Using Fresh flowers in bridal hair

I love to incorporate fresh flowers into bridal hair, it was huge last year and, I'm pleased to say, still very much on trend this year with relaxed boho, vintage and festival themes being so popular.  Even if the bride opts for something more jewellery orientated,  fresh flowers make a great choice for Bridesmaid's.

       Gyp is very easy to come by and works perfectly as it has a woody stem so is really easy to poke in to an 'up do'.  Freesias and Miniature Roses also work really well. A florist can wire and tape these flowers to make them easier to use and also hold a little moisture which is an advantage on hot  summer days,  however,  I have often got away with just pinning them.

A beautiful option for a bride is a flower crown like this one http://www.beaubright.co.uk/
It looks so colourful and is very comfortable to wear.

Hair for all these images was by
www.beautifulhair4weddings.co.uk 
and the beautiful make-up by www.emmabrooksmakeup.co.uk

Beautiful Easter Weddings

Wedding season has officially started once again with the Easter Bank holiday weekend being really busy for me.  On Thursday I attended to a beautiful bride Lucy and her four lovely bridesmaids and mum. Lucys Gorgeous make-up was by http://www.nicelkinsmakeup.co.uk and her amazing flowers were from http://www.wildpoppies.co.uk

Lucy's four gorgeous Bridesmaids

Beautiful Bride Lucy

Lucy married at Stoke by Nayland Golf Club and got ready for her wedding in one of the gorgeous lodges there. I have worked inside the lodges a few times now,  and I have to say that I can highly recommend them to any bridal party looking for somewhere really special to stay the night before.
Very large bright and airy rooms with stunning outside space for photos, Each lodge has a fully equipped kitchen and extremely well appointed bathrooms.  Lucy's wedding did actually take place at Stoke-by-Nayland, however the Lodges make a great place to stay for many other local venues such as The Talbooth and Dove Barn
http://www.stokebynayland.com/lodges
http://www.milsomhotels.com/letalbooth/
http://www.dovebarn.com

A touch of Hollywood glamour for Essex's leading lady!

 

Guest Blog Post by Tony Bramley from Storm Photography

 

 

One of Essex’s leading vocalists came into the studio recently for a Hollywood themed shoot and makeover for her new website. Allison Jennings approached us here at Storm requesting some stunning new portrait shots for her website and we were only too pleased to help. We called on local  hair and beauty stylists Tina Crossley from Beautiful Hair 4 Weddings and Emma Brooks form Emma Brooks Make-Up to transform Allison into a classic Hollywood Starlet for the day. With interests in Jazz and vintage music as well as current popular songs we knew this style would suit Allsion to a tee, and really represent her personality!

 

Allison has always admired the stars of the 1940’s and 50’s such as Veronica Lake, Jane Russell and Grace Kelly and so Tina drew inspiration from these classic movie icons to create a stunning new hair style for the singer. Tina started the makeover by adding some gorgeous blond hair extensions to Allison’s hair to give her hair extra inches creating added glamour and body. She followed this by curling the hair with big heated rollers to create bounce and lift. Finally, Tina created a wave across the front to finish the starlet look. Tina mentioned to us that this style is gaining popularity for brides and she see this as key trend for wedding day hair for 2014.

Next it was Emma’s turn to wave her magical make up wand with a look that would even make modern starlet Scarlett Johansson a little jealous. Emma started by giving Allison a Matt skin with soft contouring using Airbase to accentuate Allison’s naturally lovely features. Next matt colours were added to her eyes with flicked out eye liner wings to create a dramatic eye. A flutter of flirty eyelashes were added to finish the eyes. The final touch was a lashing of rich plum lipstick which nailed the movie star look.

 

Next it was time to do the shoot. For this I knew my Fuji camera would come into its element; so much so that I am using it for a current project I am working on for Hollywood lighting shoots. Most portraits seen these days are white backgrounds and lots of flooded-front-lighting used, which makes the results very flat but work fine for junior photographers who do not fully understand lighting and want an easy fast shooting session.  For this and other shoots, Hollywood lighting is all about crafting the light to the subject to produce creative shadow detail,  which is softened and shot in black and white to get that rich Hollywood glamour feel to the images and subject. This made the shoot slighty longer in duration but it was a creative process that produced beautiful images that although not modern are timeless. It will really suit the upcoming new look and feel of Allison’s website and marketing literature.

