After getting married a little over six months ago, I wanted to share my wedding beauty routine from head-to-toe. For the most part, my wedding beauty routine was a similar to what I was doing before, but I focused on implementing new tools like LED Red Light therapy, body care, gua sha facial massage and the Abbey Yung Method for hair to feel confident and beautiful on my wedding day. I’ve compiled a collection of all the products mentioned in this post here. I am happy to share that a lot of these bridal beauty treatments were affordable and attainable as well!
Brows & aesthetics
I was using an eyebrow razor for the longest time, but went back to threading for my wedding. I visited Riya at Fuzz Wax Bar at Sheppard Centre and she was very attentive and didn’t take off too much! I explained that I wanted to maintain the thickness as much as I could (since I have light blonde hair). I was very pleased with how she cleaned up my arches and shaped my brows to elevate my eyes.
I was thinking of going to a facialist, but didn’t want to mess with my clear skin. All I did was 2 days before the wedding, I used a dermaplaning razor to gently remove some peach fuzz on the lower half of my face. I do this seasonally, and timed it before the wedding. Truthfully, I probably should have done it on the Monday instead of the Thursday before the wedding, but it slipped my mind! I was a bit red, but used a gentle toner from Caudalie, the Vinopure toner, which also had anti acneic ingredients to keep any fresh whiteheads at bay.
Red Light Therapy before Wedding
For about 6 months leading up to my wedding, I was using my Silk’n LED Face Mask I was gifted at the Shoppers Beauty event. This device was portable (I even took it to my sister’s wedding in Elora and shared it with her bridesmaid Hannah for a quick session) and easy to use. I would put it on in the AM before getting out of bed or after doing my skincare after an “everything shower”. I find it could get a little hot and would sometimes make me sweat during the summer, so I didn’t mind using the LED mask first, then rinsing my face and following up with my full skincare routine. If you’re looking for a Silk’n LED Face Mask Review, I would say that it’s an affordable device (under $300), and offers both red and blue LED light. The red light is great for targeting lines and firmness, while I would use a blue light cycle to target any active or upcoming acne breakouts. This Silk’n LED Face Mask actually has 4 different light colours total, and 100 lights total, with the red light cycle emitting red various wavelengths: red (620 nm), blue (460–463 nm), yellow (592 nm), and near-infrared (850 nm).
Overall, I definitely saw a difference in terms of my evenness, no new lines (despite my intense stress at work with a hearing and wedding planning), and overall, I feel like I had a glow going into my wedding day. I credit the LED mask mixed with hydration for keeping my skin clear, level and taut for my wedding.
Wedding Beauty Routine: Bridal Skincare
I was planning to get on the retinol train prior to my wedding, however, my skin miraculously cleared up in early spring, and I didn’t want to rock the boat and risk a purge. With my bachelorette in Miami in May, my sister’s wedding in June and other events throughout the summer, I wanted to maintain my clarity and keep doing what worked. Here’s my full product breakdown of all the items I used during the 9-month time period from January until my September wedding.
Morning Bridal Skincare Routine
- Silk’n LED Red Light Face Mask
- 2x per week: Amore Pacific Enzyme Peel Cleansing Powder
- Cold water to cleanse
- SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic Serum
- Vichy Mineral 89 Hyaluronic Acid Serum
- Vichy Mineral 89 Souffle Cream OR Clarins Multi-Active Day Moisturizer
- Caudalie Vinoperfect Dark Circle Birghtening Eye Cream OR Guerlain Abeille Royale Eye R Repair Serum
- La Roche Posay Anthelios SPF UV Mune 400 (Only available in Europe due to this advanced filter not being approved yet in North America. If you’re a redhead/have freckles, you need this SPF at all costs).
Evening Bridal Skincare Routine
- Bioderma Sensibio H2O Micellar Water to remove eye makeup
- La Roche Posay Effaclar Cleanser
- Clarins Multi-Active Night cream
- Spot treatments like Avene Cicalfate+ cream for healing blemishes or Hero Rescue Balm
- 2x per week: SkinCeuticals Equalizing Toner
Gua Sha routine before Wedding
Another facial beauty trend I got into was Gua Sha. Every morning after I would wash my face I would use extra cold water and a quartz gua sha stone to do a simple, 2-minute gua sha routine. I would run it eight times over each area with firm pressure, pushing down wards on the lower part of my face, and upwards on the upper part of my face. I definitely think it makes a difference, and truthfully, I need to get into the routine again to do it daily always!
Bridal Body care routine
Another area of beauty people often neglect is bodycare! Leading up to my wedding I ensured to use an SPF 30 or 50 sunscreen whenever I was outside. The Vichy Capital Soleil one is my favourite and melts into your skin, and was great for avoiding unwanted tanlines. In general, I tried to wear tshirts/strapless tops to avoid this.
