This read features some of my tried and tested personal favourite skincare picks for my bridal kit, to help achieve a cry-proof, kiss-proof, photo ready makeup look on your special day.
Your wedding glam will see you through your wedding morning to the very last dance of the night, and everything in between.
My aim as a bridal hair and makeup artist is for my clients to feel beautiful, confident and most importantly them-self on their wedding day. To help achieve this, I aim for each product in my kit to be as long-lasting, diverse and reliable as possible.
I tend to receive requests for makeup to be more on the natural side, with a common buzz phrase being "glass skin, glow from within." It's no secret that investing time and money on a strong skincare sequence is the #1 way to create this.
Before getting into my product recommendations, my first tip will always be that the best results from these (and any) skincare products will come from a consistent routine of application. So it may be worth a cheeky self-care splurge in the lead up to your day.
My Go-To Toners
Imagine your toner as the final step of the skin's deep clean in forming your clean slate. It comes after the cleanser and rids the skin of any final product reminiscence and dirt that a cleanser may not have reached. As well, a toner re-balances the skin's natural pH level and will usually have slight tightening properties which can help the skin's pores to be visually minimized.
As with the majority of skincare products, there can be ingredients to look out for which suit the different skin types best. For example, a favourite of mine is the Strictly Professional Toner with Mallow Flower and Aloe. It's a very gentle, hydrating toner, so a great one for both sensitive, normal and dry skin types with it's ingredients providing anti-inflammatory properties.
On the other hand, for an oilier skin type, a toner with witch hazel is usually a very good option. Like the Witch Cleansing Witch Hazel Toner. Witch hazel is an "astringent" which helps to control the skin's oil production by gently stripping it of excess oils.
Moisturising Creams
A firm favourite of mine (and the skincare market's) is the Charlotte Tilbury magic cream. It's a great universal product as not only helps a smooth application and dewy finish to a foundation based makeup look but also a radiant glow to the skin as a stand alone natural base.
The following properties make it a solid go-to product when prepping skin. It contains Vitamins C, E and F as well as oat extracts for brightening and smoothing, hyaluronic acid for long lasting hydration and peptides to help to re-plump the skin and reduce signs of fine lines, great for mature skin clients.
For clients with more sensitive skin types, I also like to have a gentler alternative in my kit. Keeping it simple and limiting the range of new ingredients being used on the skin across the stages of skin prep, I like to continue using the Strictly Professional skincare line with the sensitive skin Moisturiser with mallow flower, white tea and aloe. It's ingredients contain soothing, anti-inflammatory properties as well as Bisabolol, a natural compound which helps protect the skin from anti-oxidants in the environment.
Staple Primers
Once I've done my essential cleanse - tone - moisturise of a clients skin, I will then apply a primer to the face as a final prep layer for the base. Primer's tend to be much more specific with the properties they offer a look and so the client's desired finish (as well as skin type) is considered when choosing which is appropriate.
Personally I don't like to use primers with a super strong grip quality as have found (out of the ones I have tried!) they can peel and cling in areas once base products are applied on top. I prefer a less heavy duty, more light weight primer as thin layers of the correct skincare prep products is what will achieve that sought after "glow from within," as opposed to one stand alone product.
The below primers are all pigment free, so again are versatile staples of my kit that don't limit themselves to certain skin tones.
Firstly, a key feature that's especially important for a bridal client, is SPF. As an artist, it's important to test out SPF products in advance to ensure there is no white cast or flashback when photographed, which is often found if sun cream is used rather than an specialised SPF skincare product. My protection of choice is the Charlotte Tilbury Invisible UV Flawless Poreless Primer, offering a pretty handsome SPF protection of 50! Not only does it protect from the sun and offer anti aging benefits from it's collagen content but also protects the skin against damage from carbon pollutants in the air through it's botanical extracts. Like the magic cream it also has smoothing, hydrating and blurring properties.
