Congratulations! You're engaged! It's time to start planning one of the most important and exciting days of your life! You'll be looking for a venue, a florist, DJ, and more! Now, what about a makeup artist? You might be thinking, well, of course I'll need to hire one because that's what everyone does for their wedding. You want to have the full experience of having a glam squad come do your makeup and hair because this day is unlike any other. However, have you really thought about your feelings towards makeup? Are you someone who never wears it? Have you had your makeup done professionally before and you thought you didn't look like yourself? Maybe you actually don't like foundation on your skin at all? Maybe you prefer how you do your makeup on yourself? What if, you actually don't need to hire a makeup artist at all?
Now you might read that and say, "Wait. Why would a makeup artist tell someone not to hire them, or any artist?" Well, I have many reasons why I may think that for certain people and I'd like to dive into why I feel this way. Below I'll discuss why and try to help future brides from feeling like they need to hire someone because it's just "what you're suppose to do", when really, you don't have to. Some of what I'm going to talk about might be controversial, but I think it needs to be said.
You Don't Like Makeup
I think it's safe to say that if you are getting married, you're an adult and you've reached an age where you know what you like, and you know what you don't like. Maybe you're unsure of a few things but for the most part, your beliefs on most things are made. One of those things might be that you actually don't like wearing makeup. Perhaps mascara is a daily application for you or a dusting of all over bronzer is too, but that's as good as it gets. Even on dates, or special occasions, you don't care to worry about makeup. You're happy being natural, and that's great! I'm assuming you may have bought a concealer or two, or even a viral eyeshadow palette that you saw on social media, some lipstick, or bought some blush. However, when you applied it, it either wasn't the right shade, it looked "cakey", it made you looked washed out, or it didn't look good because you didn't know how to apply it. So, you wrote off not liking makeup at all. Which has led you to now and you just enjoy your natural self and you've become use to seeing your face in the mirror as such. If this is you, hiring a professional makeup artist to do bridal makeup on you is going to be a shock. Plain and simple. As a professional makeup artists for over 10 years, I have lost count on how many times clients have come to me to do their makeup and when I've completed the look and shown them the mirror, they are surprised that I actually put makeup on them. Even after thorough communication during a trial and understanding the client doesn't wear makeup and me expressing to them that I'll be applying what I professionally feel needs to be done to achieve a look, they are still caught of guard that there is a full face of makeup on them. In my professional opinion, they don't want a makeup artist because they will continue to go from one makeup artist to the next always leaving disappointed. Why? Because they don't like makeup. Some clients may argue that they do want their makeup done for their wedding and they do like makeup, they just don't know how to apply it. But, a makeup artist does, and that is why you hired them so if you are consistently never happy with the outcome, it's not the makeup artist's work, you just don't like makeup, and that's okay. There is nothing wrong with that and there is nothing wrong with you.
I believe social media and society has caused a huge uproar in what the quintessential bride should look like and if you don't fit the mold and do what everyone else does then you're doing it wrong. As if you're A.) not a true bride, B.) you've blown your bridal experience by not hiring a makeup artist, and C.) you're not going to look like the brides on Instagram. These are lies society will tell you to make you feel bad, guilty, or that you've missed out, and it's all false. Even some makeup artists could disagree me on this and say, you can still do natural makeup on someone for their wedding day who doesn't wear makeup, and I would still say no. I am a true professional on mastering the natural, aka "no makeup" makeup, look on brides, but it's for those who like makeup. They don't mind wearing it, even if it's a little more than they are use to, they enjoy it. I'm discussing people who never wear it because they truly don't like it, whether they realize it or not. Now, a bride can potentially work with an artist who will put very minimal on them, but they could still be disappointed in the fact that they've paid a professional a large amount of money for something very minimal and feel upset that perhaps, they could have just done it themselves. A client might feel like they can negotiate on price and an artist should not, and I put my foot down on this, lower their prices because a client wants very minimal makeup. Put yourself in the makeup artist's shoes. If your boss said to you, "I want you to do your job but only the bare minimum so I can pay you less", you wouldn't be too happy with them, would you? If you hired a professional, then expect a professional service.
