Real Bride: Wedding hair and make up for Suzanne at The Orangery

Full name: Suzanne Bates-Glover (now Bushell!)
Wedding Date: 29/07/18
Venue: The Orangery
Photographer: Funky Pixel

My wedding style was….

Bright, bold and quirky. We steered away from the popular pastel wedding colours and went for what we love instead bright purple and teal. We added touches Lego (without making it too “Children’s Party”)

My wedding hair was….. beautiful!

Katie did such a wonderful job of making it very me and making sure it held all day.

My wedding make up was…. Stunning!

I’ve honestly never felt so good about the way I looked before or since. It had a “Hollywood glamour” feel to it and stayed out absolutely all day.

The thing I love most about my wedding day was….

The people. We had such a fun time with our family and friends and the dance floor was packed the entire night to the very end.

My venue was perfect because…..

It looked absolutely beautiful, it was exclusive for just our wedding and catered well for our day both inside and outside. The planners were amazing at keeping everything on track, keeping us calm and making last-minute alterations when things didn’t go to the original plan.

My favourite photo was….

Oooh hard to choose, but from these:

I chose Katie because …..

she had a great reputation, I had seen her work on Facebook and followed her for a while. I was so glad that I did because she did an amazing job with the hair and make up for all of us and it stayed out all day. On the day she arrived at the venue before we did, was set up and ready to go. She was professional, friendly and did a fantastic job. She even took some fab photos on her phone that are among some of my favourite of the day!

If I could give other brides one piece of advice it would be….

Don’t worry about things that are not in your control. Not everything went to plan on our day, it poured with rain all day in the middle of a heatwave and was the ONLY day the whole month that it rained all day. It meant that some things we had planned had to be scrapped; our outdoor ceremony, our white bouncy castle and our evening outdoor BBQ. But despite that we had a beautiful and emotional ceremony, everybody still had fun and everybody ate. We still had a fantastic day.

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DIY Lip Scrub

Choosing the right lipstick for your wedding day is one of the most important decisions when it comes to your wedding day make up. What’s just as important though is making sure that you have a good foundation for your make up to be applied to, and that includes your lips too.

Perfect Prep

One of the best ways to make sure your lips are wedding ready is by using a lip scrub. This will act as an exfoliator, removing any dead skin and making sure they are perfectly primed for any lip product to be applied.

Make your own

If you wanted to purchase something then check out Lush Cosmetics They do a beautiful smelling, flavoured lip scrub that I personally have in my own make up bag. If you wanted to try something different then this easy recipe below is a quick and cost-effective way to make your very own sugar lip scrub with natural ingredients that you have at home.

Honey Sugar Lip scrub

Mix one teaspoon of honey with two teaspoons of sugar in a small bowl
Massage the mixture into your lips and leave for 10 minutes or so

Weekly application

You can find a few variations to this recipe with a quick google so if you wanted to substitute any of the ingredients you’ll be able to find something that will suit you quite easily. Some add vanilla extract, others even add pigment using food coloring.

I’d recommend using something like this on a weekly basis in the run-up to your wedding day so your lips can get into the best possible condition. Keep your lips well moisturized too by using a lip balm, especially at night, and you’ll soon start to see ( and feel ) a noticeable improvement!

Hope this helps!

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Real Bride: Wedding hair and make up for Elouise at The Gardens, Yalding

The Gardens at Yalding is a great choice for couples wanting an outdoor space with the wow factor. Full of colour and nature, even with the possibility of a teepee, it’s easy to see why this venue is becoming a really popular choice with couples looking for a relaxed day that they can make their own. As well as being a truly stunning setting for your big day it’s also totally customisable to meet with your personal needs, allowing you to create the exact ‘vibe’ that you want for your wedding.

Back in September of 2018 I visited The Gardens to provide wedding make up and hair for Elouise. Now it’s no secret that I LOVE styling red hair so this romantic twisted updo was the perfect match for me! Elouise was so unique in her personal style and I loved being given the opportunity to create her very own unique wedding look for her. From the bold eye make up to the individual way in which she wore her hair accessories, I had no doubt that Elouise likes to do things a little differently so I wasn’t surprised when these images dropped into my inbox and I couldn’t help but giggle!

I defy anyone to be able to look at Elouise’s pictures and not smile! Not only was this possibly one of the most colourful and beautifully decorated weddings I have ever seen, but her groom was possibly one of THE coolest guys on the planet! I mean, how many people do you know who marry a power ranger!?

Full name: Eloise Wickens
Wedding Date: 10th September 2018
Venue: The Gardens
Photographer: GayleJames

My wedding style was….

Full of colour and relaxed

My wedding hair was…..

Romantic, curly updo with a bit of Sparkle!

My wedding make up was….

Fresh and natural

The thing I love most about mew wedding day was….

Having all our loved ones together – Everyone laughed and smiled all day!

My venue was perfect because…..

It was a combination of our personalities – fun, colourful, untraditional, romantic and unexpected

My favourite photo was….

I have 2… One of Aaron and I at the table after signing the register, we both have huge smiles and me with my power ranger! 😂

I chose Katie because …..

One of my friends (Fiona Line) recommended Katie, plus Katie’s work sells itself! Her work is beautiful ❤️

If I could give other brides one piece of advice it would be….