 

In 2014, we will be offering this as a Contemporary Classic package which is fine art portraiture for those wanting a more refined portrait to treasure forever.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How To Enjoy ‘Getting Ready’ For Your Wedding

So the day has finally arrived after all the months of preparation and detailed planning and as you wake up  on the morning of your wedding day, the final few hours before you walk down the aisle are here… its time to ‘get ready'!!

I am always being asked by brides, how long will it all take to get ready?  The simple answer is ‘Longer than you think’! It can vary, but you will need to allow at least three hours for your hair, make-up and getting into your dress. Remember that If your hairstylist and make-up artist have been booked to attend not only to you, but also a party of Bridesmaids and the Mother of the Bride, the process can take a great deal longer!  You will also need to factor in time for your photographer too, especially if you want to have the ‘getting ready’ shots or time for photos  before the ceremony.

The key to a relaxing and enjoyable experience is to have the morning planned carefully.  Having helped hundreds of brides to get ready, my  top tip for a stress free morning is to book professional help with your hair and make-up and have a trial for both a few weeks before so you know what you are going to look like and how long it is going to take. An experienced  professional will also be able to tell you how much time will be needed for the whole party to get ready and what time you will have to start. I always make a plan for my brides, that way they know they will be ready on time and they can relax!!

To see a typical example of what service to expect from your hairstylist  and make-up artist, take a look at this promotional video which shows a bride and two bridesmaids getting ready for a wedding and having a great time!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYLx-zMY0T8

To find out more about my wedding hair service, visit me at www.beautifulhair4weddings.co.uk

Wear your wedding dress again charity party

It's not every day that you get the chance to wear your wedding dress again! Well I got just the opportunity to wear mine  - 20 years after my big day - when I joined make up maestro and colleague Emma Brooks, fellow wedding hair stylist Lynette Chasmer and marketer Sara Carter for a charity fundraiser in aid of Help for Heroes on Sunday.   The ‘Wear Your Wedding Dress Again’ charity event was being held at Prested Hall and arranged by the wonderful Abi and Rob and their teams from Abigail's Collection & The Groom's Room. Before the party started, Emma and I visited Abi to transport her look back to her own big day in 2005. To recreate Abi’s wedding hair I first added a few hair extensions, then dressed it up into a high sophisticated style which was sleek at the front but with lots of fullness and curls at the back, completing her look I attached her beautiful crystal head piece. It was Emma’s turn next, as she provided a glowing radiance to Abi's wonderful skin, used natural shimmery eye shadow colours to make the most of Abi's eyes plus a flutter of lashes with a beautiful fine delicate flick of liner to compliment the look. A pop of colour on the lips finalised Abi’s wedding look. Next it was time to give Sara her ‘Hollywood Glamour’ hair makeover. Sara was one of my very recent brides and wanted me to exactly recreate the look I gave her for her wedding day in August. I tonged Sara’s bob length hair, added curled extensions and pinned it up to give her a Hollywood starlet look. A beautiful diamond and pearl hair pin added further vintage class to her glossy dark locks. Emma’s look for Sara involved a full on red Hollywood glam lip using the must have shade M.A.C Ruby Woo, matte eye shadow with flicked out wings and eyelashes to create a dramatic film star appearance.     Lynette got married in 1992 so her hair was loosely tousled with curling tongs and a little backcombing for root lift decorated with a rose flower set to the side. Her make-up was updated to 2013 but all in all she looked very Scott and Charlene circa neighbours 1992!       Emma got married 13 years ago, so I recreated her look but added a modern twist using big rollers and extensions. I curled her hair and pinned it up to create an exquisite wedding hair style.  After adding height to the front, I finished by adding a birdcage veil and side tiara to top it off. She looked stunning.    Next it was my turn; after doing my own hair and adding my original wedding hair corsage, Emma waved her magic airbase make up wand and gave me a lovely dewy look for the evening. Wow, did it take me back to the 1990s! With our wedding dresses on, which spanned the past three decades, we were ready to party the night away.   On entry to the sparkly lit up entrance of Prested Hall, we were dazzled by the bulbs of the paparazzi and walked the Red Carpet. I felt like a star of a premiere! The attentive staff ushered us into the main hall where over 90 other brides in their wedding finery were sipping champagne and nibbling the beautiful canapés. I was absolutely agog at seeing so many beautiful brides and the array of their dresses that rocked from 1960’s vintage right up to 2013. Everyone had taken so much care over their bridal look and it was great to see many of the brides we have worked with over the years. Photo courtesy of Simon Brazier of EPS Photography.         As the fun began and drinks were flowing we were reminded of the real reason for the charity ball – to raise money for Help for Heroes by their regional fundraiser. Rapturous applause greeted Abi and Rob who officially welcomed everybody. Then it was onto the evening’s entertainment which started with the dulcet tones of Sarah Grace. Moving on, we brides rocked to the beats of disco greats that set the pace of the evening by the guys from Dreamwaves Events. Trickster Magicians Toby and Alan entertained us with their slight of hand. Then there was a fantastic Photo booth, and something I had never seen before, a Flick Book Photo Booth run by photography specialists and wedding supplier finalists Aurora Pearl. This was so much fun and something I will be telling my future bridal hair clients about. Vanilla and Ivory provided gorgeously themed and delicious cupcakes. The guys and girls at EPS Photography and PictureBoxPortraits were on hand all evening to take pictures of all the stunning brides. Finally, the wonderful harmonies of the band Next of Kin who were featured on this year’s X factor set the tears and laughter flowing with a few romantic hits of the past while every bride’s favourite photos of their special day flashed up on the screen. It was a great touch! With the addition of a luxury raffle and the lovely butlers in the buff collecting for the charity, the event raised nearly £2,800 for Help For Heroes. What a result!  Everyone had a great time and we can’t wait for next year Abi and Rob! You did a great job.

