If you’re comfortable with makeup, you can absolutely do your own for your wedding day. Look to top red-carpet celebrity looks for inspiration, practice your technique, and take lots of digital snaps to assess results.
1) Get a facial a week before the ceremony. Your makeup will glide on easier.
2) A light foundation primer such as Shu Uemura UV Under Base Mousse ($45, shown) on face and eyelids brightens and helps makeup stay fresh for hours.
3) CoverGirl pro Greg Wencel recommends CoverGirl & Olay Simply Ageless Corrector ($14.99) to counteract really dark circles or pronounced redness on the skin. “Starting with corrector means you’ll use less concealer and foundation and still get the coverage you want,” he says.
4) “Cameras now show so much detail that what you see is what you get,” says Andrea Claire, who has worked with Coco Rocha and Alanis Morissette. For a natural finish on all skin types, Claire likes FACEatelier Ultra Foundation liquid ($45, shown).
5) Keep eye makeup simple with a wash of shadow in a fresh shade and waterproof liner along the base of upper lashes. Smudge a deeper shadow colour over the liner, and dab a shimmery highlight at the inner corners of eyes. Vasanti’s The Hamptons eye palette ($40, shown) offers lots of options. Remember to fill sparse brows in with a matches-your-hair shade of Benefit Instant Brow Pencil ($25, shown).
6) Curl lashes and coat with black mascara in either a waterproof or tube-technology formula that stands up to happy tears.
7) Wencel suggests two shades of blush to create shape and a pretty glow. “Sculpt temples, hairline and contour of cheeks with a warm blush, then sweep a more vibrant shade on the top outer curve of the apples of cheeks,” he says.
8) Finish with gloss in a luscious rosy or berry hue. Try Bourjois Paris Effet 3D Max gloss in Framboise ($20, shown).
