Preparing for your Pre Wedding Design

This is Exciting!! Your very first glimpse of how you will look on your remarkable Wedding Day!

This guide, created by Louisa is to help you prepare for your Pre Wedding Design to ensure you get the best from your appointment.

This appointment will firstly allow us to meet each other (if we haven't worked together previously) as everything up to here has been via emails/virtually - so that's a great first start!

Getting to know each other a little, which will also bring a familiar face to the morning of your wedding, as I'm usually the first supplier you'll see on your wedding morning!

Create a Vision Board

Picking out images that you like, saving them and creating a board of your favourite looks, will give me a great idea of your taste in Hair and Makeup - whether its a soft natural style, with defined eye makeup and glowing skin, or a striking eye with lots of lashes and matte skin, together we can chat through your likes and dislikes to create a look bespoke to you!

SKINCARE!!

In capitals to show this is an important one.

Skin is the canvas for all Makeup; if the skin is dry or uneven, the makeup will look just like this too because it will sit on top of the surface it is applied to.

At your appointment, we will discuss your current skincare routine and products, and if required, I can recommend treatments and products to introduce to your routine in the lead up to your wedding.

Hydration is key for all skin types - including oily skin - but that means drinking water too!

~ Commit to drinking a minimum of 2-3L of water every day - tip: buy a bottle with a measurement so you know how much you are drinking. Drink warm herbal teas or hot water with lemon in the cooler months to try and keep the intake up.

~ Ensure you have a good hydrating cleanser in your routine, double cleanse every evening and once every morning, ensuring all makeup, oils and the environment is off your skin - ready to apply your skincare.

~ Exfoliation - without removing dead skin cells from your skin, the build up will not only make your skin appear dull, but your skincare will not be getting through to the fresh skin to absorb, resulting in wasted skincare. Buy a non-abrasive exfoliant and do this once per week - I recommend:

Dior 1-Minute Mask

Dermalogica Microfoliant

Kate Somerville Exfolikate

~ Eye Cream - The under eye area is 5 x thinner than the skin on the rest of your face; it is delicate and so requires a product designed for that area. Eye creams can help reduce puffiness, dark circles and lines. There are many products available on the market for each skin concern - I like the Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado and Charlotte Tilbury Magic Eye Cream.

~ Face Masks - these are great for an evening pamper and to infuse your skin with added skincare, particularly after a long week - or for those days when you've not managed to stick to your skincare routine (none of us are perfect).

For Your Design Appointment

OK, so for your Appointment, the planning and prep needs to be similar to that of your Wedding Day. There is so much to think about when planning a wedding, that some things don't pop into mind, so I have detailed some of the things to plan for in preparation for your trial:

Eyelashes & Brows

Are you thinking of having a Lash Lift or Lash Extensions for your wedding? If so, have this treatment just before your trial so we can design your makeup with your lashes already applied, as if you decide on these treatments after your trial, it could alter the look we created at your trial.

If you have your eyelashes treated regularly, book your infill appointment before your trial.

Same with Brows and Facial Waxing - have your maintenance appointments scheduled for just before your trial.

Tan

If you are thinking of having a tanning treatment before your wedding day, again, have this done before your trial also so that we can match colours accordingly.

Wear White

A white top will help you see your makeup against something similar to your wedding gown - try and wear a top that is like your gown neckline - so if your dress is strapless or off the shoulder, wear a top that allows us to mimic this at your trial to give you a good vision.

Photo's of You

Bring photo's of yourself and how you would usually look when wearing makeup, I know for many it's been some time since we have had an opportunity to get dressed up, but if you have any pics, they are great to bring along so I can see how you would usually do your own makeup (you can also send these to me in advance)

Makeup Free

Please arrive fresh faced, makeup free. Just your usual skincare routine to be applied - I will refresh your skin in your appointment.

Get Excited!

All this planning is exciting and sometimes stressful - but this appointment is definitely an exciting one!!! I would recommend booking a date night dinner if you can for that evening, or maybe meet the girls after, so you can thoroughly enjoy your look - don't worry, it won't spoil the surprise of how you will look on the day!

