Wedding season is coming up soon, and in Utah, wedding season is almost a bigger deal than Christmas. Your wedding is often referred to as “the biggest day of your life”, and whether you are eloping, going away for a destination wedding, or having a big, expensive soiree, you want to look like the best version of you.

As you get closer to your wedding, you should start to put together a collection of makeup ideas that catch your eye. It’s also a great idea to find a picture of yourself that you feel is when you looked fantastic. It’s a great starting point to begin to feel out your ideal wedding look. You should also be looking at hair ideas, as well, so that you don’t have two contrasting ideas of what you want to look like going on. A very sleek, intricate updo could be an odd contrast to a very simple, natural face.

There are a few other things to take into account when considering what you want your makeup to look like.

• What time of day is your wedding? A morning bride may differ from the look of an evening bride. You may not feel comfortable at 9 AM with a face full of contour, a rouge red lip and smoky eye. On the flip side, a low-maintenance makeup might look washed out under the flash of your photographers camera at night.
• How big is your venue? If you are getting married in a large church, you want to look beautiful to the very last guest all the way in the back, which would require a heavier hand when applying. A small, intimate garden wedding would be better suited to a lighter application, depending on the time of day.
• Indoor, or outdoor? This is a biggie, because of photography. Time of day also comes into play here. An outdoor bride in the morning or afternoon would want to avoid shimmer in their shadows or highlight, because it would catch the light in the camera and sun, and can make your face and eyes appear flat and lose dimension. I prefer matte shadows for daytime, and adding a little shimmer to glam up at night.

• Spring, summer, winter or fall? This plays into the indoor/outdoor question, but it’s important to think about the type of makeup you are using during different seasons. Your skin fluctuates season to season, so a liquid might be okay in the colder months, but might be too heavy and thick for a warm, outdoor wedding. There’s nothing quite like having your whole face melt off in the middle of July!
• Professional or DIY? Are you hiring someone to do your makeup (and subsequently, the makeup for your bridal party, if you choose) or do you feel confident enough to tackle it on your own? Both come with their own trials and stresses; if you are hiring someone you should be able to have open communication with them regarding what you are expecting, at least a few consultations to perfect what your look will be, and you will need to communicate what your bridal party should look like. If you are doing your own makeup on your big day, you should practice, practice practice, until you have a really good idea of what you want your makeup to look like, and how long it will take you to complete your look.

Now that you have some key things to ask yourself, start looking! Pinterest, bridal magazines, beauty sites and other professional publications will help you to narrow down the look you are going for. And remember to take a step back once in a while, take a deep breath, and remember WHY you’re getting married. Trust me, it will help you get through all your planning!