Q&A with Caroline from Amazing Face Wedding Make Up & Hair

Wedding Make Up Q&A by Amazing Face – Doset

What inspired you to work in the wedding industry?

Our business started in 2007 when we realised that Dorset lacked a quality mobile make up and hair service offering London style, techniques and experience at affordable Dorset prices. Our aim was to offer a first class VIP feel for make up, hair & beauty at the clients home/venue that truly made them look and feel very special but stopped them having to go out to a salon and rush back loosing that relaxing edge to their day…

So it began, I soon realised however that individual specialists in their field were needed to complete the service offered and I teamed up with a talented hairdresser who had the same drive and work ethic as me.( Believing firmly that we are both excellent at our own individual skill sets we would offer a better quality service if we stuck to our individual skills and gave top quality work within our own sphere/boundaries) Now every client receives a first class makeup artist and hairdresser at each individual wedding, this is essential as we deal in very large wedding parties a great deal of the time.The business has grown immensely over the years through sheer hard work, drive, determination and raw talent , and we are having fun doing it whilst offering a reliable quality first class service all the way.

How long have you been working as a make up artist?

25 years in the beauty industry and hair also, it gives us lots of experience with all types of people, ethnicity and natures , if we haven’t seen it it just hasn’t  happened yet ! We love what we do from Brides to Editorial photo shoots and of course Styled shoots, which is where we met the fabulous Lucy back in 2013!

What do you love about weddings?

Simply everything from the smallest detail to the biggest hugs at the end when we know our clients are happy with what we’ve done .

How would you describe your style of make up?

My make up styles are really down to the requirements of the  client, I  listen very carefully at a  consultation and take into account many deciding factors such as, light, weather, time of day, dress, flowers, theme it’s not necessarily about what I want to create, it’s about what the client has probably dreamed about since she was  little and showing her a way that will recreate those dreams suited to her natural attributes and needs.

Do you offer a trial before the wedding day?

Yes a trial is when we meet to discuss a brides special requests and ideas for how you wish to look on your big day. Together we will try out colours and textures and decide upon the perfect look for her.
Our clients are normally comfortable with the way they look, but usually want to ‘enhance it’ rather than alter it. They are aiming for natural radiance which will last throughout the day. Working together we can easily achieve this.

First we will discuss the day, thoughts on looks and incidentals like the colours of dresses,time of day venue,flowers,accessories etc
then your hair will be styled and makeup applied.
Once you are completely happy with what you see, every detail will be photographed and noted. This is to ensure that the wedding day “look” is exactly the same as the trial, allowing you to be confident and relaxed on your wedding day.

How long does it generally take you to create a wedding look on a bride?

Wedding looks at trial usually, for hair and makeup take about 2 hours and on the day we normally say  1/2 hours per Bridesmaid/Mum and 3/4 for the bride.

Do you work with a team or is it a one man band?

Due to the high demand for our services, we have put a small, close knit, team together. Our specialised team members offer an individual set of expertise and a wealth of experience in their own respective fields.
The team are handpicked and have unique talents that equal our own skill sets, they also meet the very high standards we strive for at Amazing Face.

How far do you travel for wedding make up?

We travel wherever anyone needs us, yes anywhere in the country as long as the numbers are at our minimum requirement level of 4 for Hair and 4 for Makeup and the travel requirements are met so as an example,for Scotland we need a stopover and accommodation! we have also done a few international weddings to in Rome, Spain and Turkey and next year in Mexico.

What’s are your best tips as a Bridal Makeup Artist?

My best tips as a Bridal Makeup Artist would be …….
If you haven’t been savvy about skin care routine,start immediately we need to get your skin illuminated and fresh which in turn makes a great base for makeup and In turn again makes better photos.
One look never fails, radiant skin,rosy cheeks and softly flushed lips this will look good in person and on camera and that’s what we do  best here at Amazing Face.

How has the Coronavirus pandemic affected your business?

Since March Amazing Face has done 6 weddings ! all being well by Christmas we might be lucky to do 10 ! We postponed well over 100 weddings to next year and we are feverantly waiting and praying they go ahead in some shape manner or form , we’ve basically lost a whole year and a half income, if 21 weddings go to 22 that will be two years income gone and just not sustainable , that’s 13 years work in building the best in the South West up in smoke!
Fingers crossed for our Brides who gave been really kind to us and we are thankful for the support, obviously our Government is not really supporting the Wedding Industry whole heartedly and thinks we are non viable ….. we will show them !!!

The images below are from a styled shoot that Caroline and I worked on together back in 2013 when we first met. Model – Frances Elaine

To Check out more of Caroline’s amazing work or to book her for your wedding you can visit the Amazing Face website here

Check out this other great guest blog post about how to deal with wedding stress written recently by the awesome Chris Piercy