Now, if you are a bride who is considering not hiring a makeup artist but wants to look more "bridal", don't worry because there are other options for you. You can go to places like Sephora, Ulta, and beauty counters at Macy's and Dillard's and speak with an associate who can help guide you on products you feel comfortable with. They can color match you and help offer suggestions on products you might like for your wedding. Be clear about your comfort level with makeup. Do not let an employee pressure you into buying more things than you actually want for your wedding. It's okay to tell them you are inexperienced. Also, have inspiration photos of makeup looks you want and they can guide you on products to purchase. Once you have what you need, you can practice at home with how you want on your makeup to look on your wedding. There are countless YouTube videos online that can teach you how to do a minimal makeup look. Have fun with it! Remember, it's just makeup and you can take it off and try again. Just like everything in life, if you are new at it, don't expect to be an expert right away. Practice, practice, practice. Or there are many makeup artists out there who would be happy to give a makeup lesson one-on-one with you and teach you how to apply it yourself. Of course a lesson will cost you money, but in the long run you would not only be learning from a professional for your wedding, you'll also gain confidence and feel more comfortable in doing your own makeup any time you have date with your husband or any occasion you want to be done up a little more for.
You Preferer How You Do Your Own Makeup
Now perhaps you are a bride who does enjoy wearing makeup and you've either had your makeup done once before or never by a professional, but regardless you're use to how you apply your own makeup. Whether you do it daily, only on weekends, or whenever you feel like it, you are happy with how it looks when you do it. Great! You don't have to be professional to do your own makeup. Just as you don't have to be a professional to play a sport, sing or cook. If you like doing it, do it! Just as I discussed before, you might feel the need to hire a makeup artist for your wedding day because you think you're suppose to or you want that pampered experience on your wedding day. And that's wonderful if you want to because it's not everyday you get married or have this level of service done. You get to feel like a celebrity! If you do decide to book a makeup artist, review their portfolio. See what their work is like. Don't just hire anyone, go on Pintrest to find makeup you like, all to discover that particular artist doesn't measure up to your inspiration photos. Do you like THEIR work? Does it meet your ideal bridal vision? Do they have before and after photos to see the quality of their skill/talent? Now, while you're looking at their work, especially their before and after, can you see what it takes to build a bridal makeup look? Look at how they do natural makeup, natural glam, and full glam. Is it too much makeup, not enough, or just right? Let's make this easy on you and the artist when booking so that there are no surprises at the trial. Because what you see is what you get! What you pay for is what you get! Ask for examples of their work if you want to go a step further. If you want a natural bridal look and aren't sure of what that is when you look at their portfolio, ask them for examples to be sent to you. You'll either like it or you won't and you can base your decision on booking them from there.
Now, let's say you've made your decision and you've booked your artist. Wonderful! Time to schedule a trial, and YES you need to book a trial. Even if you trust the artist based off their portfolio or if you hired them because the artist did a bride's makeup that you know and it looked great. You still need a trial. With that settled, let's backtrack on the idea that you like the way you do your makeup. You feel use to it and comfortable with it. Whether you think you do a great job at it or it "could be better" in your opinion, you're use to it. Now, here comes the makeup artists two cents. You too, like the bride who never wears makeup, will be shocked once the artist applies your makeup and is ready to show you the final look. Why? Because you prefer how you do your own makeup. But, you should expect it to be different because this is someone else, other than you doing your makeup, and this is a professional. It will be different and you cannot control or dictate how they apply makeup. They know bridal makeup. The way they do eyeliner will be different from you, the way they do eyebrows will be different from you. Even if you discuss and show pictures of how you do something, they can emulate it to an extent, but it could be different. Now, there may be things you really love that the makeup artist does, but there might be a few tweaks that may need to be done for your wedding day. If you are willing to trust the artist that they can achieve the changes to be made on your wedding day, then trust them and keep the booking. Regardless of how you feel at the trial during the initial look, I do advise that you keep the makeup on the rest of the day and give it a good feel to see how you truly like it. But, if you are not liking it based on the fact that it is different from what you are use to, it'll be the same thing if you go from one artist to the next and the next. If you are particular, you might just want to do it yourself and practice perfecting the bridal look you want.
