8 Bridal Beauty Blunders

Your wedding day is one of the most important days of your life.
It is also one of the most photographed days of your life. Make sure that you can enjoy those pictures forever by avoiding the following 8 Bridal Beauty Blunders.

1. Getting Caught Up In Trends.
Trends and fads come and go. The biggest look of the moment will be out of fashion in 3 months. Your wedding look should be timeless and beautiful, and not look dated next year, or in 10 years time.

2. Contouring And Highlighting Like A You Tuber.
Following on from avoiding trends, understand that the excessive highlight and contour you see on you tube is perfect for drag queens, but can be an absolute nightmare for brides.
Most wedding photography happens outdoors in natural light, which is the absolute worst light possible for an over-contoured face. Rather than making you look beautiful, heavy contour and highlight can make you look like a caricature of yourself.
Save your big contour for nightclubs, where it's perpetually dark, and everyone is drunk anyway!

3. Trying Something New.
Your wedding day isn't the day to try something new. Don't break out a big red lip for the first time ever, or suddenly convert to an intense smokey eye or giant strip lash.
Your groom needs to recognize you as you walk down the aisle. You need to look like your very best version of you, not like a stranger to him. 

4. Skipping The Makeup Trial.
The trial is not only important for setting up the look for the day, but it gives you a chance to observe the makeup artist, their skills, products, hygiene. It also gives you a chance to see if their energy matches yours. Some artists are technically brilliant but their energy is just toxic. You need to make sure the vendors who will be around you on your big day bring good energy and a pleasant vibe.

Bring pictures to your trial, both of makeup you love and makeup you hate. It's the best way to make sure you are both on the same page.

5. Shimmer And Shine In The Wrong Places.
I always advise scaling way back on the shimmer, or even skipping it altogether. Shimmer can translate to sparkle in sunlight, and look terribly wrong, especially high on the cheeks and under the brows.
Glowing, dewy skin is lovely, but can make you look oily/sweaty in the wrong light, so don't go overboard on the shine. Adding shine to the center forehead and along the bridge of the nose can be fabulous on a fashion shoot, where everything is controlled, but on a bride can often look like greasy skin.
Avoid glitter completely.

6. Too Much Dark Drama On The Eyes.
Black liner and black shadow are a no-no for brides. Black liner grabs the light and makes you look like you are squinting in all your pictures. If it doesn't shut your eye down in the outdoor light it becomes the main focus on your face, and you see the liner before you see the girl. Opt for dark expresso browns and deep moody purples instead. They will give you the accent you are looking for without closing your eye down.
Even if you can make black shadow look fabulous in the makeup chair, wedding makeup has to last 10 to 12 hours at least, and black shadow as it wears in can make you look heavy and tired under the eye, and can make your eyes look like they have sucked in to the back of your skull.

7. Lashes That Are Too Big.
Back to the outdoor light - lashes can act like awnings hanging over your under eye, creating big shadows that make you look tired and haunted. They can also be too dense at the lash line, making you look squinty in your pictures. Be careful with strip lashes if you are not used to wearing them. Tears can weaken the glue in the inner corners of the lash, making them lift away and look crazy.

8. Foundation Mis-match.
Your foundation needs to match your skin, not only in depth of color, but also in undertone. Your makeup artist needs to know if you are a cool tone or a warm tone, and needs to have a solid grasp on color theory, so that they can build you a perfect color. Once your perfect shade is created it needs to be applied in a sheer and even veil. Thick, chunky foundation looks awful, especially in the daylight. It should look like perfect flawless skin, not thick, opaque makeup.
I just read on a Facebook pro makeup artist community page a post from someone bragging that they do 10 faces in 4 hours for weddings. That is only 24 minutes per person, which tells me some major steps are being missed, and my guess is the first missed step is going to be the creation of the perfect complexion.

How To Be A Good Bridesmaid

How To Be A Good Bridesmaid.

At this point in my career I don't even know how many hundred weddings I have done.

Hundreds and hundreds of them.

In the midst of all the fun I always see what's going on, and I've learned a lot about what makes a good bridesmaid.
Here are 10 tips for how to be a good bridesmaid

1. It's not your show.

A really good bridesmaid knows that today she is absolutely NOT the star of the show!

