Bridal makeup hygiene – top tips & advice
A wedding day is one of the most important days in anyone’s life and bridal makeup plays a key role in enhancing the bride’s natural beauty and creating that special bridal glow.
As professional makeup artists whether specialising in bridal makeup or working across many different industry sectors, we all know just how important hygiene is.
Cross-contamination through unhygienic makeup application and beauty treatments can lead to various health problems caused by bacteria and viruses. We have all become more aware of the importance of hygiene post-COVID, and at the height of the wedding season, we’ve put together a quick watch point check list for our lovely wedding and special occasion MUA’s to avoid any potential breakouts and ensure your bride and bridal party look their best.
Safe Beauty Watch Points from The Pro Hygiene Collection®
Check your details and ensure you are insured
Make sure your bride and wedding party have all your professional details which includes evidence of training and experience, the terms and conditions of the trial session, the actual day’s booking and certification of insurance – an uninsured makeup artist is an unprofessional makeup artist.
Beware of cross-contamination
Hygienic beauty practice applies to all beauty products, treatments, makeup, and makeup tools and, just as importantly, the application procedure.
It’s no good if the makeup artist is using a disposable mascara wand but is cross-contaminating products by putting that disposable back into the mascara tube. Contaminated brushes and products breed micro-organisms that can cause a whole host of health problems.
Bacteria hot-spots
Bacteria and lash mites live in all our lashes and using mascara, whether on yourself or as a professional makeup artist on clients, means that mascara tubes are hot-spots for bacteria. The moment the mascara wand touches the lashes, bacteria are transferred to the wand. Once returned to the product tube the bacteria thrive in the warm, dark environment. Once this happens, bacteria flourish in the mascara tube and eye infections will be prolonged and even worsened with further use. If you are not using disposable applicators correctly, you are risking your client’s eye health.
First impressions count
A dirty kit, unclean and unsanitised brushes, products, tools and accessories = risk.
If you turn up with unsightly hands, nails, hair and wardrobe and with a dirty, grubby and unclean kit, then what’s to say you’re not going to pass on nasty bacterial infection. Would you employ you if the wedding slipper was on the other foot? Probably not!
Ditch the dirty brush belt
They may look professional, but brush belts are breeding grounds for bacteria – like the dirty makeup kit, an unclean brush belt or brush set, and makeup sponges is a sure sign of lurking nasties. Ditch the brush belt.
Hygiene ritual – hands up!
It’s lesson 101 but remember a good hygiene protocol starts with clean and sanitised hands.  And remember, keep those hands fresh and product-free throughout the makeup application – especially around any white dresses!!!!
Avoid “double-dipping”
A term that all makeup users and beauty professionals should be aware of.
It means reloading the same mascara wand with mascara by dipping it into the tube more than once. Double-dipping applies not only to all kinds of makeup applicators and tools, but beauty, hair and nail tools and implements too, and results in cross-contamination of both products and customers.
Unless you have purchased a new mascara or lip gloss for the bride and one each for the wedding party, make sure you are not double-dipping – every dip needs a new disposable mascara wand or makeup applicator.
Make sure you have an ample supply of quality makeup disposables – not just for the bride, but for the whole wedding party.
Sharpen, sketch and sharpen
Are your makeup pencils sharpened before and after each session? An unsharpened pencil used between clients is just as bad as double-dipping, and sharpening with a sanitised sharpener is the best way to clean makeup pencils.
Decant, decant, decant
Ensure products are sampled out with new clean spatulas into clean pallets, dishes or tissues and no double-dipping. If you are using your hands and fingers to apply your bride’s makeup, ensure they are squeaky clean.
Beware of latex
Beware of latex makeup sponges in your makeup kit – your bride and members of the bridal party might be allergic.
Keep it professionally clean with The Pro Hygiene Collection®
Keeping beauty professionally and hygienically clean is common sense and, as a professional makeup artist, you have been hired to do a job and provide the best possible service and care to your client.
And remember,  it’s not just about the bride’s right to receive best practice – which means having a makeup artist who is trained, experienced, qualified, and insured, but it’s about your professional reputation, income, word of mouth referral but most importantly doing the right thing.
Makeup should be fun, glamourous, uplifting and creative whether for a special occasion like a wedding or full on glam down the catwalk – let’s keep it that way by ensuring as makeup artists and beauty professionals, we take hygiene and the health and safety of our clients seriously.
The complete hygiene value kit for MUA’s
Here at The Pro Hygiene Collection® we have made is super easy and incredibly cost effective to stock up on the essential makep and beauty hygiene products, consumables and tools with our all in one value MUA Hygiene Box. Everything you need at incredible value to keep you and your beautiful brides and wedding party free from potential bacterial infections and nasty breakouts.
Simply, quick and great value.
SAFE BEAUTY TOP WEDDING MAKEUP ARTIST TIPS
Never assume everything will go according to plan. Your job as the makeup artist (and at times hair stylist), is to get the job agreed done in time whilst knowing excitment, tears and challenges will be going on around you.
- You do not need your full makeup kit on the wedding day – but you do need what’s been agreed and then some!
- Time will run away with you so be prepared to create your hair and makeup in less than the allocated time and have your schedule/call sheet wirtten down and shared with the bridal party.
- Arrive early – much earlier than agreed, so you can see the lay of the land and judge the situation from time and an emotional point of view.
- Have your emergency kit (plasters, headache tablets, safety pins, sewing kit……)
- Be prepared to adapt the makeup on the day as the client’s skin, hair and skin tone may all be a little different from the trial!
- Don’t cause additional stress trying to get your own portfolio video and photos if time is running out and it’s causing issues – read the room!
- Enjoy the moment with your client – it’s a special day and you have been chosen to be part of it.
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