Don’t worry about the minute details, have the day that YOU and your hubby/wife want, and remember to breathe and take it all in!

Thank you so much Elouise for sharing your fabulous ay with me, and thank you for sending me the power ranger pictures – it’s quite possibly one of my favourite wedding photos ever!

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3 things to consider when wearing your wedding hair up

Deciding on your wedding hair style is a really important factor when it comes to your big day. You need to be sure that you feel happy , comfortable and confident with your choice so I’ve put together this blog with a few things that you might not yet have considered when it comes to deciding to wear your wedding hair up.

1. Weather

If you know that your hair goes all ‘Monica’ in the humidity then it’s sometimes a good idea to wear it up. By having a bit of extra control then you can rest assured that your hair won’t become unruly whatever the weather! If its wet, the damp air can make hanging curls look limp and lifeless, and if it’s hot then hair stuck to a sweaty forehead doesn’t make for a pretty picture!

2. Movement

A secure upstyle won’t go anywhere – despite you throwing your best shapes on the dance floor by the time the evening reception comes around! I always like to remind my brides that a wedding hair upstyle will look the same at 12pm as it does at 12am! Unlike a hair ‘down’ style which will be affected by several factors throughout your day ( including gravity, weather, constant touching, dancing…the list goes on! ) deciding to wear your hair up means that you can rest assured it’s not going anywhere!

3. Does it suit you?

Just because you think wearing your hair up is what a bride ‘should’ do, isn’t a reason to actually do it. If you always wear it down and feel comfortable then you don’t need to do something totally out of ordinary in order to look more ‘bridal’. If you hate your ears then a high slick up do is never going to make you happy. If you love your side fringe then scraping it back will just make you feel a bit exposed….

Most of all its important to remember that a professional stylist will be able to make your hair look amazing – however you want to wear it. Be honest with your stylist and be sure to make the most of your preview session. Have a few ideas to try, take photos and don’t be afraid to ask for advice. Sometimes even the smallest change can make a big difference. But its not just all about how it looks… more importantly, you need to make sure that you feel amazing too. It really is true when I say that if you feel good, you look good – Confidence is key!

If you’re after some hair up inspiration then head over to my galleries page. You can also keep updated with my latest work by following me on facebook or instagram, and if you need some help or guidance then be sure to send me a message and I’ll be happy to talk hair with you!

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Real Bride: Wedding hair and make up for Kate at All Saints Church, West Dulwich

I’ve known Kate a long time, infact we used to get the same bus to school together from the age of 12 so it was really exciting to be asked to help her get ready for her wedding day! I love to hear all of the stories about how my brides and grooms met and Kate found the man of her dreams thousands of miles away in Australia….

Cameron and I met in a pub in rural South Australia in 2011. I was travelling there and he had a trip to London booked, we kept in touch, did LOTS of backwards and forwards between our homes and in 2014 I emigrated to Australia. We were engaged two years later.

Full name: Katie England (Curling)
Wedding Date: 15th July 2017
Venue: All Saints Church and Dulwich College, West Dulwich
Photographer: Graham Scott

My wedding style was….

laid back with some fancy elements.

My wedding hair was…..

A relaxed up-do, mainly to show the back of the dress! I’m not really a fan of having my hair up but at the same time, it’s very fine so I didn’t want something down going limp!! It honestly looked beautiful, very very secure but didn’t look caked in product at all! I felt so confident and had so many compliments!

My wedding make up was….

The best version of me! A slightly smokey eye and a little colour on the lip. It was so light to wear but stayed and I felt so beautiful!

My dress was…

“Nashville” by Jenny Peckham. It was divine! I was quite open to trying lots of styles but this ended up being the first and only place I visited, and the second dress I tried! I knew it was the one and the girls there were so helpful both on the trial day and communicating with me from Australia.

My shoes…

“Chiara” by Sophia Webster, I loved them! Wore them the whole day, the next day for the recovery and then our party back here!

The thing I love most about my wedding day was….

Seeing our worlds colliding, 30 of our friends and Cameron’s family travelled to London for the day, some had never left the country before! Having them all in one place and interacting like they’d known each other for years was so special. Obviously marrying Cameron was good too!

My venue was perfect because…..

Its’ a stunning church and it’s also where my parents and sister were married, so we have a long family connection.

My favourite photo was….

Can I choose two?! Firstly, just the ones of us making our vows, crying and laughing all at the same time!
The second would be one of our friend in the church, holding his phone up as he was streaming it back to our friends in Australia who couldn’t make it and were having a ‘Wedding Dinner Party’!

I chose Katie because, having known her from school and following her progress on Facebook and Instagram, I knew I wanted someone who I could trust and be able to easily communicate with from the other side of the world. She made everything in those early stages very easy and was the obvious choice. The trial, the day, nothing was stressful…I just had total faith in her abilities and it was all so fun!

If I could give other brides one piece of advice it would be…. Things work out! And anything that doesn’t, you won’t notice or will laugh about! Anyone there to judge your day, shouldn’t be there!

These beautiful pictures are from the lovely Graham Scott Photography ( thanks graham! ) and thank you so much Kate for sharing your wonderful day!

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