You need to defer to the bride, don't be an attention vampire, don't be the loudest girl in the room.

No matter what goes down, be chill.

2. Say Yes To The Dress.

Who cares what it looks like on you? Tomorrow you can wear something different. As for today, don't complain, don't make snippy comments about how it's not your style. Just roll with it. 

3. Be Makeup Cool.

Hopefully a good makeup artist has been hired for the big day, and is keeping all the bridesmaids looking beautiful. If you change out your lip color, draw on some big contour, or do something wacky with your eyebrows (ahem - Instagram) you will draw attention to yourself and take it away from the bride (and the other bridesmaids) and no doubt ruin every picture that you are in. Most of the time you will look stupid and vain.

Do your big makeup look tomorrow, but today just be chill.

4. Help Where You Can.

A good bridesmaid will be unobtrusively helpful. You can easily fix things, take care of potential problems, do simple things like get the bride a drink, make sure she has something to eat - essentially help her day flow smoothly. Just don't do it in a way that makes you look like you're seeking a pat on the back, or trying to outdo another bridesmaid.

5. Keep The Mood Light And Fun.

A really great bridesmaid will keep the mood in the room light and fun, diffusing any girl-drama that is threatening to break through. The bride needs to remember this as her best day ever, and feel the love and support of her closest friends rather than remember the getting ready portion of her wedding day as being a mean gossip-fest.

6. Bring An Emergency Kit.                               

If there is no wedding planner onsite then bring a few bits and pieces in case something goes wrong. Tampax, safety pins, bobby pins, bandaids, Excedrin, Fashion Tape, Altoids - little things that can make a huge difference.

7. Only Be Positive.

Don't tell her her hair looks wrong or that her dress doesn't fit quite right. Even if they do.
She is probably already feeling vulnerable and this is not the time for some passive aggressive "I'm only telling you because I love you" nonsense.

Tell her she looks beautiful, draw attention away from anything that isn't quite right.

The biggest component of looking beautiful is feeling beautiful. If she feels gorgeous she will radiate gorgeous. No matter how amazing she looks, if she feels like she's not looking her best, then that is what she will project.

8. Don't Get Drunk.

You know your limit. Don't go past it.

The drunk bridesmaid lowers the tone of the event. And she gets immortalized in the wedding album with her half falling down up-do, bleary runny eyes and smeared lips.

No matter how much fun you think you are when you're drunk, to everyone else you look stupid

9. Accept That The Maid Of Honor Is The Leader

Even if you can't stand her.

Don't get your nose out of joint, don't get into any passive aggressive power games, just smile and roll with it. 

10. Have Fun.

And if you're not having fun, act as if you are.

Weddings In Venice

Last year when I was in Italy leading the Corinna B's World Glam Italia Tour we spent a day in Venice.

Venice never, ever disappoints

I always think you need at least a week in Venice, but there was only time for one day. I would like to stay there for a month but I can never find a spare month to run away in.

While we were there we spotted two weddings happening.
Venice would be a very romantic place to get married, don't you think?

 We loved the bride's dress.

The guests were very chic. I loved this lady's white dress. Perfect with the beige jacket and nude heels

We were wondering if the veil was old or new?
It was just beautiful.

I also loved the short celery trench coat on the guest/family member in the background. and those legs!

The most fun was watching these two little boys who could care less about the pomp and circumstance surrounding them.
They were doing some good running and jumping instead.

A few minutes later we sat on the steps of another church eating lunch, when along came another wedding. They just swung by for photos though.
They looked so sweet and lovely, just the two of them on their destination wedding in Venice.

I would love to go out there and do some weddings...

I loved these two. They escaped the rain, taking shelter under the walkway along the Doges palace. All glamorous in a long dress and a suit, and made use of their free time with a little canoodling.
Perfect.

I found this fabulous article on TheKnot.com

Are you on The Knot? I am. Check out some of my fabulous reviews here. I absolutely love my brides!!

