​One of my July weddings was at one of the quirkiest venues in the North East, the Crab & Lobster where Laura and Sam got hitched. Laura decided she wanted a glam look so we did a rose gold eye to fit in with her theme. It looked amazing with her colouring and was also complemented by the amazing rose gold sequinned bridesmaids dresses. It was a busy morning getting seven ladies ready in total, they all looked amazing and I had such a gorgeous morning with them all!
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With thanks to Georgina Harrison Photography for sharing the stunning images.

Gorgeous images taken by  the hugely talented Marianne Chua .
​

Hello lovelies,

So last year I spent wedding season and into the winter months pregnant. I waddled with my kit all over the North East getting lots of brides ready for their big days. I finally hung my brushes up for a short while and had my son Harry, 8 days late on the 16th  February weighing 7lbs & 7 ounces! It was the best day of mine and my husband's life and he is just the most perfect, happy little boy. ​

I wanted to do a blog about this, firstly to let you know why I've been quiet but also I wanted to share with you some little tips/quick fixes on the postpartum side of Makeup and Beauty.

I am a first time Mum and certainly no expert but wanted to share some of my experience with you on this subject. I know a lot of my lovely brides have gone on to have babies and some who are currently expecting and felt I wanted to share this with you.

After labour, the sleepless nights and no longer having any time for yourself, these little things might make you feel just a bit like 'yourself' again! 

Dry Body Brushing
Finding time to even just have a wash is difficult in the early days, but when I did I used a big body brush and scrubbed all my dry skin away. It makes your skin feel softer, but also helps to get rid of all those toxins, hormones and rubbish out of your body that has accumulated over 9 months. It totally kick starts the lymph system and gets rid of excess fluid of which you have a lot of after labour.  It also wakes up your body, I felt particularly sluggish. It gives much needed energy, improves circulation and can start to help shift some of the baby weight! A Brucie bonus.

Skin and Hydration
The first thing that shows lack of sleep is your skin, fine lines become deeper, darkness under the eyes, spots and dryness can all make you look like death warmed up! The biggest thing you can do to help your skin is to make sure you drink water. You always make sure baby is fed but remembering to drink and feed yourself is difficult. Fill a big bottle and keep it with you and aim to drink it all every day. In addition to this moisturise and use something that is high in hyaluronic acid to flood your skin and help it retain moisture. An eye cream, especially one with a rollerball that you can keep in the fridge will take down puffiness, help to fight ageing by plumping fine lines, it will also improve the circulation in that area to make you look less tired. 

5 Minute Makeup
No longer having the luxury of time to apply my makeup how I used to I totally slimmed down my daily routine. I changed products specifically to make it a simple, effective and a much quicker application. Swapping out powder products for creams is a great tip as you can use your fingers to apply, therefore it is speedier but they also give you that dewy glow that you now may be lacking!

Dewy skin equals healthy skin, making you look well rested and no one needs to know its totally false!  BB creams are easy to wear during the day, or a light foundation, if you haven't got time just conceal areas where needed!

Multi-use products are also great and time saving such as cheek and lip tints for example. Stick applicators are great as you can literally draw them on and blend with your fingers. There are products available for all areas on the face such as cream eye shadows, blushers, contour, highlight and light reflective concealer pens really can make the difference for the eye area. 

Curling your lashes can really help you look more awake if you have really limited time. LVL lashes are a treatment that perms and tints your lashes and lasts for up to 8 weeks, so you don't even have to worry about them on a morning, this is something I plan on getting!

One last thing, your body has just been through a massive ordeal, but you've done something amazing and brought life into the world! So if you aren't feeling too hot, give yourself a break and when someone offers to let you have a nap, a break or just 5 minutes - let them and look after yourself!
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See below for some of my top postpartum beauty and makeup products. I hope you find them useful!

Much love 

Laura
​x 

2 016 - Wow what a year it was.

