Princess Bride

In addition to film, TV and fashion makeup, I find doing Bridal makeup is a fun, rewarding and all-around satisfying experience. Little girls' dream of the day they'll walk down the aisle dressed as a fairy-tale princess. Along with the beautiful dress come a special hair-do, a romantic veil and perfect makeup. The excitement is contagious!

After all the planning and arrangements are done and the celebration has come and gone, what's left to remember the "big day"? The pictures that capture all the special moments and highlights are forever! So you see the importance of makeup and hair. We've seen enough before and after pictures to attest to that. Enter the makeup artist.

Dealing with models and actors can be a lot easier than dealing with the general public or "bride". Models and actors will do what the designer or director requests. The bride, on the other hand, can be a lot trickier to please...and making the bride happy is key.

Classic or Trendy?

Most brides want to look like themselves only better. If you look through bridal magazines, you will see that the romantic, feminine look dominates the pages. Eye makeup colors that are soft, medium intensity tones of taupy browns with shimmery gold or smokey plum and mauve always look appropriate. Rosy cheeks and rosy pink lips are the "in" colors. Anything too light or too dark will washout or overpower a white dress.

I ask the bride/client to cut out pictures of "looks" she likes from magazines I ask to see a picture of her gown to get a sense of her style. What color are the bridesmaids' dresses and flowers? Fashion-conscious brides will choose colors of the season. For example, Fall weddings feature rust, bronze, cocoa, plum, cranberry and wine. Shades of rose, pink, peach, periwinkle, lavender and blue look cool in summer. Coordinating a makeup pallette to blend creates color continuity and will make the pictures pop.

At the consultation/trial, I look through the brides' current makeup case for clues about her color preferences. Evening weddings require a more defined, dramatic look but keep in mind that the makeup has to look good up close and personal for all the well-wishers. Daytime weddings require a softer, more natural application. Some brides will request false eyelashes... but beware of mishaps. One bride's eyelashes went up and away when her veil was lifted.

The feminine, romantic look is timeless and has become a classic in the bridal world.

Trends come and go. It's true that makeup should suit your personality but consider the whole picture. The bold up-to-the-minute look of today could go bye-bye tomorrow. Deep, dark lips need a lot of touch-ups to look crisp. Besides, kissing the groom could get messy. Vampy, dark nails overpower a white dress. Fuchsia/pinky eye shadows can give a bruised, swollen look especially on fair skin tones. Cat eyes with winged-out eyeliner might be "in" now but "out" next year. When the wedding album is viewed in ten years, the bride might wonder- "what was I thinking?"

I always take digital photos both at the trial and the day of the wedding.