At a wedding with two brides, I am not getting two identical brides ready, and I never treat them as one booking. Each has her own way of being, her own style and her own taste, and that is what decides her hair and makeup. That is how it was in Deià, Mallorca, where Ashton and Jordan flew in from the United States to marry at Sa Pedrissa: I did both brides’ hair in the same villa, side by side, and neither hairstyle looked anything like the other.
Planning a morning like that raises questions that never come up with one bride: whether you get ready together or apart, whether your looks have to match, and how both your mums fit into the morning. My work starts by getting to know each of you on your own, so that on the day you both walk into the ceremony feeling like yourselves.
How do you do hair and makeup for two brides on the same day?
Two brides means two full bridal preparations, and each needs her own time. So I plan the morning as I would for any wedding, counting back from the ceremony, but with two brides in the schedule instead of one, each with her own skin preparation, makeup, hair and time to get dressed without rushing.
In Deià I worked on my own, because both brides were getting ready in the same villa and the timing allowed for both. When that is not the case, because each bride is getting ready somewhere different or because many more people are getting ready with them, I bring a team. That way neither of you waits for her turn with one eye on the clock.
Should we get ready together or separately?
Both work, and it only depends on how you want to spend that morning. Some couples want to get ready together, share the nerves and see each other all the way through; others would rather not see each other until the ceremony.
Getting ready together is the simplest option, and it is what Ashton and Jordan did in Deià. If you would rather get ready apart, it works best when you are both at the same finca or hotel, even in different rooms. With each bride somewhere else, the logistics become almost impossible for one person, and the answer is a team that splits between the two of you.
Do our hair and makeup need to match?
No, and it rarely helps. Belonging to the same wedding does not mean looking the same. I get to know each of you on your own, with your own references and your own way of being in front of the mirror, and I design a separate look for each.
In Deià it showed from the first moment. Ashton had long, thick hair and wanted romantic waves, almost out of a fairytale; Jordan wanted a polished updo, neat and elegant, to go with the embroidered suit she had chosen. One wore a cape inherited from her grandmother and the other a suit, and in the last photographs of the night, raising a glass on the porch, each was still entirely herself.
What if I don’t want bridal makeup or a bridal hairstyle?
That is as valid a choice as any other. Not long ago I got ready a very private bride who barely wanted any makeup and did not feel comfortable being the typical bride. I realised it the first time we met, at her trial, so we talked it through calmly and agreed that what she wanted was exactly what should be done.
Her makeup was very natural. It only set out to make the most of her features and bring light to a few areas of her face, with her lashes in a natural brown, so that people saw her rather than her makeup. Her hair was done with her own curl, without changing it.
There are no photographs or names from that wedding on this site, because she did not sign the clause in the contract that allows images to be published, and that is kept to the letter. Her story still shows how it is done.
Do we each need a trial?
Yes. Just as each of you has her own look, each has her own trial, and each bride has a full bridal service with the trial included. It is where I learn how your skin and hair respond, and where what will be done on the day is decided, so that neither of you meets any surprises that morning.
Usually both trials are on the same day, together in one room or each in her own, depending on whether you want to see each other. Sometimes they have to be on different days, because of work or the way your trips fit together, and that is arranged without any trouble, but if they can be done together, that is best. If you live outside Spain, the trials are fitted into days when you are already here.
Can you do our mums’ hair and makeup too?
Yes. At a lesbian wedding, both brides’ mothers usually take the place a madrina holds at a Spanish wedding, and I get them ready with the same care as any madrina. In Deià, Jordan’s mother was practically the madrina and stayed in the room all morning while everyone got ready, together with her sister-in-law.
The rest of the family gets ready as at any other wedding. If the group is large, a team joins, and I keep looking after the two of you.