For body wash, I used Bioderma Atoderm Shower Oil which was recommended by my dermatologist to deal with my skin conditions. I avoided waxing my legs or doing anything too rough that could lead to breakouts or irritation.
I didn’t self-tan but being outside at the beach or by the lake at the cottage gave me a light glow. I never intentionally suntanned, but it happened gradually over the course of the summer. If my wedding was earlier or later in the year, I would have considered using a light product to get a glow, especially with flash photography and my fair skin.
Diet & Exercise routine for Brides
There is a deeply toxic culture about “shedding for the wedding” and thousands of fitness routines built to prey on vulnerabilities around losing weight for your wedding. I never intentionally sought out any of these routines, and any ads I got, the creators would be immediately blocked. Now as a married woman, I see the flipside for “post partum” shreds and now I am on a blocking spree!
Unfortunately, I broke my toe while in Miami thanks to a rogue sofa leg, so I wasn’t able to continue weightlifting or any intense workout. I replaced heavier lifting with pilates 2-3 times a week, as well as biking places where I could, and recreational swimming on the weekend. I don’t think I lost any inches, but I felt toned and confident on my wedding day. Pilates was also pretty relaxing with a calm environment and focus on whole-body movement, and it often relieved my back and shoulder pain from work. I’d definitely recommend doing a class 1-2 times a week if you can squeeze it in, as I think it’s a great way to tone your abs, shoulders and legs without too much strain.
Once my toe healed, I made sure to get between 8,000-10,000 steps a day and generally moved as much as I could. If I wasn’t in a hearing at work, I would take a 20-30 minute walk during my lunch hour, or walk to get coffee to squeeze in a couple thousand steps. Everything adds up, but it also didn’t take over my life like an obsession! Now that I’m in the winter months writing this, I need to prioritize getting my steps in, and have started using the treadmill daily in my condo gym to either run for 15 minutes, or walk for 30 minutes while I watch a YouTube video as a “reward”, just like my iced coffee was a reward for me in the summertime!
Diet-wise, I cut back a bit on alcohol (but still enjoyed), opting to drink only Friday-Sunday unless I was in a social setting. I also avoided sugary coolers and ciders and switched to lighter rose wine or 0 sugar seltzers/vodka sodas. Again not a huge shift, but typically in summer, I become the cider patio queen, so I was definitely more conscious. This was mostly related to keeping my skin clear and overall less inflamed. For food, I avoided eating out at lunch as much as I could, eating a gluten-free turkey sandwich or chickpea salad instead. Keeping meals more consistent and not eating out also kept my digestion more predictable, so I felt less bloated and didn’t get sick as much! I really can’t speak to any miracle diet, but I eat mainly homemade foods and avoid eating out unless I have to (i.e. on a road trip). I also drank lots of water and green tea at the office!
Bridal Hair Routine: Abbey Yung Method
Leading up to my wedding, it was not the time to experiment. I was tempted to get my hair layered before the big day, but my bridal hairstylist advised not to. Because I was aiming for either an updo (rain plan) or half-up-half-down hairstyle with extensions, layers may have taken away from potential length. Instead, my wedding hairstylist simply cut face-framing pieces for the bridal hairstyle.
I focused on reducing heat, using bonding treatments like K18 Molecular Leave-In Hair Repair Mask every 3-4 weeks, putting Kerastase Ultimate Oil in my hair every day and did minor trims every 2-3 months the year before. I also did some scalp massage in the shower with this scalp scrubbing tool, and using clarifying shampoos (like the K18 Peptide Prep Detox shampoo, classic Head and Shoulders Classic Clean Dandruff Shampoo or Pantene Pro V Volume & Body Shampoo) recommended by Abbey Yung. For conditioning, I used the Dove Damage Therapy Intensive Repair system (which I learned about at an event and met Abbey Yung) including the Dove hair mask, and the L’Oreal Glycolic Gloss Lamination Treatment.
Supplement wise, I made sure to eat foods rich in iron and copper, I took collagen powder (I love Vital Proteins) in my water daily, as well as a multivitamin. Biotin breaks out my skin, so I only took what was a low dose included in my multivitamin.
Final Thoughts on my Wedding Beauty Routine
I hope this blog post can help implement some wedding beauty routines before your wedding day. This is not meant to be a bible, but I wanted to share some conscious shifts I made to feel pampered and beautiful for my wedding. Since the big day, I’ve continued with red light therapy and my hair and skincare routine generally! If you have any questions about the routines and products mentioned, please feel free to leave me a comment or Instagram DM – I’m always happy to chat all things wedding and beauty-related.
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