The most important day to really get ready is the day of your wedding! Here is how I prepped and got ready on my special day. It is a lot of stress to know what to do and how to do it.  I went through pictures as I prepped for and planned my wedding, and I kept wishing I could ask these people what they did for their wedding….what foundation they used? if they spray tanned and waxed before? Where did they find their dream dress? I thought I would document how I got ready so that maybe this can help answer any important bridal beauty questions. I broke this down into hair, skin, makeup, and wardrobe/details. If you have further questions on the things that I did or didn’t cover or have any input please comment below!

Hair:

Yes I used extensions. I use my Bellami extensions in Ash Blonde 22 inches (though I cut a couple of inches off…since I’m so little the extra length was a little too much for me.)

I used some overlapping twisting and pinning techniques for my half up do. I used lots of bobbies! I wanted to make sure my hair would stay put as much as possible. Though my veil kept getting stepped on and yanking on my hair so I did have some little touch ups to do at the reception center. Not too bad though.  This style worked for me because I wanted my look to stay out of my face but still have some soft flow to it.

Skin:

1. TAN: I got a spray tan from my girl @natalietheestitition. (she was actually even one of my amazing bridesmaids!) I was skeptical on getting a spray tan for my wedding. Especially since it was winter, I didn’t want to look too drastic next to the snow, but I knew I was pasty white and going to Puerto Rico for our honeymoon… So we went for it. She did a FABULOUS job at making sure it was light enough to give my skin a healthy glow instead of a drastic tan. Goal accomplishted! Haha I didnt look like an oompa loompa!…(Yikes! Those guys freak me out). I made sure to get my tan done first thing on the morning before the wedding. I did this so that I could shower and wash the bronzer off that night (it needs at least 8 hours to soak in your skin)…So that evening I showered off the bronzer, washed my hair, dried it, and prepped last minute details for the big day.

2. WAX: Natalie also took care of all of my waxing. My brows were crazy cavemen brows before she took care of shaping and tinting them. Miracle worker! You’ll definitely want to have everything cleaned up. Foundation can accentuate those little brow or other facial hairs out of place. You dont want fuzz to show up in your closeups. (Also get your brows done before the tan, because the spray tan might come off with the wax strips. I scheduled each beauty appointment very precisely to avoid tragedies like that.)

3. LASHES: I got my lashes done at Amazing Lash Studio in AF. I knew I wanted some volume and wanted to have one less thing to worry about. I have super straight lashes, so these help me have a nice curl to my lashes. (like the brows, get this done prior to a spray tan, the tape they put under your eyes can potentially take off your  tan… you do not want white bags under your eyes… it could make your makeup routine a little trickier.)

4. SKINCARE: I went to Acaydia in Provo to get a microdermabrasion a few weeks before my wedding. I wish I was able to go in one more time before the wedding because it was AH-mazing! Make sure to drink lots of water and keep up on cleansing/hydrating your face. I wish I did better… because I was kind of a slacker in that area. But my favorite facial moisturizer I used was Perricone MD. It might kind of tingle when you first use it… but it is great to add more of a glow to your skin.

**Just DO NOT try any new products or do facial masks, or facials within 1 or 2 weeks before the wedding. You don’t want a weird reaction to happen right before the big “I DO”.

Makeup:

• PRIMER: Smashbox- Photo Finish Primer (clear one)

• EYE PRIMER: Urban Decay- Eyeshadow Primer Potion

• FOUNDATION: MAC Studio Fix Fluid.  Even though my skin was a little bit darker from my spray tan, I still used my own shade of foundation ( NW13 ) and it blended just right! just make sure to feather down your neck/chest as well for even blending.

• CONCEALER: Covergirl- Ready Set Gorgeous Concealer. This was some left over from my everyday makeup. Its not the highest quality and doesnt offer high coverage. But I like it for the price and it gets the job done for me!

• EYESHADOW: CAO Cosmetics- Smokey Eye Palette

• EYELINER: Kat Von D- Tattoo Liner in the color Trooper. (favorite liner so far!) … & I set it with a thin tip brush & black eyeshadow.

• MASCARA: I got my lashes done… and you’re not really supposed to put mascara on over them. But I wanted a little mascara to richen it on my wedding day. So I used Maybelline Great Lash Mascara in waterproof very black. (You can get this at about any drug store or grocery store. I think mine is just from Walmart! And its inexpensive!) I knew it would be a day for lots of happy tears so it had to be waterproof! And once again you don’t need mascara if you are wearing lashes.

• BLUSH: Laura Geller- Baked Blush-n-Brighten in the color Cherry Truffle ( Fruit Punch looks similar if they are out of the cherry)

• CONTOUR/ HIGHLIGHT: NYX Cosmetics Highlight and Contour Pro Palette. I used this for my powder contour and Highlight after applying the concealer and foundation (obviously since this is a powder.) I like this because it isn’t a contour that goes overboard.

• BRONZER: Too Faced Soleil Matte Bronzer (in milk chocolate because of my light complexion.)

• BROW:  Covergirl Professional Brow & Eyemakers (in soft brown). I used a little of this for shaping then applied some brown eyeshadow to set and give that feathered brow look. (Shadows help make it softer and more natural.) I would recommend this just for an inexpensive brow pencil, but not necessarily for an eyeliner pencil….

• LIPS:

1. Lip primer: MAC Prep + Prime
2. Lip liner: MAC Lip Pencil (in the color Soar)
3.  Lipstick: MAC Lipstick ( in the shade Fast Play )

• SETTING POWDER: Makeup Forever- Ultra HD Microfinishing Loose Powder. You will want to use this to set your makeup… especially those lips! You don’t want your kisses to stick to your groom!

• SETTING SPRAY: Urban Decay- All Nighter Spray -Best makeup setter I’ve ever used!

***Remember to do your makeup a little more drastic than you normally do. You will want some liner/ mascara, some type of lip color, and some blush/bronzer. In pictures you want to accentuate your eyes and lips… Plus you want to avoid looking washed out… Yes, the camera can definitely do that to you. So make sure to go a little bit more than your daily routine.

WARDROBE/DETAILS:

Dress and Veil: Perfect Dress Bridal

Necklace: This was my something borrowed from my mom

Accessories: Charming Charlies

Shoes: Jessica Simpson from DSW

Nails: Paradise nails in Orem (the color was “fairy dream”)

Bouquet: Savannah Bowers (instagram @Mayflowerco)

I hope you were able to find some wedding inspiration or some tips that can even help your everyday styling. Thanks for reading! Comment below and lets chat!

~XOXO

                        Marissa