Do or Don't: Doing your own wedding-day makeup

Unless you are Kate Middleton, who famously did her own makeup on her wedding day, or have some major makeup skills and experience, I have to say this one is a DON'T. It's easy enough to do your own makeup, but are you confident that you can make it last through twelve hours of smiling, kissing, sweating, photo-taking, crying, dancing, and bouquet-tossing? A professional makeup artist can do your makeup in a way that makes it much more long-lasting. After my wedding, I couldn't believe that my makeup had stayed on all day!

Another thing to consider is that a professional makeup artist knows how to apply makeup in a way that will be flattering for photos. They may use a special kind of makeup that won't reflect light, so that you won't look like a ghost in any photos that are taken with a flash. I often work with the makeup artist during the getting-ready photos to take some practice shots and check how the makeup is turning out in photos.

This is just one of those things that I think is best left to the pros!