If you are getting married in the AZ (or anywhere else) hit me up :))

In the meantime enjoy this article:

15 Ways To Jump-Start Your Bridal Beauty Routine

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   PHOTO BY MARIA MACK PHOTOGRAPHY
   1. Schedule Weekly ManicuresFace it: As soon as you got engaged, everyone was asking to see the ring. Keep those nails and hands primed and pretty with regular weekly manicures. This is your chance to experiment with colors (pretty mauves and pinks) and get to know your manicurist. When you get your nails done, look at your nail bed. Shape your nails to match, giving your hands and nails a balanced and elegant look.
   Want to splurge? Shellac manicures use UV technology for a harder and smoother finished nail. They're a bit pricier but can last up to twice as long as a traditional manicure!

   
   

   2. Whiten Your TeethYou want pearly whites for all those beautiful pictures you'll be posing for (but we also know how crucial coffee is right now with all the planning). Most toothpastes have whitening ingredients in them, but for faster results, choose a special whitening one. White strips are also a great option.
   Want to splurge? Get your teeth professionally whitened. However, makeup artist Sonia Kashuk says, “Don't go overboard. Anything that looks too artificial becomes too prominent in a picture." Get a professional whitening six months out so your teeth aren't too brilliant the day-of. Beware, though: Teeth whitening wears down your enamel, making your teeth more sensitive to hot and cold, so don't overdo it!

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   PHOTO BY HEATHER ROTH FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY
   3. Eat Healthier 
   If you can bear it, try staying away from sugar, lots of sodium and processed foods. These all lead to belly fat and bloating. Instead, focus on green vegetables, fruit and lots of water -- all great for staving off food cravings and clearing up your skin. Watch out for carbs as well, especially fried foods (that means no French fries!). Stay away from too much booze -- alcohol makes your skin puffy and dry (not to mention, you crave more snacks and junk food when you're buzzed). 
   Want to splurge? Sign up for meal plans that deliver healthy meals right to your door every morning like the Zone (ZoneDiet.com) and The Fresh Diet (TheFreshDiet.com). Or, hire a nutritionist to get you on the right diet track!

   
   

   4. Work Out RegularlyWe know it's an obvious one…work out on a regular basis. “Working out will help tighten and firm your body while also detoxing your skin," Kashuk says. A good workout gives you a boost of energy, helps you lose weight and makes you feel happier (hello, endorphins!).
   Want to splurge? Join a gym. You won't have the weather to use as an excuse, and you'll have all the equipment right there. Plus, working out with other people is always a huge motivation.

   
   

   5. Lift WeightsAdd weights to your workout routine. That age-old myth that you'll bulk up is false! Some simple dumbbells will make all the difference between toned arms and that little bit of arm fat that's so hard to shake. Try a trainer-approved exercise like a seated dumbbell press.
   Want to splurge? Pick a personal trainer over a workout video. Your trainer will customize the session to your needs and change up your workout every time

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   PHOTO BY MEG PEROTTI
   6. Have a Day-Of Bag
   Whether it's flyaway hairs or fall-off fake lashes, you should make sure you have an arsenal of bridal beauty fixers on hand the day-of; this means being prepared for any scenario. Start adding items as you begin to work out the details of your wedding, as well as during your makeup trials. You should have a plan of attack with your makeup artist should they not be there in a moment of need!
   Want to splurge? If you don't have the time to pull it all together, you can buy premade kits that come complete with hair spray, clear nail polish, deodorant and all those things you haven't thought of.

   
   

   7. Get a Smooth FaceA primer is a great place to start. Use it daily. It provides a smooth surface for foundation to adhere to all day. Or try a hydrating facial serum. Apply it daily before your makeup for softer and smoother skin.
   Want to splurge? At least three months out from your wedding, start planning monthly facials. Facials boost your skin's health, meaning it will look clearer and brighter! We're loving blueberry soy facials — the antioxidants in the blueberries help firm your skin and naturally exfoliate at the same time.