I don't always stop there when it comes to primers. Sometimes a client will be after a particularly glowy finish, so again, I may then use a second primer to build up another thin layer of skin prep to subtly enhance the overall look. My go-to glow product has to be the Iconic London Underglow drops. The reason I love this product so much is that it offers a luminous glow but without being sparkly or glittery which can sometimes be found from glow products. Instead it contains crushed champagne pearls which allow again for that dreamy soft "glow from within." It also acts as a primer helping makeup to apply smoothly with pore minimisation properties.
On the other hand, sometimes (especially when considering oilier skin types) a matte finish may be more desirable, with a careful balance of hydrated yet oil-free looking skin. My usual is the Kiko Matte Face Base. It's a light-weight liquid formula but contains absorbent powders which target the shinier areas of the face, helping the longevity of your foundation hold throughout the wear.
Eye Base Essentials
The thinnest skin on the face is found in the area surrounding your upper and lower eyelid so can require a little extra TLC.
A very common unwanted find, is creasing of under eye concealer, which some people may think is an inevitable side effect of wanting some extra under eye coverage. However this is can be reduced, with thin layering of prep and makeup products being a first step in reducing product build up here. As well as choice of brush, for example a fluffier brush can be better for a lighter handed application on this gentle area and means you're only applying the amount you need.
One product I use to enhance this effect further is the Charlotte Tilbury Cryo-Recovery Eye Serum. It contains a caffeine complex to boost the elasticity of the skin as well as hydrating and reducing the appearance of darkness. It's swiss wine essence ingredient and peptides work to lift, firm and blur the under eye area, helping to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Which in turn can reduce the amount of creasing when under eye coverage products are applied.
In addition to this, if I know the look will involve eye shadow I will then apply a priming eye base, again using a fluffy brush to prevent excess product build up. My staple is the P.Louise Rumour Base, which is available in 12 varying shades. Just like how you'd apply a foundation on your face as a base for powder products, this acts as a similiar blank canvas for the eye. It evens out any eyelid discoloration and offers a long lasting grip to your eye shadow. As well, it can be used all the way up to the brow to carve out a more defined brow shape.
Lip Care
After treating the rest of the face to it's lovely skincare cocktail, we can't forget the lip care. Although the lips are often the last stage of a look, applying your lip prep with skincare will ensure the lips soak in all the benefits in plenty of time before any lip products are applied.
The Lip balm I choose is The Ordinary Squalane Amino Acids Lip Balm. It's properties help the lips to seal in the immediate moisture it offers, targeting dryness and retaining long lasting hydration. As well, it is a scent free, light weight balm. Fun fact, it can also be used to target dryness around elbows and cuticles too, helping to bring smoothness to these areas.
A Final Spritz
As mentioned earlier, "long-lasting" is the key to absolutely any bridal look. Aside from
other techniques during the makeup application, a setting spray is the perfect way to finalise your look. It can not only be used as a final step, but throughout the stages of your look. Maximum results will be achieved through applying a setting spray both before and after skincare as well as after base makeup products. Again, sprays tend to specialise into different features so this is something to look into when supplying your kit.
Personally, I like a setting spray that will help maintain the desired finish of my look rather than having it's own finish. The Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Setting Spray is my staple as it helps keep a "just applied" finish so will preserve all of our hard work and consideration for which skin prep products we have carefully layered. It provides a final layer of soft hydration and up to 16 hours of wear to your makeup.
Some sprays may offer a glow property but as mentioned, these will sometimes give a slight glittery look, therefore adding it's own finish. Another alternative is aerosol sprays, I can't speak for all but the one's I have tried can sometimes come with a slight hair spray like scent and can be felt sitting on the skin rather than feeling weightless. So as I say, like with any product, it's always good to do some research into reviews and properties which will suit you best.
A Final Note From Me...
As such a saturated market, knowing where to start with skincare can be a daunting feeling, so hopefully this insight into my kit staples will help to offer a step into the right direction when it comes to considering skincare!
For anyone in the process of finding a bridal hair and makeup artist, particularly in the Devon or South West region, I would love to get in contact! For more information about what I offer and for further examples of my work, see my website link below.
www.harmonyevansartistry.co.uk
May 9
7 min read
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