Bridal Make-up on a Budget

A quick warning, this post contains lots of photos of my red skin, tired eyes and general wonky-appearance. For that, I'm sorry, enjoy!!

Hello! So I couldn't help but notice that a LOT of my Twitter followers (and the people that I follow) are getting married/planning their wedding at the moment. Exciting stuff! I'm a little under a month away from my first wedding anniversary and so I thought that today I'd share with you my 'wedding face'. Being a make-up lover I decided to do my own for multiple reasons; I couldn't really afford to pay someone to do it for me, I know what I like and am very particular, I don't like being touched...the list is quite long, actually...SO I did it myself and here's how I looked on the day...

So today I'd like to share with you a quick how-to on wedding make-up using near-exclusively 'budget' brands, most of which I used on my actual day. The lower end of pricing when it comes to the ol' slap has come along leaps and bounds in recent years and I've got to admit that given the choice between a £3 foundation and a £10 one, I'm going to plump for the £3 one if it's achieving the same results. Remember, it's not about the price of the product, or the name of the brand, it's about how you use it!

Here's a picture of me on the day, apologies for the filter.

Step one.

Once you've moisturised, pop on a primer. Make sure that you're not too quick to start applying over it, give it time to 'settle', I normally use this time to apply some concealer under my eyes because I suffer from really bad dark circles (and have done since I was young).

MUA Professional Primer. Garnier Roll-on Anti-dark Circles in 'light'.

Step two.

Using whichever your preferred method, apply foundation. I've used a 'beauty blender' sponge which you can get really cheap from eBay because I'm not a huge fan of foundation brushes. Often I just use my fingers and buff off the excess with a clean make-up sponge.

MUA Matte Perfect Foundation in 'fair'.

Step three.

I always use pressed powder as I suffer from an awful, shiny nose (much like Rudolf). Using a puff pat it onto your face, paying special attention to any problem areas like my shine. I followed with a bit of Benefit Erase Paste under my eyes again to ensure they really are as hidden as possible and pat on a bit more powder under my eyes to keep it all together. Buff off the excess with a big, fluffy powder brush.

Natural Collection Pressed Powder in 'cool'. Benefit Erase Paste in 'medium' (sample size).

Step four.

Using a two-tone, natural-shade bronzer, add some dimension to your face with a large bronzing brush. I was always told to use a shade or two darker than your colour to achieve a natural look. As I typically use the palest foundation, I opted for the palest bronzer. Use what's best for you, I used to be terrified of bronzing but I'm over that now! Get your lighter of the two shades on your brush, knocking off the excess and starting from the middle of your forehead, draw a number three shape (forehead, cheek, chin) down each side of your face, followed by a quick sweep down the centre, over your nose. Add a light amount more if you think it's not visible enough or buff with a powder brush if too dark. Be sparing, you don't want to look like you're wearing wood stain! Once you're satisfied with that, get your darker shade onto your brush and get ready to contour! Suck in your cheeks to find the hollow and very gently in a circular motion working outwards towards your jawline, apply your darker shade. Buff again if too dark.

Miss Sporty Ooh! Tan So Fine in '001 Sun Kissed'.

Step five.

Apply your highlighter. It's up to you how and where, whichever works best for you, I've applied it to my brow and cheek bones as I do struggle to get a balance where I don't look like an other-worldly being. Apply eye primer on your eyelids so that it has time to settle before you go at it with shadow and fill in your brows. It is really important to get your brows sorted before you start to work on your eyes as they will provide a good guide to the width of your face. I've filled mine in with a brown shadow and then a sharpened eyebrow pencil.

Highlighter in 'Shimmer Kiss' from Artiste Collection. Professional Eye Primer. Shadow in 'Shade 2' from Undressed Pallete. Eyebrow pencil in 'brown'. All MUA/MUA Professional.

Step six.

Unless your wedding has a strong theme, it's important to remember that everyone is there to see you. Your husband or wife is in love with you, not someone covered in make-up so you're better off opting for natural shades for your eyes. Natural doesn't have to be boring. I've used three natural shades in three tones to create a subtle smokiness. Starting with the mid-shade, apply to the middle of your lid working outward so that it softens at the edges. Apply your darker shade carefully to the outer lid working in and blend so that they merge nicely into the socket line and one another. Finally, with the lighter shade, sweep it carefully in from the inner lid to widen your eyes and be sure to blend so that the whole eye flows nicely. Using a white eyeliner pencil, carefully draw along your bottom water line, this will open your eyes up more and make you look more awake (perfect if you've had wedding-day nerves).

Shadows from Accessorize 'Lovely Day' Pallete. Avon ColourTrend Pencil Play eyeliner in 'white'.

Step Seven.

I wear eyeliner pretty much everyday, I'm a big fan and I couldn't imagine my wedding day without that eye definition that I use all the time though my usual liquid liner was going to be too much. Instead use a soft black pencil along your upper lash line and halfway along your lower lash line. Then smudge using a small brush. I set the liner by going over it with a fine brush (you could use the tip of an applicator) with the middle shade, this softens the liner and stops it from looking too dramatic. Then apply a couple of coats of your favourite mascara.

MUA Professional 3-in-1 Extreme Contour Liner in 'black' . Collection Killer Curves Mascara in 'Ultra Black'.

Step eight.

Now that you know how your eyes are looking, you can apply your blusher accordingly (if you apply your blusher before your eye make-up, you have nothing to compare it to and run the risk of looking over flushed). For day-to-day I tend to only apply blusher to the apples of my cheeks, however here I've spread a little further for a more mature look.

Collection Blush in '02 Bashful'.

Step nine.

For the final touch, line your lips in a nude/natural shade using lots of little strokes to 'feather' the line as opposed to one continuous srtoke. Soften with a cotton bud if you think it needs it. Fill in your lips with a subtle, natural shade.

17 Lip Liner in 'Rose Blush'. Collection lipstick in '13 Satin Bow'.

And you're done! Here's the before (wearing only moisturiser and lip balm) and after.

I hope you like this little tutorial, I uhmed and ahed over whether or not to make it a video or not. Still unsure if it would benefit. What do you think?

Clare