Now, what if you really really want to have the bridal makeup experience on your wedding day but are on the fence about a few things on how you like your makeup done? Then communicate with your makeup artist that you want them to do your makeup, but let them know that you prefer to do certain things on yourself. For example, you might decide to do your own eyeliner or your own eyebrows, or even line your lips. However, like I mentioned before, do not expect the price to decrease just because you decide to do one or two things on your own. Your bridal makeup experience all depends on one important thing...communication. Makeup artists are many things but one thing they are not are is a mind reader. So you must speak up and communicate honestly, but kindly. Please be kind when giving your changes. Telling an artist you hate something is just plain rude. Give clear details on why you want to change something. Even if you aren't sure what you want to change exactly, express that and the makeup artist will help guide you to try and get a better understanding on what type of look you are going for and how much makeup you want or don't want. The more communication there is between the two of you, the better.
Is It Worth Everyone's Time
One thing to keep in mind when hiring a makeup artist is that a true professional really cares about each and every one of their clients. They do not do this work as a hobby. This is their career and they value their work, their talent, and their time. When they book you as a client, your event date is on the calendar and they are making plans, arrangements, even scheduling a second artist if your bridal party is big enough. Thus, another artist's time, work, and talent is on the clock. Multiple emails are being sent for months, a trial date and time is being made, timelines are in the works, all the while the artist is turning down other brides on your wedding date because they booked your date. So, if you are someone who really doesn't like makeup or who would really prefer to do it on their own, save yourself some time and money, as well as the artist and rethink hiring a professional. Once you decide to cancel services, that artist is now out a wedding, potentially a second artist as well, where they are losing money that they depend on, when they could have booked someone else who truly wanted makeup services.
Majority of artists will have a requirement that to save your wedding date they will need a signed contract and a non-refundable deposit/retainer paid. This policy and business practice is set in place for a reason. It's good for artists to do so, so that they are not given the "runaround" and left ghosted by a client's commitment. It's solidifies that you both have committed to working together. If you are not willing to sign a contract or pay a deposit/retainer before you have a trial, it may depend on each individual artist if they are willing to set up a trial first before you make your decision. If you do get a trial before committing, please be aware that the makeup artist will want to schedule a trial sooner than later and will expect an answer within 24 hours after the trial to know if you would like to book or not. Leaving a date open with other potential clients waiting is something any artist would want to take care of sooner than later. So, keep in mind that keeping your schedule open and flexible is courteous to the artist. Not to mention how much time and detail a makeup artist can give when conducting a trial. For me personally, I like to send questionnaires to brides to understand their feelings, wants and need about makeup. I allot an hour and a half per trial to really spend a lot of time understand and talking through each clients makeup and getting to know them. I go over my recommendations on skin prep so your skin is at it's best for the day of. I go over details about your timeline in the morning to give you the best experience on your special day. I like a stress free morning for my brides so I really work with them on every level I can to provide them with a positive experience. I put in the time with every client I have because I care and value my job and them.
With all this being said, your time and money is also important. Weddings are expensive and there are a lot of vendors throwing their hats into your ring to work with you. Thus, you are spending a lot of time vetting and sifting through the many, many, vendors in the wedding industry. You too are emailing back and forth with multiple people, weighing your options, putting deposits down, which we all know means that once those are made refunds are typically not an option. You start to learn what really matters to you in the planning process and what doesn't. I'm sure you have an already busy schedule with work, or travel, home life, or children if you have any. So making the time to plan, pay for trials, and more is worth sitting down and thinking about.
I am not here to deter or talk anyone away from having an experience like getting their makeup professionally done on their wedding, but I am trying to help people to be true to themselves and not think about what everyone else thinks they should do. Or what social media says you should do. I don't care about Sophia Richie's wedding and neither should you. If you don't know who I'm talking about, that's probably a good thing. It's okay to go against the grain. It's okay to not have a bridal party. It's okay to not wear a white dress. And it's definitely okay to not do the bouquet and guarder toss. Your single friends will thank you. You are about to step into a new chapter in your life by becoming a wife to someone who loves you as you. That really is all that matters when you break down the craziness of weddings, right? So, before you decide to book that makeup artist, ask yourself, "should I really hire a makeup artist"?
Megan Elizabeth
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