On your wedding day, you’ll be the center of attention in photos, with guests, and in the eye of your new hubby. So don’t overlook the importance of putting your best face forward – with makeup! The key to beautiful bridal makeup is to simply look like the best version of yourself (not glammed up and unrecognizable). But you don’t have to spend a fortune on a professional makeup artists to do so. Here are some helpful tips that explain how to do your own wedding day makeup. If Princess Kate can do her own wedding makeup, then you can too!
Lessons From a Pro
To start, you may want to get a lesson from a professional makeup artist at least a month before the wedding. A pro can give you application tips, color recommendations, and show you how to make your makeup last throughout the day. Take a close friend or relative to your appointment that can take notes of all of the steps while you're having your makeup done. Once you’re home, take a picture of your face. Then, take the makeup off half of your face and try to repeat the makeup artist’s look on your own.
Flawless Face
A flawless face begins with beautiful skin. Drink plenty of water in the months leading up to your big day. Use a gentle exfoliating scrub that will buff your skin. If considering any skin treatments, like a facial or microdermabrasion, schedule them for two to three weeks before your wedding. These treatments can be great for your skin in the long-term but can cause redness or breakouts immediately after, so don’t wait until the last minute to have them done.
- Conceal, Highlight, and Use Foundation
Apply primer on your eye lids (this will be key when putting on eye shadow), then apply concealer underneath your eyes and on any reddened or darkened areas of your face. Using a creamy highlighter or highlighter pen, apply the highlighter to the inner corner of your eyes, to the sides of your nose, on top of your cheekbones, on your brow line, and around your lips. This will brighten up specific parts of your face. Finally, dab a few drops of foundation on your face and proceed to blend with either your fingers or a foundation brush.
*Suggested Products:
Primer - Elizabeth Arden Eye Fix Primer
Highlighter- Dior Skin Flash Highlighter Pen
Foundation- Bobbi Brown Natural Finish Foundation or Bare Escentuals Mineral Foundation
To set your foundation in place, dust on a setting powder to complete the base. Then, apply a rosy shade of blush to the apples of your cheeks to add color to your face. Remember, the blush should give off a natural glow and not seem too overdone.
*Suggested Products:
Blush – Dior Blush in Pink Explosion or Nars Blush in Orgasm
This step is optional, but it will give you that high-cheekbone look. All you need to do is take a good bronzer, make a fish face, and blend the bronzer into the shallows of your cheeks right underneath your cheekbones and along your jaw line.
Eyes
Since you've already applied primer to your eyes, you can begin to put on your eyeshadow. Pick light taupes and browns, if you want a natural look on your wedding day. But, if you usually rock a smokey eye, go right ahead! Use three colors from a palette. Start off by applying the lightest shade all over your eyelid, all the way up to your brow bone. Then, take the medium color and apply it to the crease of your eyelid and blend outwards. Finally, apply the darkest shade in the corners of your lid and blend well. Blending is key so that the eyeshadows don’t look patchy.
Choose a hue of eyeliner that complements your eye color. Navy or charcoal colors tend to work for everyone. Then, line your upper lids right above and into your lashes. Drawing the line slightly thicker in the middle of your eye and then tapering it out to the corners can help open up the eyes. To brighten eyes, use a beige colored liner just on the lower inner rim or line with the same or lighter shade along the lower lashline.
Even if you are not the crying type, it is inevitable that you will shed some tears on your wedding day. So, to be prepared for those tears (and the heat/perspiration), be sure to use waterproof mascara! Or for a more dramatic look, whip out those false lashes.
*Suggested Products:
Mascara – Guerlain “Le 2 de” Mascara or Maybelline Great Lash
Eyelashes – Any M.A.C lashes
Kissable Lips
On your big day, you’ve got to make sure your lips are nothing but kissable for your new hubby but still look great in pictures. To have the perfect camera-ready lips, first apply a lip sealant. Next, dab on a little bit of highlighter or concealer and blend well. Then, line and color in your entire lip with lip liner. Take your lipstick and apply a generous amount all over your lips and fill them in. Lastly, layer a gloss on top of your lips to give it a shimmery, kissable look and feel.
*Suggested Products:
Lipsticks/Lipstains from Yves Saint Laurent
If you go the DIY route for makeup, remember, practice makes perfect! So get those makeup brushes out and start playing!
*Mohy Ali-Fehmy contributed to this article.
