Bridal Beauty Timelines - Why you should have one

BRIDAL TIP from over 10 years in the industry...TIMELINES...So important!!

In a previous life, I used to photograph weddings.  While the thought of having a nice relaxing morning being pampered is the ultimate goal for my brides now, back then we (the photographers) were at the fate of how the beauty part of the wedding day set the tone for the rest of the morning.

There were times, when the beauty team that a bride had hired were running way behind schedule and it then stressed the bride out and put the wedding planner or photography timeline behind as well.  Now, this may not have been the fault of the beauty professionals that were taking care of the bride that morning, but it may have been.  

Now that I am on the beauty side of that scenario, I make sure to give all of my brides a beauty timeline.  I learned quickly that as long as the bride and bridal party knew what time they needed to be ready for their scheduled time, we were not waiting for someone to be ready. We were on track.  

The goal is so that the Bride is more relaxed! This sets the tone for the whole day if she can enjoy being pampered without distractions, stress, or being rushed. The beauty timelines should show which beauty team artist is providing service for which member of the bridal party, what service is being provided and what time to be where.  This will ensure that everyone is ready on time.

There are a few key items that go into designing a good estimate of time for the timeline: 

• 1. We need to know what time your photographer needs to have you ready.  Your photographer will have a time based on your specific photographic needs (ie, first look, family photos, getting ready in your dress, etc).
• 2. We need to know who is getting services and what services they will be getting. If your bridal party is getting their hair done, make sure your hair artist has a photograph of each girl (showing their hair), and then an inspiration image of what style they are thinking.  This will help in determining the time each girl will need when it comes to setting up the timeline. 
• 3. When it comes to what time to start, you will want to see if your artist is bringing her own team, or do you need to find your own additional artists (should there not be enough time to complete everyone). We, at Marla Austin Beauty, have a team of artists that we work with.  This team does include additional makeup and hair artists to handle larger bridal parties or tighter timelines.  

Below is an example of a wedding timeline for Makeup only services. If there were also hair services or another artist involved, the timeline would reflect that. 

I do recommend that the bride share this timeline with all bridal party, wedding planner, personal attendants and photographer/videographers to keep everyone in the same loop.