Remember the days when bridal makeovers meant over the top makeup looks with exaggerated hairstyling? those days are fast changing in the world of bridal makeup artistry. Many brides are inspired by the designers, celebrities and stylists creating wedding look books with natural yet traditional wedding looks, soft, dewy and glowing skin, minimal and beautiful hairstyling that brings out the real beauty of the bride than cover it up with over the top makeovers.

Making the bride look timeless and effortlessly beautiful is a skill every bridal makeup artist must develop and strive for, the wedding pictures are a lifetime memory and the bride must look and feel like herself in every picture taken at the wedding even decades later.

Here are my top tips on achieving the most effortlessly beautiful bridal looks :

• Work on the skin first, skin preparation sets the perfect base for your makeup to lay on, ensure the skin is very well hydrated and primed before the foundation application, hydrate the under eye area and lips too
• Choose products that are sheer, silky and dewy in texture, for a full coverage look the product can be built on in layers
• Match the foundation perfectly to the skin tone, this is key in ensuring the foundation looks flattering on the bride, lighter foundations tend to go grey and ashy immediately
• Always work in layers, adding only as much as required, the more product you pile on, the heavier the face tends to look
• Do not over powder the face, the baking technique doesn’t work on every skin type, dust translucent powder lightly onto the areas that need it, this will ensure a dewy base
• Create balance between the eye makeup and the lips keeping only one of them in focus, this creates a cohesive overall look
• Contour, blush and the highlighter should be blended seamlessly, harsh lines on the face look very unflattering in the pictures
• Exaggerated hairstyling takes away the beauty of the bridal trousseau and makeup by drawing too much attention to it, keep the hair looking modern, minimal yet gorgeous
• Remember less is always more, work with the least amount of product in the right way to bring out the bride’s natural beauty enhancing her best features.

Bridal makeup as an art has evolved tremendously over the last few decades and it continues to do so, there is science behind it that needs study, understanding and a lot of practice. Many brides are opting for professionally trained experienced artists who have an understanding of this art.

With the bridal trends changing every year what will continue to remain constant forever is a bride who wants to look her best on the biggest day of her life. As an artist it is our responsibility to make sure she gets that.