   
   

   8. Go for the BronzeSun-kissed skin will give you a natural, healthy glow. Use a gradual self-tanner like Jergens Natural Glow moisturizer. The pros at Brazil Bronze Glow Bar in NYC say brides should get a spray tan a few days before their wedding for a beautiful glow (this leaves enough time to fix any trouble spots and let the color calm down). A one-time tan will give you just enough bronze for a sun-touched look in your photos. Whatever you do, don't use a tanning bed or go out in the sun without sunblock.
   Want to splurge? Some tanning salons like Brazil Bronze Glow Bar make house calls.

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   PHOTO BY STILL MUSIC PHOTOGRAPHY
   9. Do a Makeup Test Run
   Besides your hair trial, you should also schedule a makeup trial. Have a trial at least three months before the wedding. This is where you'll fine-tune your look with your makeup artist so that you know exactly how you'll look the day-of.
   Want to splurge? Hire your photographer to take photos of you after you've had your makeup done (or schedule your makeup trial the same day as your engagement photo session). This run-through will ensure you know how you look in multiple lights for your wedding photos. If your makeup looks too harsh or too subtle, have your makeup artist experiment and repeat.

   
   

   10. Have Your Brows ShapedIf you do your own tweezing, take this opportunity to splurge on brow shaping. The pros at salons will follow your advice, as well as offer suggestions for the best brow shape according to your face. Waxing is a popular option. Threading uses a cotton thread rolled along your skin to catch hairs. The process is quick and more precise than waxing (also, if you're on antibiotics or skin medications, threading is the safe way to go). Start shaping appointments six months out, waiting three to four weeks between sessions. Schedule your last shaping a month before the wedding in case you need to grow out any areas.
   Want to splurge? See a brow specialist -- “someone specializing in the care and maintenance of your eyebrows," says Kashuk. They'll know best for your brow line.

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   PHOTO BY DELMORE PHOTOGRAPHY
   11. Get Longer LashesIf you weren't blessed with long lashes, consider trying false ones. Don't want to look overdone? Get a softer, more romantic look by applying half lashes in the outer corners of your eyes. Longer lashes will enhance the shape of your eyes and focus all attention on you. Don't want runny mascara on your wedding day? Try this: Apply your favorite mascara, and curl your lashes. Then apply a top coat of some waterproof mascara. This will give you beautifully curled lashes without the heavy feeling that many waterproof products have.
   Want to splurge? Get semipermanent lash extensions at a salon. Extensions eliminate the need for mascara, which can actually lead to healthier eyes and lashes. They also last much longer than at-home kits. Applications stay on until they fall out naturally (you'll have to get touch-ups every two to three weeks).

   
   

   12. Focus on Your LipsTake care of your lips each night by applying a generous coat of lip balm or Vaseline. “Gently rub it over your lips in a circular motion with a wet washcloth," says makeup artist Mally Roncal. This will exfoliate and soften your lips at the same time. Go for a glossy lip on your wedding day. A matte lipstick will look classic but may not hold as long, and could crack and wear down. Put a gloss over your lipstick to cover up those imperfections.
   Want to splurge? Some salons offer special lip treatments that focus on exfoliating, moisturizing and energizing your lips!

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   PHOTO BY SWEET TEA PHOTOGRAPHY
   13. Have a Hair PlanWork with your hairstylist to map out your hair care plan of attack. Try an at-home treatment with your favorite conditioner and mashed-up avocado. The creaminess of the avocado will increase your hair's silkiness. Start doing weekly treatments months before your wedding if you can. For an extra-glossy finish, look for shampoos and conditioners infused with olive oil. The oil helps tone down frizz and boost shine. 
   Want to splurge? Go to your salon and have your stylist give you a customized conditioning treatment for your hair type. For example, curly hair needs more moisture than straight hair. Your stylist will treat your hair type accordingly.

   
   

   14. Get Smooth SkinHave a tough-to-treat spot like dry elbows? A good body scrub in the shower will get rid of dead skin. Then, moisturize with a good almond butter or shea butter lotion. Wrap your elbows in a cloth and keep the moisturizer on for about an hour.
   Want to splurge? Get a full-body scrub at a salon for allover smooth skin. Go for a sugar scrub for a soft and sweet-smelling finish.

