How To Choose The Right Wedding Makeup Artist

A big decision the bride-to-be faces when organising her wedding is whether to hire a professional makeup artist for the day.

This week’s blog post comes as a result of a recent enquiry I received from a lovely prospective bride who felt apprehensive because she’d never used a professional makeup artist before, let alone had her makeup done by someone she didn’t know. So I decided not to launch into the pros and cons (because as a makeup artist I’ll fully admit that I’m biased!) and thought it would be useful to share my top three tips on things soon-to-be brides should bear in mind when choosing a wedding makeup artist...

1) Bridal makeup specialist

First up it’s worth establishing whether the person you are considering specialises in wedding makeup and is passionate about it. The makeup industry, particularly in the fashion and music worlds, is fiercely competitive and as a result bridal makeup can be viewed as a bit of ‘cash cow’ by some makeup artists; compulsory income to fund the free of charge fashion and editorial work that they truly adore.

Always check that the makeup artist you’re contemplating has examples of their wedding work on their websites and social media channels, as well as testimonials from bridal clients. If these are absent or don’t seem prominent on their site, it’s probably worth thinking carefully before deciding to proceed with an enquiry.

2) Have a chat

Before having a trial, arrange a phone conversation or face-to-face meet up and chat through your ideas and the look you would like to achieve on your big day. As well as hearing about their experience and capability, these sessions can be helpful for making sure that the makeup artist is somebody that you feel relaxed and at ease with. This person will be with you for at least a few hours on one of the most significant days of your life, so even if their work and knowledge is impressive, if you don’t find talking to them comfortable and easy-going, they’re perhaps not the right person for you.

3) A long lasting look

The fundamental aspects of great wedding makeup is longevity, so try and arrange your trial for the morning so you can see how the look holds up throughout the day (effective bridal makeup will last all day at least – previous brides have told me that they still loved the look the following morning as well!).

One of the secrets to a long lasting makeup look is the application and blending, all of which takes time. A good test can be to ask the makeup artist you are thinking of hiring how long the look will take to do on the day. If they say less than an hour, make sure you are happy with the longevity of the makeup before booking them for the job on your big day.

A morning trial will also allow you see how the makeup looks and responds in different conditions and lighting. If the makeup starts to deteriorate after a few hours, or doesn’t translate well from natural to artificial light, it’s a good time to think carefully as to whether you’ve found the right makeup artist and the best look for you.

And finally, as a bonus tip, I know it can be tempting to try to save costs by giving the trial a miss, but I really urge you not to do this as it can be an unwanted source of stress on your wedding day. Here’s a useful article on how to make the most of your trial >>>

I hope these tips help you feel more confident about choosing a wedding makeup artist, I’d love to hear what you think in the comments below.