PRE- WEDDING TIPS
No picking, squeezing, or fussing over your blemishes. That damage will lead to scarring and more breakouts.
Never go out without SPF 30 on your face, neck, ears, chest, and hands. This will help keep dark spots and premature skin ageing under control. If you're driving a long distance, keep applying SPF 30 on your hands, face, and neck. And don't forget that glass doesn't filter UV rays, even in your home or office!
Cleansing your face at the end of the day is a must. Pollutants, debris, and oils all accumulate on your skin throughout the day, so you need to wash them off.
Sulfates make your cleanser foam, but they strip too much of your skin's sebum away, leaving you feeling dry, flaky, and even itchy. Look for sulfate-free formulas of body washes and face cleansers and check the ingredient labels — sodium lauryl sulfate is the biggest culprit, but any ingredient in which the last word is 'sulfate' is best avoided.
Most people often neglect their lips. Here's a simple homemade scrub recipe that's effective to get plump, smooth, kissable lips: Take some white sugar, mix some olive oil, and scrub your lips. You can use a toothbrush across your lips in a gentle scrubbing motion to exfoliate.
Get plenty of sleep- The body depends on sleep for every single thing it does. Skin cells are some of the most rapidly rejuvenating cells in the body and our body repairs itself at night while we sleep. When skin cells don't turn over quickly enough, our skin looks dull and lifeless, and so do we.
Try to sleep on your back. Doing so prevents wrinkles. If you use a silk pillow case its great for your hair!
Hydrate- Your skin needs its daily dose of water, which is more than your intake of H20.
Sodium hyaluronate, more commonly known as hyaluronic acid, helps balance your skin, bringing it to a normal pH level. Balanced skin is ideal for all healthy skin functions.
When this ingredient is used in cosmetic formulations at a high concentration (check the ingredients list and make sure it is somewhere in the middle or toward the top of the list), it will leave your skin plump and 'dewy' looking.
Apply facial serums or lotions to the back of your hands and then "roll" the back of your hands up your neck. Now you've treated your neck and hands at the same time. These are the two telltale areas often forgotten that show signs of aging.
As soon as the weather turns cold, put ordinary honey, (a natural ‘humectant’) on the back of your hands for 3-6 days or nights. This stops red, scaly, bleeding hands from starting and keeps them smooth all winter. Coconut Oil and Olive Oil are natural moisturisers.
Wet (but don't drain) caffeinated tea bags and freeze. Use the frozen tea bags on closed eyes for 20 minutes three times a week to reduce dark circles, puffiness, and discoloration. Tea bags can be any brand but MUST have caffeine, which does the work.
Take biotin every day. It helps keep your nails harder and thicker since they tend to thin and peel with age. Sea kelp capsules is also great for clients trying to grow their hair .
Wash your makeup brushes often and change your sponges frequently as bacteria love to live in them. You don’t want to apply fresh makeup with a brush filled with old makeup as it can retain bacteria and cause breakouts.
As the big day creeps up- say a month, don't change anything suddenly to your skin regime. Don't have any facials less than a few week before the big day- you don't want breakouts. If you have a pamper day booked go for a massage or a mani - pedi.
Trial treatments such as spray tans, eye lash tints, new hair colours with plenty of the time before the big day. The last thing you want is an allergic reaction or a hair colour gone wrong!
Spray tans- have a trial run, book it for your hen party or a night out. wear a pale colour so you can test the contrast- white if you can. Be aware you may get transfer from the spray tan on your wedding dress, mainly under the armpits, bra area where is rubs. It'll be in the inside but good to know. If you haven't had a spray tan before make sure you research the brand to make sure you get the correct tone you want and the depth. Olive based tans are the most natural looking. For the application for the big day, 1 or two days prior to the big day, if you want it softly there then maybe 3 but test it out and see what you prefer.
Eye lash tints- defintely trial! I've had a bride go to a salon she hasn't been to before and have a eye lash tint, the skin under her eyes was stained and she had a very bad reaction leading to blisters under the eyes! This was the day before the wedding and although I carefully managed to apply her makeup and cover it up, it was incredibly painful for her.
New colours- I'm sure in your head you have an exact image of the look you want to achieve for your big day, and if this includes a new look or reverting back to 'what you used to be' then do this in advance following a touch up closer to the big day. Whether its done professionally or by your self at home, this is a must. I've had plenth of brunettes at home with dying kits trying to lighten up for the big day and turning into a orange hue! Not the ideal look for one of the most important days of your life. Do lightening gradually! and if possible professionally. Darkening is just as risky, go too dark and its hard to lift back- grandually is always best.
Hair cuts & treatments- It's so important to have freshly trimmed and conditioned hair for your big day. It needs to be in the best possible condtion so it looks shiny and glossy! I no a large portion of brides are growing their hair for the big day- but ratty ends are not a good look and have no place for your wedding day. Choose a stylist you trust and have a trim and conditioning treament a couple of weeks to a week prior to the big day. For regular repeat colours- Have them done a week prior , so they have chance to settle, or any staining on the scalp or hair line isn't visible.
Eye brows- everyone needs good brows! They completely change your face, and lift and open up your eyes. whether you just have them tweezed my a therapist or go all out and have them tinted, threaded and waxed , make sure its schedules regulary leading up to the wedding- start at least 6 months before incase you need to grow them out for them to be re shaped. It will be worth it.
Brazilian Blowdry/ Ever lasting blow dry- Hair looking lifeless, dry and frizzy? Time to treat your self to a brazilian blow dry keratin treatment and get that hair under control.
Test run- wanting to add false lashes, clip in extensions for the big day and you've never tried them out. START! False lashes in my opinion are a must. The range available now is incredible, they can be super light and as natural as can be to super glam! if you're having a makeup trial , try lashes, the difference it makes to your makeup is amazing. If not test some out your self. buy a few and when you have evening outs test them out. see which ones feel comfortable and are more 'you'. Feeling self conscious on your wedding day is a no no.
Teeth whitening- A perfect smile is important and just using a whitening tooth paste and reducing your tea/coffee in take can make a big difference. Splurging on professional teeth whitening is a brilliant idea and worth doing trying about 6 months before the wedding and then again just before the big day. There are so many home whitening kits you can try before splurging and speaking from experience, they do make a big difference. but do your research and ask a professional what they think is best for you. Sensitivity is not comfortable and you can definfitly avoid this by using the correct products and brands and seeking the correct advice.