Should you use a Bridal Team or a Salon?

Among the many decisions to make as a Bride to be is the choice to use a full service salon, or to find an independent artist(s) to provide the beauty services (makeup and hair styling) for you and your party. There are definite advantages to each option and I am here to highlight them for you. As you find out while wedding planning, there is no shortage of options out there. I believe that there is a perfect option for everyone, you just need to find it!

During my career, I have worked both in salons and on bridal teams. The first salon I was employed in did a considerable amount of weddings, and being a person with a background in Hospitality Management before that, I was always trying to understand what was happening behind the scenes and not just focusing on showing up and doing the hair and makeup. A few years have passed since then, and I now have been able to build my own bridal team. I pride myself in putting to use the best practices I have gathered along the way as well as my desire to constantly find ways to run things more efficiently, and create an enjoyable experience for everyone involved.

I do have a lot of good things to say about booking your wedding day hair and makeup in a full service salon. Hair salons can be a great way to one stop shop! Perhaps the stylist whom you know and love, and have worked with for the past five years happens to be an amazing Bridal stylist, and that could be a done deal for you! When he/she does your consultation/trial run, they can help you to prepare for your wedding day with referrals to a great nail artist to execute your ideal nude mani/pedi, and to an esthetician who will help you up your game on facials and get your brows shaped perfectly. All of these preparations can now happen in the one location you are already familiar with.

Salons will accommodate bridal parties of smaller sizes. If you only need hair and makeup for yourself and your mother because you are not having a bridal party, booking with a really great salon could be the best option for you. Bridal teams will have minimum numbers of guests per party/a minimum spend because a wedding they book in most cases will need to make their whole day in order to compensate for travel and set up time. A salon will book your artists with other guests before and after you on a Friday or Saturday, so there is no need to require a minimum (your artists will have a full and profitable day regardless of the size of your group).

In a Salon, you will most likely be able to have your entire party accommodated within a short period of time. A group of ten people, may be accommodated by five salon employees, and you can all get in and out within two hours. Talk about efficient!

Kim giving Shawna the finishing touches before her May wedding at the Langham.

I love working with my own Independent Bridal team and I can share several reasons why Brides love this concept as well. For starters, you will get to have all of your wedding day hair and makeup performed in your own space. In most cases, Brides choose to host the wedding morning preparations in a hotel suite. Ladies enjoy the vibe that is created when they get to have all of their party in one room without having strangers around. Imagine being able to sit around in your robes and have your brunch catered in while listening to your own Spotify playlist and making mimosas. You can start the day relaxing/getting excited and sharing all the funny stories and memories with your girls. Also, your artists will be committed to and focused on you and your party for the day! You will not have to worry about your artists popping back and forth to other clients who are not a part of your group, and taking time away from you.

Another benefit to my brides is direct communication. When a bride contemplates the details of her look, for example purchasing an accessory to add to her hair, she can email, call, or text me and we will have a conversation about it. I do this often, and I am happy to do it. You are not dealing with a booking agent, or manager whom is a middle man. This open communication makes for a great experience for my brides.

Booking with a Bridal team in your hotel suite generally means less running around once your hair and makeup is complete. Most Brides have their photographers begin taking photos while their hair and makeup is being completed, then they get dressed, and then head to have their first look on site in the hotel lobby. This means that you don't need to travel back to your hotel and expose your hair and makeup to the elements more than necessary before your ceremony.

Working with an independent bridal team means that you get to know the actual individual(s) you will be spending the first half of your wedding day with, and this begins with the communication that happens before you even book them. You get to experience more genuine interaction and the development of a relationship, as opposed to feeling like your wedding day is a business transaction. As a Bridal Artist, I am honored to have the privilege to spend more time with a wedding party than any other vendor (aside from perhaps the photographers and videographers). It is important that you feel that your Bridal Artist(s) not only really get you, but also that they are the kind people you will enjoy spending the morning with on the most important day of your life!

Lastly, working with a Bridal team means that you have chosen to have your hair and makeup done by someone who is passionate about weddings. There are many different niches within the beauty industry, and the professionals who work on Bridal teams are those who have made a commitment to focus their energy and education efforts on this exact area!

Perfecting Gwen's curls to complete her romantic Bridal Up Style before her Spring wedding.

Happy Wedding Planning,

Ann