Bridal Wedding Special Event Prep & Skincare Tips

I wanted to share some very helpful skincare tips and hair prep from my wedding hair and makeup artist Jinjutha as well as some personal best practices for the brides -to-be out there or if you’re preparing for a special event. Hope this helps in your wedding journey or even day to day skincare routine.

A week before your wedding or event:

·      Stop using any chemical exfoliating products such as retinol, salicylic acid, or any facial scrubs to minimize redness, sensitivity, or peeling that may be present. I recommend you use a hydrating facial mask instead.

·      If you need to get a wax, do it now! Don't get waxed sooner than two days before your wedding day. The skin may be very fresh and smooth, with the possibility of redness or flakiness as well. Makeup also has a hard time sticking to freshly waxed skin, so 3 days to a week out is perfect!

·      Wear sunscreen! Make sure you're wearing sunscreen every day within the week of your wedding to make sure you don't accidentally get a sunburn for any reason right before your big day. This is especially important for your shoulders, back, and décolletage.

·      Don't use any new products that you aren't used to, as it can confuse your skin and potentially cause breakouts. If you can, wear little to no makeup the week before your wedding to give your skin some time to calm down and clear out, ensuring the best skin possible for your wedding day.

·      If you get lash extensions, get a fill 2 or 3 days before your wedding, so they will still be full but your eyes will have time to calm down if you are more prone to sensitivity around the eyes.

·      Drink a lot of water. 

The night before your wedding day or event,

·      Wash your hair with NO conditioner and please use shampoo that DOES NOT CONTAIN ANY OIL. 

·      Please don’t use any oil treatment for your hair. 

·      Exfoliate your face and apply hydrating facial mask

·      Drink a lot of water

·      Relax and try to sleep as much as you can.

On the day of your wedding or event,

·      You and your party should have freshly washed skin, with no remnants of yesterday's makeup on the skin. 

·      Wear a button up shirt or a robe, so you don't mess up your makeup when changing into your dress.

·      Have your teeth brushed and contacts in prior to sitting in the makeup chair, because doing so after your makeup is done will run the risk of smudging.

·      Take your allergy medication before getting your makeup done, especially if you are prone to eye watering. Getting your eye makeup done can tickle, causing the eyes to water, and being outside in the sun and allergens can cause watering, so the more prepared you are, the better!

Other ways that I prepared my skin for my wedding day include:

·      IPL & Fractional Laser Treatments with Dr. Anzaldo on my face to even out the surface of my skin, decrease red and brown spots and increase collagen production to fill in fine lines and acne scarring.

·      Prep the skin for optimal makeup application with the self dermaplaning tool, Dermaflash. This service used to be reserved for medical spa professionals, but is now available with this at home, easy to use, portable tool. Dermaflash exfoliates away the top layer of dead skin and peach fuzz with a safe, razor-like edge. It has been featured in brides.com which you can read here.

·      Pesky zits of pimples? I use COSRX Clear Fit Master Patches which are essentially stickers for your blemishes. The round stickers come in various sizes and are placed on top of the zit or pimple to suck out all the yucky stuff.

·      Incorporate aromatherapy into your life during the days leading up to your wedding. It’s amazing the power that scent through candles or essential oils can have over you to calm and soothe nerves. I unfortunately did not realize to do this during the wedding countdown and would have appreciated some scent therapy.

·      Minimize the amount of alcoholic beverages - when I get nervous and anxious, especially when I’m anticipating something huge (like my wedding day), I tend to not eat much. That combined with drinking tends to lead me to a quick hangover. I made this mistake of having more drinks during my rehearsal lunch which ended up giving me a massive headache and knocking me out for hours after the lunch.