   
   

   15. Plan Hair RemovalThat little peach fuzz just above your upper lip may not seem like a big deal in your everyday life, but you don't want it showing up in wedding photos. Start getting monthly waxes for best results. Not into the pain? Salons now offer special waxes like chocolate wax and sugaring (a sugar paste), which are great if you're looking to walk out of the salon without too many sore spots. 
   Want to splurge? Get ready for your honeymoon by booking laser hair removal appointments in one month intervals (three treatments are recommended for best results). After around seven treatments, the results can be permanent.

10 Bridal Beauty Tips

The spring/summer wedding season is about to take off, so if you are getting ready for your wedding in the next few months here are 
10 bridal beauty tips to have you glowing and gorgeous on your big day.

1. Hydrate.

Even if you are months away from your wedding day start drinking extra water. Every cell in your body will love you for it and your skin will start to glow and look super vibrant!

2. Book your makeup artist.
The good ones book up fast so make sure you secure one as quickly as possible.

3. Book your trial makeup
I'm a big believer in getting this done as quickly as possible. You need to be certain that she is the right artist for you, and if she isn't then you want tht extra time to find someone else.
Your artist may have some fabulous ideas for your look that take some time - maybe she wants you to grow your brows in, or maybe she wants you to get a series of facials. The sooner you can get started the better!

4. Find a really great facialist.
Whatever your budget, find someone to work with you on facial treatments to get your skin in super good shape. The better your skin looks, the better your makeup will look.
Your makeup artist can probably give you some great referrals if you don't already have someone.

5. Book a trial airbrush tan.

Instead of planning on UV hours on a cancer bed, opt for an airbrush tan. Have a trial so you can see that you like the color and see how many days its good for. I like to count out how many days it is til perfect. For me day 3 is the best color. Once you know which day is the prettiest you can schedule it that many days prior to you wedding day.

6. Get a trial eyebrow session.
Everyone looks better with well groomed brows, but you don't want to make any drastic changes, or have any drastic errors happen right before your wedding! Find a great brow girl and have a trial with her a few months out. If you love the look she gives you its easy to keep it maintained until your wedding day.

7. Plan your body treatments.
Start losing the rough skin of winter, and get some glow into your skin. Making the skin on your body glow can take a little work, so start early with exfoliation treatments and luxuriant lotions. Whatever skin is showing in your dress needs to be smooth, supple and radiant.

8. Cool Sculpt.
If you have problem areas that no amount of working out is helping, such as over the bra fat that wants to roll over the top of your strapless dress (even slim girls get this!), and if you have at last 3 months before your wedding day, look into Coolsculpting.
This is the miracle cure to literally melt away (well, freeze away) the problem folds and have you both looking and feeling sensational. I send my brides to Sandra at the Blume Skin Centre (click HERE for info). The results are nothing short of spectacular!

9. Treat your hands to some TLC

Every bride has photos taken of her hand with the ring, her hands holding the flowers, her hand slicing cake - her hand gets a ton of attention on her wedding day! Getting some hand treatments along the way helps to keep the skin smooth and luscious. If you have sun damage you can get photofacials on your hands. If the skin is just dried out and tired a few parafin treatments will make it look and feel like a million dollars!

10. Love your lips.
Soft, supple lips take work to achieve. Invest in a gentle exfoliant and a super lip balm and use them religiously in the months and weeks leading up to your big day.
Your lipstick will glide on and hold better, and your lips will look fantastic. Chapped, scaly lips never look good!

Hiring A Makeup Artist For Your Wedding Day

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Hiring A Makeup Artist For Your Wedding 

Here in America, engagement season is in full swing.

image by Sergio, makeup by Corinna Cooke

The big question gets popped more between Thanksgiving in November and Valentine's Day in February than at any other time of the year.
So over the next few months brides are going to be planning their weddings, creating wedding budgets and allocating vast sums of money to an array of vendors, all of whom will be part of making this the best day of their life.

