Doing your own bridal makeup for your wedding day can be scary, daunting and overwhelming. But, whatever your reasons are for wanting to do your own bridal makeup - you know your skin best and what suits you, so have confidence in your beauty skills!
Whilst makeup artists are professionals in applying makeup, you absolutely can apply your makeup like a pro too. It goes without saying - you don’t want anything to go wrong with your makeup on your wedding day. It would be a bit of a disaster for one of the most photographed days of your life.
To kick off our bridal makeup guide, we have put together the 4 P’s - Planning, Practicing, Prepping and Products - all necessary for wedding makeup success! Read on to unleash your inner bridal makeup goddess!
Planning
It goes without saying that you need to plan your wedding makeup look! There are tons of bridal makeup looks, so have a think about what look you want to go for. Natural? Glam? Vintage?
Plan accordingly
It’s a good idea to collect photos and magazine clippings of bridal makeup looks that you want to replicate. Visit beauty counters and ask for free samples. Take photographs in all lights and angles. Your makeup efforts will pay off on your wedding day when you look absolutely flawless due to all your planning!
Guides For Brides Top Tip: Remember to wear a buttoned up shirt when you get your wedding hair and makeup done, so that you don’t mess up your beautiful hair and makeup when taking your shirt off to get into your bridal dress!
Practising
Once you’ve decided on your bridal makeup look, it's time to practice! Watch makeup tutorials on YouTube or book a makeup lesson if you're stuck with technique.
Practice, practice, practice
Whilst you should definitely practice applying the makeup to achieve the look you want, don’t experiment and attempt something that just isn’t you.  If you don’t normally wear heavy makeup - don’t try it. If you don’t normally wear something as bold as a bright red lip or colourful eyeshadow, then it’s not a good idea to try it for your wedding day. Practice a bridal makeup look that you love, matches your personality and is essentially you.
Prepping
Beautiful bridal make-up starts with beautiful skin. In order for your skin to look its absolute best when wearing makeup and getting hitched, you must prep your skin. This means splurging on facials, moisturising, exfoliating and toning. This is an absolute must. Don’t skip a step!
Prep your skin
For a beautiful bridal glow, getting active in the months leading up to the wedding detoxes the skin, as does guzzling down water to stay hydrated! Eating healthily also goes a long way. Get those apples, bananas, strawberries and blueberries (and all those smoothies too) down you! Chia seeds, flaxseed, porridge oats, quinoa and raw vegetables are hugely beneficial for your skin, as are Omega 3 protein-rich food such as fish and eggs.
Guides For Brides Top Tip: Avoid alcohol in the weeks leading up to the wedding as it can make you look and feel puffy, alongside dilating the blood vessels in your skin. No bride wants a red face in their wedding photographs!
Guides For Brides Top Tip: Definitely skip the tanning beds! Skin cancer, wrinkles and premature ageing anyone? Go for spray tans or self-tanning - your skin will thank you for it.
Skin that has not been prepped accordingly will result in improper makeup application and makeup that unfortunately doesn’t last long. When makeup starts to slide when dancing or sweating, you can attribute it to improper skin preparation.
Products
You definitely don’t need to buy all new makeup - use the products that you know will work for you and your skin.
Your wedding will likely last all day, with hundreds of photo opportunities - so your bridal make-up will need to be waterproof, smudge-proof and tear-proof! And yes, all three are possible! To get photo-ready and achieve a flawless look that will last no matter what the wedding day throws at you, you must first begin with your base makeup.
(Ensure that you begin your makeup application with a clean face that is well moisturised.)
Primer
Always, always, always use a primer first. They smooth out lines and help to keep your makeup firmly in place - essential for weddings! Apply the primer in a downwards motion.
Guides For Brides Top Tip: Opt for a silicone-free primer as silicone-based primers can clog your pores up.
