Category Archives: Beauty, Health & Spa

Wedding Shopping Online: Beauty and Spa are *Back!*

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Photo courtesy of Best Wedding Hairstyles

Several years ago, when brides and grooms first started scaling back on their wedding plans to make a moderate budget work, they threw a number of wedding experiences out the window. Guided by budget wedding planners and message boards, many brides decided that a good way to save a few hundred bucks was to do their own hair, makeup and nails. But today, brides are choosing to throw something else out the window and give themselves that celebrity VIP experience of getting their hair, makeup and nails professionally done — with great artistry — because that’s part of their wedding dream.

Simply put, brides WANT to be transformed by beauty professionals, sipping champagne in a salon that’s reserved just for their bridal group, and walking out of there with an intricate up-do of loose, wavy Old Hollywood-style curls. Brides WANT the special makeup that’s formualated to make them look amazing in-person and in HD film. And they want their bridesmaids and moms to have the same thing.

So they’re back to booking wedding day beauty styling. The Wedding Report‘s recent Online Wedding Market report shows a very interesting statistic on this. For pro mani/pedis, brides across the country spent $5 million in 2009, then the number dipped to $3.1 million in 2010, and in 2011, mani/pedi’s came back up to $5 million. So basically, 2010 saw half the bridal mani/pedi choice, and then millions of brides said, “I want the VIP treatment, so I’m booking my wedding day mani/pedi.” And interestingly, they booked those mani/pedi’s online. Why online? More salons have streamlined their appointment-making methods, making it easier for customers to just go to their site, click on ‘Make an Appointment’ and grab their time slot. It’s all about convenience and efficiency, businesses’ wise decision to stay accessible even in the middle of the night when a busy bride might decide to tick a few things off the To-Do list. Salons have automated their appointment methods, and will text you reminders of your appointment.

For wedding day hair, brides are booking their trial runs, their wedding day styling, and their highlighting, haircut and other appointments during the year prior to the wedding. In 2009, $10.5 million was spent on online booking of hair styling. In 2010, the year of the Beauty Dip, the number went down to $7.5 million, and in 2011 the number bounced back up to $8.9 million spent on online bookings of bridal hair service. For makeup styling, the stats went from $5.5 million down to $3.3 million, and is on the rise at $4.7 million in 2011.

Across the board, brides are spending more for their easily-booked online appointments for wedding day beauty.

In addition to the ease of online booking through salons’ smart automated tools, here are some other reasons that brides might be booking their beauty and spa treatments online:

1. Groupons and Living Social special deals for 75% off might be easier applied through online-made appointments

2. The bride and the other ladies might live far away from the location of the wedding, so they can’t just walk into a salon and book it for the wedding day.

3. Some salons and spas offering special bridal packages might offer a special discount when you book online, and some of these might be paired with additional treatment deals such as getting a 5th facial free when you book four at their salon.

4. If the entire group of ladies will have their hair and makeup done, the bride might use the salon’s easy-to-fillin Wedding Party appointment worksheet, rather than calling a busy salon and trying to spell out all of their bridesmaids’ names and beauty treatments to a receptionist.

5. Brides might see special bridal deals announced on the salon’s Facebook page, or Twitter feed, pointing them right to the salon’s website for online info and appointment booking.

6. Brides might have memberships at their salon, including Rewards Points. Each time they get a regular mani/pedi, they get points. Perhaps booking all of their ladies’ wedding day appointments can get them mega-points to keep them in highlights and pedis for many months after the wedding.

7. Booking online provides a paper trail. Any time you’re making bridal arrangements, you have to make sure you’re keeping receipts and confirmations, and getting an auto-email confirmation of your bridal appointments gives you leverage to rescue your wedding morning beauty treatment plans. This only happens if you book online, though. You wouldn’t have much luck saying, “But I called the salon five months ago and made these appointments!” A receptionist may have penciled you in on the wrong date, and you’re out of luck. So for some brides, booking online gives them a peace of mind and protection of their investment.

If you book your beauty treatments online, share with us your reasons for doing so, and any advice you have for our brides and bridal parties! 

