The ultimate pre-wedding skin care overview is here, courtesy of our bridal facial guide! (Don’t worry, grooms: this extends to you too!)
Whether you:
- Have your wedding date set already
- Are a makeup artist who is looking to deliver science-backed skincare advice to your clients
- Or want to get the jump on your skin early to ensure you’re wedding-ready for your big day (whenever that day comes!)
This blog is a must-bookmark. After all, what other occasion has so much built-in pressure around it to both look and feel your best? Self-confidence starts with great skin, and knowing how and when to prep your skin for your big day is key to making that dreamy complexion a reality.
Ready? Then let’s dive into our bridal facial guide:
“When Should I Start Prepping My Skin For My Wedding?”
When it comes to prepping for your wedding, timing is everything. That extends to skincare!
Facial Expressions recommends starting your pre-wedding skincare plan six to nine months prior to your wedding day. This provides enough time for several cycles of cellular turnover, which take around four-to-five weeks each. We follow the age-old advice of, “The best time to start was yesterday. The next best time to start is right now!”
More specifically, we recommend:
- Having regular consultations with your skin therapist for six continued months before your wedding to ensure that your at-home and in-spa skin regimen is serving your skin’s current needs (as the seasons change, for example, both routines will need to be adjusted to better fit your skin’s response to the climate!)
- Having a minimum of one facial per month for six to nine months prior to your wedding
- Having a skin therapist-approved at-home skin care routine in place for a minimum of six months before your wedding for optimal results
More challenging skin concerns, such as acne, take more time and dedication to resolve. When in doubt, start early!
What Does Your Pre-Wedding Skin Need To Glow?
If you regularly experience breakouts (or have a history of acne with residual scarring), then, as mentioned above, the earlier you start working with a skin care professional the better: the facials recommended to you will focus on decongesting your pores, LED light therapy to reduce breakouts and minimize scarring, and enzyme-based masks to keep your cellular turnover cycles on track.
For those struggling with redness, rosacea, and/or sensitivity, then the best bridal facials are algae-based and focus on calming the skin.
Last but certainly not least, the best facial for all brides just before their wedding is a hydrating facial several days prior to your big day. These hydrating facials incorporate very mild exfoliation to avoid triggering any redness or flakiness and, for the same reason, do not include extractions. The result? Clear, fresh-looking, and utterly radiant skin!
“How Do I Prepare My Skin For My Wedding?
That’s yet another question we field frequently here at Facial Expressions Skin Therapy. Both prospective brides and grooms come to us seeking a holistic approach to tackling their skin, whether it be addressing acne, reversing visible signs of premature aging, or tackling other common concerns such as rosacea or scarring.
When it comes to prepping your skin for your wedding (or any significant life event), we very much advise a blend of customized professional skin treatments and expertly-guided daily skin care routines.
The Importance of Customized Skin Treatments
Leading up to a big life event is not the time to DIY your skin treatments! DIYing (especially using common harmful ingredients like toothpaste or fresh lemon) can either A) be a waste of valuable time, or B) wreaking havoc on your skin’s moisture barrier, leaving your skin vulnerable to redness and irritation.
Instead, seek out a professional skin therapist who, ideally, focuses on long-term skin health instead of instant gratification.
At Facial Expressions, that takes the form of a comprehensive Discover FX treatment followed by customized facials.
We keep our treatments genuine and people-focused through our:
- 360° approach
- Science-based strategies
- Root-cause investigations
- And, of course, transformative tools and technology
Our team looks deeper than the surface of the skin thanks to our high-tech Observ camera; on top of our physical analysis of your skin, we also take a deep-dive into your genetics, lifestyle, previous product usage, and skin care goals to design personalized strategies that work with the way your unique skin type functions.
At-Home Skin Care Tips and Strategies
At-home skin care tips and strategies are an indispensable component of our bride facial guide.
Why? Because now is the time to invest in professional skin care… and to follow your skin therapist’s advice to the letter!
While not an exhaustive list, this typically includes:
- Custom-built at-home facial kits to tackle stubborn skin concerns like acne, rosacea, or dryness
- Nutrition advice to identify and replace trigger foods that aggravate your skin concerns
- Lifestyle alterations, like detergent or shampoo switch-outs, to help avoid flare-ups
Pro Tip: Part of at-home skin care routine is not forgetting your body! Especially your hands, feet, neck, décolleté, and back. While cleansing and moisturizing these areas is crucial, “dry brushing” the body with a firm-bristled brush is an esthetician-approved way to exfoliate the skin and increase circulation. Its origins trace back to ancient Greece and Japan as a beautifying treatment. Just make sure to clean your brush thoroughly after each use, and consult your skin therapist in advance to check that they approve this method of mechanical exfoliation for your skin type!
Ready to Put Our Bridal Facial Guide Into Action?
Contact us today to start getting your skin bridal-ready.