With your budget, which may run from a few thousand dollars to over a million dollars, its important that you, the bride, make sure that attention is paid to the areas that are important to you.
If your flowers are important to you, don't go cheap on them. If a wedding video is important to you, don't have your cousin shoot it for free - hire a really great wedding videographer.
If your wedding photographs are important to you, don't find the cheapest photographer - find the one who brings your dreams to life. (As a side note here, I have never, ever heard a bride say she was really glad she scrimped and got a cut rate photographer to capture her on her big day. There's a reason photographers charge what they charge. Don't expect a $5000 job from a $500 photographer - its just not going to happen.)

image by Sergio, makeup by Corinna Cooke

Within the budget you are creating, right from the very start, allocate money for beauty.
This is the one day of your life where looking and feeling beautiful really reallycounts. You're spending money on your dress, your flowers, your photographer, and now you need to make a plan for your hair and makeup. Many brides leave this part of the planning until later, and end up with only a tiny amount of money left to make them look their most beautiful on their big day.
Your hair stylist and makeup artist play a massively important role in your day.

image by Sarah Hagerty for Phoenix Bride and Groom Magazine,
makeup by Corinna Cooke

Today I want to address the makeup part of the equation, specifically booking a makeup artist.
Generally when a bride is working with a wedding planner, the planner will make a point of discussing the hair and makeup team, and the importance of booking them early. The good ones always get booked up.









Lately I've been noticing in my own market, and then hearing from fellow makeup artists both nationwide and from far flung regions around the world, this crazy trend where so called makeup artists, or beginner artists, are offering their services for weddings at ridiculously low prices. Sometimes even on Groupon.


At first glance this may seem like a banging deal.
But maybe you should look at the total picture, and see just what you might be getting yourself into.



In the markets that I have researched, including my own, pricing for makeup artists for weddings tends to run into 3 tiers.

1)The most expensive, which is typically comprised of a handful of artists with enormous experience and incredible skills. If they are in your price point, grab one before they get fully booked. And they will get fully booked.

2)Next there's the main tier of makeup artists. Their pricing will be very similar, normally within
$5 - $15 of one another. These artists tend to be very good at what they do. In general they have plenty of wedding experience, are able to airbrush, and are going to do a great job.

3) Then there is the bottom tier. These artists are super cheap. In most instances in life you get what you pay for, and there is a reason why these artists charge well below the median.

So lets have a look at what goes into pricing for wedding makeup.

* Training.
I concede that some of the greatest artists in the world have had no formal training.

Bill Gates left school early. But most people who leave school early don't turn into Bill Gates.
Although you may run into the next Pat McGrath or Billy B in your search for a wedding makeup artist, there's a strong chance that you won't.

If a quality artist hasn't been to a makeup school, they probably are still always pursuing higher knowledge, and are on a quest for greater skills. Some of the most exceptional artists that I know, from all  around the world, constantly seek more training and attend workshops and day classes as often as they can.
In a constantly evolving business it is really important that an artist is keeping up with training to remain both relevant and on point with current technologies and trends.
An artist who is paying for more training is going to cost a bit more. And they will be worth it.

* Professional Products
When an artist opens their kit you should see mostly professional, or at least high quality products in there.
Professional products are different from most commercial retail products in that they are more highly pigmented, so colors stay truer and more even, they are more refined, built to withstand more, and they are going to last longer on your skin.

Think of it this way: professional makeup is designed to make movie stars look flawless when shot in the most unforgiving HD and shown on a screen that's 30 feet tall. That's the kind of clarity and perfection you want for your wedding day makeup. And you won't get that from products purchased at a drugstore or from a distributor.
I personally like to airbrush my brides so that their skin looks flawless but not overly made up, and also because the airbrush product I use lasts a good 14 hours.
Building a kit with quality products costs money, and that will be reflected in the artist's pricing.
A kit that is full of cheapie products or products that are not intended to be used in the professional arena is not likely to produce a makeup that will last. And most wedding makeup needs to last at least 12 hours.