Timings

Please allow yourself time for your trial appointment. 2-3 hours for Makeup only and 4-5 for Hair + Makeup. We will discuss things in detail including your dress, flowers, venue, theme, ceremony, songs, bridesmaids, I want you to picture the day just how you’re imagining.

Documenting

I will take pictures and document everything. I am more than happy to send these to you so you can look back to remind yourself of your look.

HAIR DESIGN

A few additional tips for your trial:

Washing your Hair

Please wash your hair the night before your Appointment, or if necessary, on the morning of your appointment. Your hair should be in its most natural condition so please arrive with your hair dry, and without any products applied once washed. Please avoid using any straighteners or heated stylers to pre-style the hair. If this worries you at all, please let me know and we can look at the time of your appointment to bring it forward if necessary.

Chosen Hair Styles

Most Brides have an idea of how they would like their Hair to be styled on their wedding day so we can focus on perfecting this, but if you are unsure, please narrow the style down to 2 different hair styles - this will help with decision making and will also keep your hair in condition as too much product and heat can prevent the desired outcome - please send these in advance for appointment planning.

Hair Accessories

If you have chosen any hair accessories for your wedding day, please bring these along with you. Earrings and Necklaces are also helpful to bring it all together should you wish to bring those along too.

Hair Extensions

Having images of Hair Styles creates a great vision, but often Brides/Models have Hair Extensions fitted to add volume to their own hair, which helps with a fuller look and great hold to their style. Consider wearing extensions if you don't already - don't worry, it's not a case of having them fitted like a weave, but a clip in extension that can be taken out after the wedding. Happy to discuss this with you beforehand, it’s likely you will be asked for your inspo pics and a pic of your natural hair so Louisa can recommend the best way to achieve your ideal style.

FAQ

Can my Mum or Bridesmaids have a Pre Wedding appointment too?

Design Appointments are for the Bride - much like when you try on bridal dresses - the focus and priority is always on you. This is so that Louisa can ensure your time together is captured correctly so that you leave feeling confident and, when you and Louisa meet again on the Wedding Day, your vision is brought back to life again - in the nicest possible way, the Bride is the main character and so remembering/recording all that was discussed remains a priority by the Artist , for the Bride, ensuring she doesn’t get overwhelmed with remembering too many details for others.

Because Louisa is so experienced with quickly identifying skin types, concerns and desired look on the spot, this is why appointments aren’t required for others. Appointments for Hair + Makeup are also quite lengthy and so there is only availability for one per day.

Louisa is aware that many Mums feel nervous about someone else doing their makeup for their Daughter’s wedding - they may not have ever had it don’t before and are worried about the makeup looking or feeling to heavy. If this is your Mum, then bring her to the appointment so she can see that Louisa is an adaptive makeup artist who understands how techniques must change across skin types and ages to create a look that Mum feels comfortable with. This is much about defining brows that we sadly lose over time, defining and opening eyes that become smaller over time, and colour correcting as the skin becomes thinner over time - keeping the skin looking healthy is the goal!

However, If there is someone within the Bridal Party that has particular Skin Concerns or Allergies, then please do discuss this with Louisa as this may require product testing with those members, but a full makeup look may not be necessary. This will also depend on diary availability since Louisa’s diary is prioritised for Brides.

Can I bring my Bridal Party to the Appointment?

One guest is welcome to accompany you; this should be someone of an opinion you trust, who can help if you need some reassurance about your bridal look, or someone just to hold your hand/get excited with!

What happens if I see a new trend I want to try after my Appointment?

This is the main reason we keep the Design Appointment closer to your Wedding Day, to prevent any confusion BUT... if there is something you really want to try - we will book another visit to try it! You want to feel at your best on your Wedding Day, and to feel excited during the build up - just try not to 'see' everything and question things too much as you can wind up confused or overwhelmed - clear focus - vision boards - all help!