Category: Bridal Beauty Advice

Salty air and beach breezes call for a soft, relaxed wedding hairstyle that looks casual, yet polished. This romantic up-do is a particularly smart choice; what with ocean mist or humid conditions, who wants to struggle to maintain sleek, straight hair?

It’s your wedding day: are you ready for your close-up? If you’re having doubts, you’re not alone. That’s why a professional makeup artist has become an essential part of the modern bride’s entourage. Yet a quiet revolution is changing the way brides prep for the cameras: airbrush makeup.

The crowning glory your wedding day look is your hairstyle. And to ensure that you get the best results for your wedding hairstyle, all you have to do is follow a few simple steps.

Let’s start the countdown to luxurious locks— here’s a surefire plan to get your hair aisle-ready and fabulous.

I paid $220 for my wedding dress. My colleague Jennifer? Got hers for $125. Since we were both footing the bill for our own weddings, there was precious little in the budget for our gowns (I had to make sure there were enough offerings at the pasta bar to satisfy my Italian relatives!). We both looked lovely, by the way, even without spending 2 two months’ rent on our wedding attire. Here are some of our dress-shopping secrets:

If you’ve ever wondered how to get the perfect shape for your eyebrows, check out this video from our Certified By The Guide makeup artist and eyebrow specialist, Monique Powers. In it, she shows you how to shape your own eyebrows without spending a ton of money at a salon. I love that she uses something as simple as a pencil to do the measurements of where the eyebrow should begin, where the arch should be and where the brow should end. She makes it look so easy!

The teachers at TWU are top Bay Area event professionals, many of them Certified By The Guide. With their expert advice, you’ll learn how to set up a realistic wedding budget, get inspired by the latest trends in wedding decor, and learn practical tips for saving money on your wedding. This is a fantastic opportunity for couples to get up close and personal with some of the best event pros in the wedding industry. Because class sizes are small, you’ll have time to ask questions and gain valuable knowledge on wedding planning.

What’s a mother to wear to the wedding? Rule #1—ban dowdy, muted tones from her fashion vocabulary. Today’s top Moms are proud, confident and want a little star appeal of their own! Hanna Hartnell of Hartnell boutique in Santa Monica understands. Her custom-made gowns and coordinating wraps are favored by women of all shapes, sizes, and ages for their flattering fit and luxurious fabric…and they’re available in virtually every color of the rainbow. What hues are hot for Mama? “For fall, mothers of the bride are choosing elegant, vibrant colors,” says Hanna. “They love amethyst, mahogany and rose sorbet.” If you’re shopping now for a spring ’09 wedding, then give your mom and mom-to-be this yummy fashion forecast: “Apricot, peach, lemon and golden olive hues will be en vogue,” says Hanna. “These shades are especially light and lovely for garden weddings.

While I’m a proud member of the Exercise Avoidance Club, my colleague Denise is definitely one of those energetic women who loves to pump it up. (She actually confessed in a recent post that she loves exercise boot camps!). This contrast became strikingly obvious on a recent business trip when Denise lured me into our hotel gym. She ran for 30 minutes on a treadmill and called it her warm-up. I walked for 30 minutes, and needed 2 aspirin, a margarita and a nap.

I’ll admit that trying to juggle working at Here Comes The Guide, moonlighting as a floral assistant, and planning my sister’s bachelorette party/bridal shower for the past 6 months has been exhausting. As a reward, I decided to treat myself to a little relaxation before gearing up for my sister’s event.

I love boot camp workouts. You’re guided by a personal trainer who will push you to work harder for the results you want, you’re in a group of people with similar fitness goals, and many boot camps also include great nutrition advice. Having gone through a few boot camp sessions of my own, I can say with confidence that this kind of workout will definitely give you the energy and stamina you need to make it to the altar. I’m also seeing some great boot camps that are designed just for brides, with workouts to make you look fantastic in that strapless wedding gown you’ve had your eye on.

Tarte Cosmetics is one company that has mastered creating products that aren’t tested on animals, are paraben-free (very, very important), and contain botanical nutrients. The makeup comes in attractive, fuss-free packaging, and most importantly, they make you, the wearer, look good. You might have read about Tarte’s world-famous cheek stains in InStyle, Cosmo, and Self magazines. I myself am a fan of the “flush” and “blushing bride” shades.