What Time Should Hair And Makeup Be Done For Your Wedding
Getting ready on the morning of your wedding is one of the best parts of your wedding day. One of the most common feelings I hear expressed is how much a bride and her bridesmaids love being together, the comradery, who made the best playlist, the breakfasts, and of course, getting great hair and amazing makeup.
And looking great is so important to feeling great on your big day. When hair and make-up is done right, not rushed or stressed, it gives you the confidence you’re at your best, both for you and your fiancé. And that confidence shines through when you put on the wedding dress, walk down the aisle, and have your first dance. It shows in the photos and with everyone at your wedding.
One of the biggest questions is how long will it take and when should you start the get ready process. Let’s go through some easy tips to help manage this and how it all works out in real weddings.
Decide what, if any, photos you want to do before the wedding
It’s important to remember your wedding day timeline is critical to having a smooth and easy wedding day (and wedding planning) experience. And the first step is to know what you and your fiancé(e) want to do. For this part of the day, we want to focus on everything before the ceremony. And the question to ask is what photos if any, you want to do before the ceremony start time.
This means deciding if you want to do a first look. If so, do you also want to do bridal party and immediate family photos beforehand? If not, do you want to do each partner’s wedding party and immediate family separately beforehand? Depending on your situation and wants, this might save you time later in the day, possibly allowing you to be part of cocktail hour or other events.
What time to start and end hair and makeup
Once you know this you’re in a better position to determine the start time and end time. In most cases, you’ll want to allow for 30 minutes for your bridesmaids and flower girls to get dressed and 30 minutes for you to get dressed. And you’ll want to have 30 minutes buffer time for your wedding day hair and make-up.
Now you can determine when time hair and makeup should end, and from there decide on when it should begin, and if you do hair or makeup first. You will want to ask your team how long they need. But if you want to estimate, you can use 40 minutes per person as a start. It will help you make a good guess until you know the most accurate time.
Remember you can always start your day earlier. It’s better to start your day earlier and remain relaxed than push a tight timeline and be stressed. This will also give you time to make sure your photographer has the time they need to get the getting-ready shots you’re going to want.
How to Make Sure Your Wedding Day Hair and Makeup Schedule Stays On Time
Of course, we need to stay on track on the wedding day. Here are a few tips for your hair and makeup timeline to make sure everyone stays focused
Tip 1. Make sure everyone, including your hair and makeup team, knows what is going on
The wrong time, the wrong place – it happens! Make sure everyone gets your wedding day timeline and locations of where they need to be. If your getting ready location is even remotely confusing, or could be mistaken with another place, include Google Map links.
If you have a wedding planner they will help with this, but make sure you have them make your timeline as soon as possible so you can confirm your hair and makeup team can accommodate your timeline.
Tip 2. Stay in the chair
One of the biggest slowdowns to hair and make-up is when someone is getting out of the chair on a regular basis. This can slow your team down. Those one or two minutes up and down add up and get in the way of the flow of your hair and make-up team.
Tip 3. As a bride, don’t be last
Try to be second to last. If something happens that is causing your timeline to be late, at least you’ll be ready on time for the next event.
Tip 4. Don’t forget the mother of the bride and the mother of your fiancé(e)
When planning how long getting ready will take, and when talking with your hair and makeup team, don’t forget your mom and your fiancé(e)’s mom. Also, don’t forget your mom will need to be ready before you get dressed if you want her to help you with your dress on.
Alternatively, for two grooms, consider if you want them to help you with your boutonnieres, or if you are going to have a special first look with your moms, you’ll want to factor their hair and makeup times into your timeline.
Tip 5. Delegate
Delegate management of your morning to a bridesmaid who you trust to be in charge. Have them be the ones to coordinate with hair and make-up and your bridesmaids for hair appointments and make sure they’re ready. This will help give you a stress-free wedding day.
Wedding Day Getting Ready Timeline
While the calculations to determine your start and end times for getting ready and hair and make-up are a bit complex, the timeline itself should be simple. Here you can see one of our timelines. You’ll note we separate the day into three timelines, on one page. This helps with clarity and ease of use.
Remember, the key to having great hair and makeup is making sure everyone has the time they need and you and your friends have the time you need to enjoy it! And it all starts with your wedding day timeline. The sooner you make it and send it to your vendors, the more relaxed and better prepared you’ll be for your day!