After the primer comes foundation! Opt for those that say: ‘‘long-wear’’,‘’long-lasting’’ and/or ‘’waterproof’’. It goes without saying, but on one of the biggest days of your life, you need a reliable foundation that you know is going to last the entire day. Not only that, but it needs to suit your skin tone AND skin type too ladies! Lots of factors here, we know. If you have dry skin, a matte foundation won’t be the best idea. Equally, if you have oily skin, then it’s best to opt for oil-free foundations.
If you are having a summer wedding, using foundation with SPF would seem sensible. But unfortunately, it can give you a ghostly complexion in your wedding photographs, which you do not want!
Guides For Brides Top Tip: Having a summer outdoor wedding? Use SPF in your moisturiser and not your foundation.
Need more coverage? Apply concealer post-foundation application in areas that need it, especially under the eyes, around the nose and on blemishes.
Guides For Brides Top Tip: If you are feeling oily, carry some tissue on you to blot out oil on your T-Zone to control shine.
For the second part of the bridal makeup guide, we have covered the eyes, cheeks and lips, especially just for you!
Eyes
When it comes to your bridal make-up, don’t be afraid to amp up the volume with your eyes!  Big, sparkling eyes are a must for weddings and always, always turn heads. The great thing is, it’s much easier to achieve than you think!
For big, bright eyes, you must:
- Define your brows - get them professionally shaped which will lift your face! They help to frame your face.
- Use an orange-toned concealer (as close as possible to your skin tone) underneath your eyes to hide dark circles. Don’t attempt to use a concealer lighter than your skin tone as there will be white circles around your eyes. Apply concealer to the inner corners of your eyes as well, leaving you with an even-toned base for your gorgeous wedding eyeshadow!
- Apply white eyeliner in the waterline to further open up your eyes.
- Use an eyelash curler, before applying two coats of mascara.
- Stick to natural and neutral tones when using eyeshadow.
However, you can up your wedding beauty game with bridal eyelash extensions! False lashes are amazing at making your eyes pop. We’re absolutely not exaggerating here, but lash extensions are life changing and a serious game changer. You don’t need to worry about mascara clumping, or smudges under the eyes, or even mascara ‘falling’ onto your cheeks. They can last 2 - 4 weeks without falling out, meaning that you will still have eye-popping gorgeousness for your honeymoon!
Cheeks
Your cheeks can make or break your wedding makeup. Get yourself that extra dose of wedding beauty with our cheeks makeup tips. Do accentuate fabulous cheekbones with blusher, bronzer and highlighter!
Contouring is all the rage right now, especially for weddings - why? Because it plays up and accentuates your natural features and gives you an amazing bridal glow. The cheeks are one of the classic places to contour on your face and if done correctly, can give jaw-dropping cheekbones for the camera.
To contour - suck your cheeks in, to find out where your contour placement is and apply bronzer with an angled blush brush. Apply the bronzer diagonally from the ears to underneath your cheekbones. The bronzer should be no more than 2 shades darker than your natural skin colour. You don’t want any sharp lines so definitely blend it and then blend some more! Highlighting comes next and this should be applied above the bronzer for that wedding glow. The highlighter should also be no more than 2 shades lighter than your natural skin colour. Â
Then pop some pink blusher into the apples of your cheeks for a rosy bridal glow (If you’re a blushing bride - no need for this step!)
Lips
For a wedding kiss that he will never forget, wear lip stain on your lips as the finishing touch to a beautiful face. Lipgloss won’t last and lipstick will need to be reapplied and can smudge - but lip stain has lasting power!
In your hunt for the perfect wedding lip stain, opt for colours that you regularly wear in your normal life. This makes the process easier as you know which lip colours suit you and which match your personality. Â
Guides For Brides Top Tip: Make that kiss all the more special by ensuring you keep your lips supple by exfoliating and moisturising in the weeks leading up to the wedding!
Finish off your bridal make-up with makeup setting spray. It will add extra holding power. Keep calm and carry a well-stocked clutch for bridal makeup essentials and touch-ups throughout the day. Have a fantastic wedding and don’t forget about how beautiful you really are! If you cry, that’s ok - you can blot your tears!
If you still don't trust yourself to do your own bridal makeup, you can find makeup artists near you here.