Want to wear a veil? How to choose the right one.

 

Christina Ricci marries in Givenchy couture
with a stunning veil. 
Photo: @ChristinaRicci

  Veils come in various guises but,  if you have decided  to wear one there are some points to consider.  The main thing is that the veil, hairstyle and, of course the dress, need to work well together.

I would advise that, unless your veil is an heirloom,  you have a hair trial to explore the possibilities for your wedding hair before you actually buy your veil, this will ensure you are not too restricted on your hairstyle.  The length, fullness and placement of the veil  will all have a bearing on the suitability of certain styles.

 If  you wish to wear the veil over your face for the ceremony, it  will need to be placed high on your head,  for example above a higher  bun or chignon  or just behind a tiara. This placement works well with hair up or down  and gives added width to the overall look.

If you want to wear your hair down, it is important to  consider the weight of the veil as, with a longer, heavy veil, a half-up do might be better because there will be  a foundation to anchor it to which will prevent it from slipping. A glimpse of long luscious waves and big curls  can look stunning  under a veil but  remember that the hair should never hang lower than the veil itself.

Veils are traditional but many girls are choosing to wear them in a less traditional way, for example placed at the back of the head either under a high bun or on top of a low nape design. Single tier veils work well with these looks as the hair and any detail on the dress can still be seen without the final look being too cluttered.  So remember, if you are going to wear your veil lower down the back of your hair, your veil should stop either above or below any detail on the back of your dress (such as lacing or embellishments),  but  never cut through the middle of it.

 Vintage looks are so popular at the moment,   short bobbed hair looks fabulous with a short shoulder length or birdcage veil to emphasise the vintage theme with the hair finger waved or set in pin curls. Longer hair is best worn up with these types of veil, either a pleat, a low nape roll, twist or even a big side bun.













If you need any more advice contact Tina Crossley at www.beautifulhair4weddings.co.uk
 

      

Help Tina, my hair is too short!

I am often contacted by brides who wish their own hair was longer or thicker,  they imagine they don’t have as much choice as girls with long thick hair. Having amazing hair for your wedding is a must, so fortunately these days you don’t have to be hindered by what Mother Nature has provided, Hair Extensions can be used give you the hair of your dreams for your big day. 

Human hair extensions are available in a huge range of colours and are now incredibly popular. Many celebrities are rarely seen without them.  They can be used to enhance thickness and add length and even colour to the hair and there are a variety of different products and techniques available. However, if you’re thinking about having them for your wedding, it is important that you discuss it you’re your wedding stylist and carefully consider what  type will best for your individual requirements.

My preferred method for bridal hairstyling is to use clip in weft extensions.  A weft is a strip of hair, which has been sewn together, and is then clipped discreetly at the roots.   If you are looking for a ‘Down’ or ‘Half Down’ look for your wedding hair, this method can add extra length, fullness and support, great if your hair is limp because the added piece acts like scaffolding holding the curls or waves in place. Clip in extensions can also be used to create extra body and a better shape in an ‘Up Do’ as there is more hair to work with. The hair can be colour matched so when it has been incorporated into a style, it blends in and is completely undetectable.

  Here I added two of my clip in weft extensions to enhance Ezster’s shoulder length hair, the final result appears as though it is all her own giving extra fullness to the look.