up to the wedding.

Watch some tutorials

There are so many brilliant, free make up tutorials on YouTube. I personally really like Lisa Eldridge, but there is something for everyone. Lisa Eldridge does a really good series all about bridal make up actually.

Treat yourself to some new products

Think about all the money you’re saving by not employing a make up artist and treat yourself to some really good products. Most of my make up kit comes free from goody bags so I pretty much bought new everything: foundation, concealer, blusher, lipstick, eyeshadow and of course waterproof mascara.

Most importantly, practice!

It’s important that you know how long it takes you to put your make up on and how well it lasts. It there anything you will need to be re-applying in the day? Is there’s anything you are currently using that irritates your skin? You don’t want to be finding these things out on the day. Also test how it looks in different lighting and in photographs.

Whatever you decide to do I hope you feel beautiful and happy on your wedding day!