BRIDAL: Why is bridal makeup more expensive than party makeup?

If you’re getting married and are starting to book things, you may have noticed that as soon as you mention the ‘W’ word, prices seem to jump sky high! I understand it can be frustrating in that you feel like you may be getting the ‘same’ service or products as a special occasion party, so why should you have to pay extra?

Some suppliers do hike prices when it comes to weddings, as this is where they make the bulk of their income, and wedding makeup and hair artists aren’t much different. However, there are many GOOD reasons for doing so.

It’s not as simple as a HMUA turning up at your house or venue and applying your makeup over a couple of hours: there’s so much more that goes into it than this. I’m here to explain to you today why your bridal package is more expensive than getting your makeup and hair done for any old special occasion.

Time

As before, a bridal HMUA doesn’t just turn up at your house or venue, apply your makeup and leave again. Ohhh no. From the moment of initial enquiry to the wedding day, there are dozens, often hundreds of emails and phone calls back and forth, not to mention planning a look at the trial and travel time. Those couple of hours of makeup application has been preceded by a huge amount of work by your HMUA!

Advice and Experience

Prices often reflect how long a HMUA has been in the industry. You would expect a makeup service by a veteran HMUA to be more expensive than one just starting out. On top of the experience, bridal HMUAs often share their wisdom in what to do with your hair or skincare routine in the lead-up to the wedding – knowledge they’ve honed over years. It doesn’t come for free!

Bespoke Service

This is what trials are for. Your bridal makeup is unique to YOU, not a one-size-fits-all party look. You would expect to pay more for a tailored suit or dress than one off the peg, and this also applies to wedding makeup.

Products

Bridal makeup uses up a LOT of expensive products, and independent HMUAs buy their own kit. Bridal makeup often uses more premium makeup and skincare products, too. Again, you do get what you pay for here!

Contract

It’s easy to make a verbal agreement to turn up and create a party look for a night out. However, a wedding agreement between a HMUA and client will likely involve a binding contract – this is often the bread and butter of someone’s business, and they need to make sure all bases are covered if, say, the wedding doesn’t go ahead. It’s a little more complicated (but lovely) than just a simple party look.

I hope that sheds a little more light on why a luxury bridal service is so much more than just special occasion makeup! Please do get in touch if you have any more questions at all – happy to help.