* Experience.
How many weddings has your makeup artist done? What other makeup experience do they have?
Anyone with an instagram account or access to youtube can apply foundation or put on lips, but when it comes to a wedding, experience is important.
For example: does your artist know how to interpret the light? You maybe getting ready in a softly lit hotel room, but your pictures are happening in bold, afternoon light. Someone who knows what they are doing will factor that in when choosing intensity and color of makeup, length of lashes and how much gloss or sheen will work on your lips.
Even more importantly someone with experience will know how to handle all kinds of calamities that may arise. And with weddings, things do happen. From unexpected tears, to people running late, to allergies, to stressed out skin, to giant day-of-the-wedding pimples popping up, to an unexpectedly hot/cold/windy/rainy/humid/dry/sunny/cloudy you name it day, and plenty more.
Sometimes the most mellow, sweet natured girl will turn into a demon on her wedding day (luckily not often though). An experienced artist will be able to see whats really going on and roll with it, rather than getting frazzled or moody. An experienced artist will not only arrive with a makeup kit full of products that are ready to fix any problem, but he or she will be able to diffuse situations before they arise, stay calm and friendly, and keep everything moving along.

image by Stuart Thurlkill for Eyes 2 See Photography
makeup by Corinna Cooke

I've been hearing horror stories from girls in bridal parties, about hideous makeup in prior weddings that they've had to wash off and redo themselves, unclean brushes and products being used, colors mismatched, looking like ghosts or raccoons in wedding pictures - you name it. They tell me over and over that they wish they or the bride from that wedding had had the foresight to book someone better.
And funnily enough, I have never heard anyone say that they are so eternally happy that they booked a $35 makeup artist for their wedding, or that they looked and felt their most beautiful in their smoking deal, super cheapie makeup job.
It tends to be the exact opposite.


When choosing your makeup artist for your wedding day, do some research.
Find out what experience the artist has.
Ask to see some of their prior work.
Schedule a trial well ahead of time, so that you still have time and options if you don't like their work, or don't mesh with them.
When you have your trial keep an eye out for cleanliness. Brushes, tools, makeup and makeup cases should be clean. Both for hygiene and also as indication of the artist's professionalism.

A final thought from a fellow makeup artist:

Don't let a $45 makeup job ruin $4000 of photography....

How To Cool A Heat Rash

Its wedding season again!

image by Sarah Hagerty

Recently I worked on a wedding where one of the (out of town) bridesmaids came down with a seething dose of heat rash.
Of course it had to be across her throat, chest and upper arms, and of course  the bridesmaids were wearing strapless dresses, leaving her nowhere to hide the telltale red blotches.
 

image by Holly Schumacher for Phoenix Bride and Groom Magazine

That got me thinking that throughout the summer girls everywhere will be getting married/being in bridal parties, and should this happen to them, they may need a quick fix.

Now in this case our bridesmaid had already been through hair and makeup, so the first course of action - a cold shower- wasn't an option, so we soaked towels in icy cold water, wrung them out so that they weren't dripping wet, and laid them over the areas covered in rash.
(Obviously she didn't have her bridesmaid dress on at the time)
If cold showers/cold compresses don't have a medicinal benefit, they at least cool down some of the firey redness, and reduce some of the blotchiness.
If you do shower, be super careful when towel drying. Rubbing the skin can just agitate it.

Next up, a staple in my makeup kit is Hylunia Colloidal Silver Spray. I use this on any and all skin irritations, and it miraculously seems to heal all. 
I've used it on models who have had the worst wax burns you have ever seen, sun burn, wind burn, everything you can imagine.
The stuff is magic.

there I am working away on a Phoenix Bride and Groom Magazine shoot

Normally I will do 3 or 4 applications of colloidal silver spray, allowing it to air dry in between. 

If there is no Colloidal Silver spray on hand I reach for hydrocortisone cream. 

The last part of the equation, which may have verity, or may just be a placebo, is to drink icy cold water or sweet tea. Something about cooling you down from the inside and the outside at the same time seems to help enormously. I'm convinced that soda just makes anything worse, so avoid the colas and other soft drinks.

Phoenix Bride and Groom magazine

One last note on summer weddings: if you are getting married on a warm day, or if you are in a mid-summer wedding, pack a small bottle of either baby powder or Gold Bond powder. 
Thighs chafing together under those dresses can be misery. I can't even tell you how many travel sized bottles of baby powder/Gold Bond have exited my kit to stay with the bridal party over the years!

To see more from the bridal shoots in this blogpost, and to find out more wedding related info, check out the Phoenix Bride and Groom blog