Choosing your wedding make up artist

In the earlier days of wedding planning, I thought a make-up artist (MUA) is one item I can save $$ on.. being not big on make-up, I thought it's most important that the make up be comfortable and natural, and that means I need less make-up = no need such a pro make up artist = save $$.




I quickly settled on a friend who just opened her make up artist business, thought I got a good price, and left it at that. Weeks before the wedding planning though, after doing more research and going for trials with other make-up artists.. and having to source for my own hair accessories, make up products etc, (because my friend didn't have them), I finally decided to engage a pro MUA at 3x my friend's price.. and concluded that it's one of the best decision I made for my wedding!

One rule that I now believe in : the more natural looking make-up you are looking for = the more skilled MUA you need = hire a really good pro. For example, the MUA I used in the end drew my (naturally very short!) brows using 2 types of brow pencil..a dark one with light strokes to simulate my natural brow color and lengthened the brows, then using a light brown pencil to finish the look.

Unless, you are naturally already beautiful, in which case the one rule doesn't apply =)

Some tips from my experience of choosing MUA:

1. Research. Research. Research. Check out MUA portfolios online & ask your friends who have gotten married to recommend MUA

2. Don't skimp. Get the MUA that makes you feel beautiful even if you feel her services is expensive. Read something that rings true for me, "When the bride feels ugly, nothing she looks at will be beautiful. But if the bride feels beautiful, everything else she sees will be too." And the wedding pictures will be there for years & years to come, so as brides gotta do our best to look confident and comfortable in our skin!

3. Check out the products that the MUA uses. A good MUA should use good products too - mix of middle and top end brands like Make up for ever, Dior, Sephora, etc. This is why hiring a good MUA actually saves you money, because you don't have to buy these products for yourself. The costs of foundation, powder, fake lashes, lipstick, blush etc etc etc quickly adds up so if your MUA uses great products it ends up more economical.

4. Check whether the MUA has accessories you can borrow free of charge. In the Singapore context, MUA usually doubles as hair stylist. A good MUA stocks up accessories like necklace, hair pieces, earrings, so you don't have to buy them yourself just for the wedding (which happened to me with the first MUA I considered.. she didn't have all these so the headache of thinking about my hair accessories  & buying them fell on me.. it shouldn't be!) Again this actually saves you money.

5. ALWAYS go for the trials. I went for 3 trials with different MUAs before I settled on one. And yes, I paid for 2 of  the make up trials, but since I don't usually wear make up it helped me to see various looks and know what I really want. The peace of mind that comes with knowing that as a bride, your appearance is in good hands on the wedding day.. is a huge relief.

My pet peeve when choosing MUA was artists who just create a 'template look', e.g. try to make your face look as narrow & tapered as possible, with heavy liners and eyelashes so your eyes look super big & black.. the first MUA I went to just right away went to work on my face without even asking my preference, and when I attempted to engage her in conversation about that, she just said, "Don't worry I know what to do." Well yeah... but would my Groom recognize me on that day, Ms. MUA? ><