Save Money by Doing Your Own Wedding Makeup

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A great way to trim your wedding budget is to do your own makeup. Plus, who knows your makeup style better than you? Check out these great tips for applying your own makeup:

  • Get a makeover. Venture to your local department store and enjoy a free makeover at one of the many makeup counters. When you find what you like, pay close attention to their methods so you can duplicate them later. Ask questions as they are applying the products. If you tell them what you are doing they may be more willing to offer advice.
  • Buy quality cosmetics. Buy all of the same cosmetics that were used in your makeover. Make sure they are good, long-lasting products. And don’t forget the waterproof mascara.
  • Practice, practice, practice! The only way to improve your makeup artistry is to practice regularly. Once you get in the groove you’ll have no problem on the actual day of your wedding.
  • Enlist the help of a friend. Do you have a friend whose makeup always looks flawless? Ask her for help. Invite her over prior to the wedding to help you during one of your practice runs. She can lend her expertise on the day of the wedding as well. I did this and it worked out perfectly; my friend was wonderful.
  • Take your time. Give yourself plenty of time on the day of the wedding. This way, in case you do make a mistake, you’ll have plenty of time to correct it and start again.
  • Use a little more than usual, but not too much. You’ll want to wear a little more makeup than usual for the sake of your wedding photos, but you don’t want to look unnatural or unlike yourself.

Dealing With Post-Wedding Depression

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It might sound funny to some but Post-Wedding Depression is something that really does exist. I’ve seen it happen to my clients more than a few times, and it’s heartbreaking to watch brides go from such a high to such a low once the wedding is over. So I wanted to take a moment to share how it happens and my advice on how to avoid it.

Imagine this:

Twelve months of planning: phone calls, cake tastings, shopping, assembling favors with your bridesmaids, taking engagement photos, picking out flowers, writing your vows, and working your little heart out in your every spare moment to get every little detail in place. Then: bachelorette party, bridal showers, the big spotlight on you. And Finally: The day arrives, and everyone is there to see you in all your beauty. This is the day you’ve dreamed of, the day you will marry your soul mate in front of all your family and friends. And after your vows there is an amazing celebration. Your first dance, the speeches given with love, cutting the cake; tou are the center of your own blissful universe. Twelve months of planning has turned into the most amazing night of your life. And at the end of the evening you are whisked away to your first romantic night together as a married couple.

And then .… then what? You wake up the next morning and there are dishes in the sink, laundry that needs to be done, dinner that needs to be cooked, and you and your husband are, well, the same as you were before but you now share a last name. It’s a harsh reality for some. You’ve been so distracted by all of the planning that you may have forgotten just how blissful normal life was before all of this started. And the fact that people around you move on with their lives being perfectly content, not discussing your wedding anymore, can be a tough one to swallow, too.

How to avoid it:

The honeymoon is a sure way to help beat the wedding blues. You pack your bags, board a flight, or hop in the car and take off to a destination where it’s just the two of you. Get pampered and enjoy time together basking in the sunshine, cocktail in hand, or visiting new places. Talk about your future and reflect on your special day. Be excited knowing that when you get home there will be notes of congratulations, gifts to open, people to fill in on the details of your honeymoon, and even more incredible photos to look at and share. Sure, the daily chores will still be there, but they’ll be interspersed with the lingerings of mementos from your big day. This is the way to do it!

Can’t afford a honeymoon? Turn off the phones and TV for a few days and just be. Be together, alone. Reflect on all of the good times at the wedding. Talk about future plans and goals. Schedule date nights, and go out for a few romantic dinners or picnics. Even if you aren’t able to go anywhere, escape together and look forward to the next phase of planning, planning your future.

Another great way to keep your spirits up is to plan a few dinner parties with your bridal party or your married friends. Another fun idea is to throw a photo/video viewing party once you’ve gathered everyone’s best shots {or your photographer’s shots}. It’s a great way to relive your day with the people who played an important role in your wedding.

The reality is that jumping right back into life after being on such an incredible high is exactly the cause of Post-Wedding Depression. It doesn’t matter if you drive down the coast for a week, hotel hop in places you’ve always wanted to visit, fly away to a warm sandy beach, or get a cozy at home while settling into your new life. You need this time to ease yourself back into normal life. After all, things are going to be different now than they have been for the past 12 months. What do you do when there’s nothing left to do anymore? Have fun and enjoy each other and the memories made. Remember why you chose to marry each other in the first place. Then, plan to enjoy the rest of your lives together!