Whilst finally putting this post together and looking back at all the amazing moments I've had in 2016 just reminds me how lucky I am to do what I do. Its not just that I get to 'work' in some of the most beautfiul venues around the North East and Yorkshire, surrounded by gorgeous flowers, stunning wedding gowns, shoes, and of course loads of makeup but more importantly getting to work in the special inimate atmosphere that a wedding morning brings, full of laughter and love. Being able to calm a brides nerves and giving her the confidence to walk down the ailse has got to be the best bit for me; I completely love what I do and hope that my passion shines through in my work.  

Below are some of my brides that I've had the pleasure to work with last year and I have also added in some of the beautiful images from shoots I have worked on. I must also say a huge thank you to all of the amazing photographers I have worked with who have given me permission to use these images. (Please see underneath each picture for the credit.) Without them I could not show my work properly, as I am certainly no photographer!

I hope you enjoy looking through these images. A huge thank you to all the amazing brides, clients, fellow wedding suppliers I met in 2016, it was a blast!

Roll on 2017!
Laura 

On a gorgeous day during the August bank holiday weekend I spent the morning with the lovely Praline and her girls getting them ready for her big day. At Praline's trial she had concerns mainly about getting her base perfect, as she said her skin was oily and worried her makeup wouldn't last. We created a look using products suited to her skin type including a good matte primer, a foundation suited to oily skin and a good setting spray to finish. Praline loves a bright lipstick so we went for Atomic by Illamasqua a gorgeous fuchsia violet matte shade.  

I think she looked so beautiful and we nailed the look she was going for. I loved working with Natasha on her wedding morning, and I wish her and James and long and happy life together.

​With Thanks to Mark Hillyer for the stunning images of Natasha in front of the beach huts in Whitby that perfectly bring out the blue in her eyes! 

One of my stunning June brides was the lovely Jen. She married Mike at St Mary's Church in Norton followed on by the Treebridge Hotel. Jen's makeup was natural but glam with cool pink undertones that complimented her complexion perfectly. The beautiful images below were taken by the talented Amy Lou Photography.

Last month I travelled over to Penrith in the Lake District to makeup the beautiful Annabel and her bridal party for the wedding the following day. Blencowe Hall was an amazing setting to get Annabel, her seven lovely bridesmaids, mother of the bride and mother of the groom ready.  Due to the amount of lovely faces I had to do, we made a really early start time of 6am and I managed to get all the girls ready for the 11:30am wedding! 

I did Annabel's makeup for her hen party and she liked the eye shadow we used so we tried it again on the trial and it was perfect! At the trial she tried a rose coloured lipstick and was happy with it, but on the day decided on a last minute red lip! Annabel said that she was so used to wearing a bright colour, it didn't feel right on her to choose a typical bridal lipstick. The Chanel lipstick she wore looked amazing on her.

For the bevy of beautiful bridesmaids, Annabel decided she wanted them to have a look similar to hers but different colours while still remaining natural and pretty. Some choose to have lashes and some didn't, and each choose a lighter or fuller coverage base to suit their individual skin types and preferences, however they are all worn the same bronzey eye and a perfect nude pink lip. The shade is a staple in my kit Charlotte Tillbury's Bitch Perfect. This looked amazing with their navy dresses.

Images taken by and kindly shared by Barbara Lowe Photography

In March I had the pleasure of being a Bridesmaid for my two best friends Rachelle and Peter. My husband was an Usher and we were both so excited and honoured to be part of their wedding day.

Naturally I wanted to do Rachelle's bridal makeup. It is a pleasure to do any bride's makeup, but its super special when you can do it for your friend, and I was so chuffed when she asked me to. ​

Knowing Rachelle like I do, it was an unspoken understanding of what she wanted on the day. We shared a Pinterest board, but I already planned what products to use on her before the trial and even knew the perfect lipstick shade. Throughout the years I've known Rachelle she has always worn a red lip so that had to be the only choice! Nars Rita suited her perfectly, completed with a classic smokey eye. A strong look that Rachelle can pull off with ease due to her naturally tanned skin and dark hair.  

Rachelle and Peter were married at St Cuthberts Church in Great Ayton, North Yorkshire, followed by the reception at Whinstone View Barn.  The wedding couldn't of been more perfect. A fantastic day was had by all!

I hope you enjoy the pictures below that were beautifully taken and kindly shared by Sarah Jane Ethan