Tips for the Bride: Hair & Make Up - Leave it to the Pros

Hair and Makeup are the finishing touches that completes the wedding day look for the bride and her bridesmaids. More often than not, more brides are now opting to do their own hair and makeup in order to save a few dollars off their wedding budget but my first tip is to leave this up to the pros.

When scouting for a hair & makeup artist, research is the key. Check with your wedding planner to see if they have any recommendations that you can start with. Wedding planners are gonna be your best resource for vendor recommendations so they're always a great starting point.

<photo courtesy of True Bliss Photography>

You always want to come prepare with ideas and pictures of examples of the look that you would like to achieve for your wedding day in order for you to maximize your time with your chosen stylist.

• Your personal salon - check with the person who styles/cuts your hair to see if they would be able to do your wedding day hair. Typically this stylist already knows your personal style especially if you've gone to them frequently for regular appointments so they would understand the look you're trying to obtain for your wedding day.
• Local bridal shows/expos - attending bridal shows is an awesome way to meet wedding vendors like hair and make up artists. usually they will have portfolios of their past work laid out in their tables/booths for you to see so you can and meet the artist first hand.
• Local mall salons/makeup counters - take a day with your one of your girls and visit the mall! Plan visits to several make up counters located in your favorite department stores (Nordstroms, Macys, Bloomingdales).
• Your friends and family - you might be one of those lucky brides that have a family or friend that is talented with hair & make up that would be able to do your wedding day look for you. The best thing about this is that they know you and what you like so they're not there to up sell you on any products that they offer.

<photo courtesy of Makeup by Karen Lee Facebook page>

What to Remember:
Once you've narrowed down the vendor(s) that you'd like try, make sure to schedule a hair and make up trial before the wedding to make sure that the results are what you are expecting. Remember to schedule these appointments ahead of your wedding day (months before if possible) so that you can have plenty of time to make any changes.

Vendor Recommendation:
When I started this blog, I mentioned that I would provide some local vendor recommendations for any local brides that are following the blog. I've had the opportunity to work with Karen Lee in many occasions and she has been my go-to hair and make up artist that I've recommended to several of my brides. She was by far the best hair & make up artist person that I have worked with in my experience. Karen really manages to make you feel and look beautiful. Her kindness, easy going personality, ability to put you at ease, make you feel comfortable, promptness, quick response time, reliability and efforts to please you and make sure to achieve what you want speaks volumes of her professionalism. She was always open to suggestions and explained to everyone everything she was using to achieve the look her client wanted. Her skills are just flawless all the way around. She was just so amazing with what she did and was a great person to have around. She was also very professional in answering all my questions. Being a professional in the wedding industry, I know how important it is to have a trusted vendor to handle your hair and make up. The hair & make up simply completes the look of the bride that then sets the tone of the day. If you want to see more of Karen's work, check out her blog and her Facebook page for more pictures.

Makeup by Karen Lee
http://makeupbykarenlee.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/MakeupByKarenLee/122483694440464
626-228-6296