In terms of bridal beauty, the trending look has never been more natural than it is now – in a large part thanks to the clean girl aesthetic popularised by the Hailey Biebers and Sofia Richie Grainges of the world.
Maybe one day we’ll see matte foundation, lash extensions and carved eyebrows return, but for now, modern brides want fresh ‘editorial skin‘, fluffy brows and creamy blush. And while this style of makeup certainly looks effortless, a lot of brides are still getting up at 6am and spending hours (not to mention hundreds of dollars) on professional glam.
For more hair and beauty features, check out our Beauty section.
I get it, wedding day makeup needs to stand up to a lot: endless photographs, greeting relatives, drinking, eating, nervous sweating. Putting your face in the hands of a pro should give you peace of mind on a high-stakes day.
But that’s not always the case. For those who don’t normally wear more than tinted moisturiser and mascara, getting a ‘professional’ job could leave you feeling like Marnie in Girls, after her makeup artist did her dirty on the ‘Laurel Canyon classic’ brief. No one wants to be scrubbing off a face full of makeup on the morning of their nuptials.
If the goal is to look like yourself, just on a really good day, why not spend that money on a few products and learn how to do it yourself? I found five brides who did exactly that. From elopements in Italy to celebrations at home, here’s how they did it and what they learnt in the process.
Going DIY
“In the past whenever I’ve had my makeup done I haven’t felt like myself,” says Scarlett Downes, who got married in New Zealand last year. “I never enjoy myself when I feel like I have too much makeup on and don’t recognise myself. I knew it would be so important to feel like myself on my wedding day, so I decided to just invest in some good products and do my own makeup on the day.
Scarlett on her wedding day.
For Rosie Herdman, a former model who’s had her fair share of time in the makeup chair, going DIY was always going to be the least stressful route. “I’ve always enjoyed doing my own makeup and find it a fun, calming and meditative process – feelings I wanted to cultivate when getting ready for one of the most special occasions of my life!”
“I’m also very particular about how I like small details to look, for example my eyeliner, brows, lashes and lip, and I didn’t want to be a nightmare nitpicking client for a professional (no matter how talented) if I felt I’d be happier with the end result doing it myself,” she says.
Some brides chose to DIY because they were getting hitched abroad. “With the heat in Amalfi, I wanted to wear something pretty light weight, and I just felt more comfortable having flexibility and more of a say on what I wanted on the day,” says Jessie Cassin, who eloped in Italy last year.
Elise Coates-Chitty also leant into the natural glow when she got married on a 30 degree day in Puglia. “I did what I always do: focus on skincare, wear some lipgloss and slide on a bit of highlighter and blush – which was unnecessary in the end and we were all dewy with sweat and tears anyway,” she says.
Other brides, like Auckland-based artist Brunelle Dias had a mixture of reasons. “The main one being to keep my budget as low as possible. I also ran out of time to do any research with the short wedding turnaround,” she says. “I struggle with trusting people doing my makeup because I have dark skin and have witnessed a lot of gorgeous brown girls looking like they’ve seen a ghost! So I preferred my tried and tested basic face over the lottery of finding someone in my very short time frame.”
Brunelle Dias.
Do your research, trial your products
“In the lead up to my wedding I got quite into watching makeup videos and tutorials online and trying out different makeup, which was all part of the fun,” says Scarlett. “Just have fun with it and play around with different makeup in the lead up, follow makeup artists on Instagram for tips! My favourite account to follow and where I got lots of product recommendations was @nikki_makeup.”
Rosie minimised risk by only using products she had tried and loved. “Everything I used, I was familiar with from my daily makeup routine and still use all those products,” she says. “For my signature winged liner, I always use Stila’s Stay All Day Waterproof eye liner with the micro tip (crucial) and I used brown rather than black for a softer vibe.”
Rosie did her own signature winged liner.
“I didn’t go heavy on the eye makeup, just soft brown shades and brown eyeliner, and I used a black-brown mascara too which I found a much softer look to the usual black,” says Scarlett.
Book a makeup lesson
Before heading off to Amalfi, Jessie booked in with a local trusted makeup artist for product guidance and a complete run-through. “I thought I was going to have my makeup a set way, as I had a lesson with a makeup artist and practiced quite a bit before arriving in Italy, but on the day it was so hot and humid (there was a thunderstorm!) so I changed a few things. It felt really good being able to do that and to know how to do it properly,” she says
Elise on her wedding day in Puglia.
Invest in some bride-approved products
Making your makeup last
Inevitably, the makeup you do in the morning will need some touch ups throughout the day or night. Here’s what these low-maintenance brides would recommend doing.
“My make up definitely lasted. I just needed the occasional lippy and a bit of blotting paper and concealer for touch ups, really,” says Jessie. “My advice is to practice your look heaps and leave yourself ample time (I gave myself two hours just for makeup) so that if you make a mistake there’s time to fix it.”
Scarlett swears by using a primer and setting spray. “Nars Light Reflecting Makeup Setting Mist – this has a nice dewy finish and I think was the reason I didn’t need to touch up as it really set the makeup in place.”
Brunelle’s makeup “lasted fine, but I forgot to touch up as the evening went on and the rain didn’t help! At the end of the day, when I was a little disheveled, with a barely there-makeup look, I felt most beautiful,” she says.
For more on DIY bridal beauty, try this.
This article Beauty lessons from five brides who did their own wedding makeup appeared first on Fashion Journal.
2025-03-14 06:38:00
#Beauty #lessons #brides #wedding #makeup
Source link
