Great looks for all skin tones

Picture it, your life, recently (or could be in the future, too):  You just found out that your very best friend is getting married and she’s asked you to be one of her bridesmaids.  It is so exciting and you have so many ideas to share with her.  You put together a meet and greet for the bridal party so everyone can get acquainted, if they aren’t already, and you just can’t wait to get all the details about the dresses, the shoes, the jewelry, etc.
All of a sudden, with no warning whatsoever your best friend AKA The Bride says, “OK everybody, I want all of you to wear the same makeup look for the wedding!” You suddenly have a flashback of dancing school when you were 7 years old and your teacher wanted everyone to look exactly the same.  It wasn’t funny and cute then so how could she think it would work now.  We’re grown women, for Pete’s sake.   She is so excited about it that you just can’t bring yourself to point out that there are several different skin tones in the bridal party and there is no way its going to work.
Au contraire, it can work and here’s how:  everyone can wear the same colors, regardless of skin tone if you just vary the intensity of the color.  As shown in the photos, the same colors were used on a very fair skin tone, a dark beige skin tone, and a bronze skin tone.
The ivory skin tones will require the least amount of color to make an impact.  When working with dark colors be very careful of flakes of color getting all over the face.  If that happens, brush the extra color away with a powder brush.
Beige skin tones are easy to work with as they are right in the middle of makeup road:  not so light that you have to be very careful and not so dark where the tendency is to over apply.  Remember, when working with any skin tone, its always easier to add than it is to take away.
The tendency with bronze skin tones is to over apply to make sure the color shows up.  Be careful about this.  The point of the color (be it eye color, cheek color, or lip color) is to bring out the features on the person wearing the color.  That doesn’t necessarily mean a super dark application.  

Keep in mind, all of the foundation and powder shades are matched to each individual bridesmaid. Foundation is meant to even out the skin tone and nothing else. Also, a note about covering blemishes:  the more you try to cover them, the more they will be visible.  Make it a point to get your skin in the best shape possible before the wedding so that blemishes are not a concern.  Get on a skin care regime that is appropriate for your skin type and be consistent.  Any filling in of eyebrows would be done with the shade that’s best for each skin tone.  If you want your bridesmaids to share the same makeup look, it is only appropriate to match the eye colors, cheek color and lipstick/gloss.  For best results, get everyone together for a dry run to make sure your vision actually translates in real life.  Yes, the wedding day is all about the bride but it is also important that the bridal party feel great about how they look as well.  

 Also, a dark, smoky eye will be best enhanced by a sheer lip color (or a very soft lip color).  If the dark lip color is the desired look than keep the eye color soft.  Allow the eye to automatically go where the most color is placed.  Too much color all over the face (in other words, a dark, dramatic lip color AND a heavy, smoky eye) leads to “eye overwhelm” (its hard to know what to look at first or focus on).

When considering makeup looks for your bridal party, keep the following in mind:  If your bridesmaids are all great with makeup brushes and they show up looking great for every event, you might want to allow them some creative license and let them do their own makeup.  However, if yours is the group that has been known to use a cheek color for both eyes and cheeks or getting “dressed up” includes the tinted lip balm rather than the clear lip balm, you might want to go with a uniform look for everyone and enlist help in application.

If the bridesmaids have this uniformity, what about the bride?  The most important thing about the bride is that the bride look like the bride.  What that means is that if you are the aforementioned girl with the tinted lip balm, don’t let some well-meaning family member or friend tell you that you have to get glammed up for your wedding.  Should the bride have some makeup on?  Yes but it should be makeup that she likes and feels comfortable wearing.  In a perfect world, she’s had a dry run with said makeup and has seen how it photographs.  
The bride will always steal the show but if she’s after a little something extra, false eyelashes are fun.  She could also get a different manicure than the rest of the bridal party or even wear gloves depending on the season and style of the dress.
The whole idea is that everyone involved in a wedding feels and looks their best on the big day.  When that happens, you’re guaranteed great photos and great memories for all of the important people in your life.

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