“As if you were on fire from within. The moon lives in the lining of your skin.”

Pablo Neruda

When we picture a bride on her wedding day, most of us envisage a naturally radiant, perfected skin that isn’t layered in makeup. “You’re glowing” people say and it’s not about highlighter - it’s about love and happiness radiating out of you. That and beautiful skin. The truth is that makeup sits, lasts and looks better on well-cared for skin. That means skin that is nourished, hydrated, free from flaky patches. Skin that is dry, congested or unbalanced is not a good canvas for makeup.

There are lots of things you can do to ensure your skin is at it’s very best for your wedding day: Eat healthily, avoiding refined sugar (the main culprit for breakouts) and incorporating lots of fruit and veg; drink lots of water every day; take a vitamin C supplement (Vit C stimulates collagen production which is essential for skin, hair and nails). On top of this inside-out approach, it’s definitely worth upping your skin care routine in the months before the big day. Here are some things you should be introducing if you aren’t taking these steps already...

Make sure you are cleansing and moisturising TWICE a day.
Choose a cleanser that doesn’t leave your skin feeling tight, even if you’re prone to oiliness. Non-foaming gel or light cream textured cleansers are perfect for a morning cleanse with a cream, oil or balm cleanser for evening (always removed with a warm flannel or muslin cloth) and to remove makeup. Consider double cleansing here too - the first removes makeup, the second deep-cleanses the skin itself.
If you aren’t already using an eye cream, now is a good time to start. It doesn’t have to be full of exciting active ingredients - an eye creams main purpose is to hydrate. Choose one that has a texture you will enjoy using and that works for your skin type - light, gel textures for those prone to oiliness and richer textures for those with drier skin.
Choose a moisturiser to address your skin type - light and oil free for oilier complexions, rich and creamy for drier skin types.
I would urge you to add in a serum containing hyaluronic acid and/or Vitamin C if you don’t use one already. Hyaluronic Acid’s key skincare attribute is that it can hold over 1,000 times it’s weight in water, making it an excellent hydrator and able to plump out fine lines and Vitamin C is the best skin brightening ingredient around. Apply your serum to clean skin BEFORE your moisturiser.
APPLY SPF EVERYDAY!! Yep - everyday. Even in the UK. This should be your last step in the morning before applying your makeup.

ADDITIONS:

Get yourself a liquid exfoliating toner. Begin by using twice a week in the evening after cleansing, increasing use to every other day or even daily as you build up your tolerance to the acids in the ingredients. Once you are confident of no irritation this can be moved to your morning routine if you prefer to make the most of the immediate glow. These products are brilliant at removing dry, flaky skin, keeping spots at bay, reducing blackheads and pore size, refining the skin texture as well as brightening any uneven skin tone. Salycilic acid is great for enlarged pores and breakouts, Lactic and Mandelic for pigmentation and brightening, Glycolic a good all rounder (though some very sensitive skins struggle to tolerate it).

Consider using a facial oil at night time in place of or on top of your usual moisturiser. Oils penetrate the skin to work at a deeper level and are wonderful for dehydrated skin and even for rebalancing oily or congested skin. In my experience, nothing transforms skin faster than the right facial oil.

Have a face mask session once or twice a week. And if you can stretch the budget to include a series of professional facials in the run up - even better. A good facials will give you a tailored skincare prescription to get your skin in the best possible condition.

Your DAYTIME ROUTINE should run as follows:

Light cleanse, Eye Cream, Vitamin C or Hyaluronic Acid serum, Moisturiser, SPF

Your EVENING ROUTINE should go like this:

Double Cleanse, Exfoliating Toner, Eye Cream, Serum or Facial Oil (followed by a blanket of your moisturiser if you need an extra layer of hydration).

There are so many fantastic products available from super affordable brands like The Ordinary, all the way up to very expensive brands. I can’t claim to have tried EVERYTHING but out of the products I have used I rate the following very highly. Most are mid-price range and all are GORGEOUS!

Cleansers:

Morning/ Second Cleanse:

Kate Somerville Goat Milk Cleanser

Oskia Renaissance Cleansing Gel

REN Cleansers (any milk or gel in the range)

Pixi Glow Mud Cleanser (excellent for more congested types)

Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Pore Perfecting Cleansing Gel

Evening/ First Cleanse:

Drunk Elephant Slaai Makeup Melting Butter Cleanser

Clinique Take The Day Off Balm

Clinique Take The Day Off Oil

Caudalie Makeup Removing Cleansing Oil

Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm (good for first and second cleanse)

Marks and Spencer Pure Ultimate Cleanse Rose Cleansing Balm

Elemis Pro Collagen Cleansing Balm

Serums:

Caudalie Vinosource Thirst Quenching Serum

Drunk Elephant B-Hydra Intensive Hydration Serum

La RochePosay Hyalu B5 Serum

Medik8 Hydra8 B5 & C Tetra Serums

NIOD Multi Molecular Hyaluronic Serum

Clinique Moisture Surge Serum

Vichy Mineral 89 Serum

Murad Vita-C Glycolic Serum

Ole Henriksen Banana Bright Vitamin C Serum

La Roche Posay Pure Vitamin C10 Serum

Moisturisers:

Tatcha Water Cream - oil free but full of hydration. My go to for oily/ combination skin.

Tatcha Dewy Skin Cream - my favourite for a normal/ drier skin. Does exactly what it says - gives plump, dewy, juicy skin.

Farmacy Honey Halo Ultra-Hydrating Ceramide Moisturiser - Great for dry or mature skins or I love this one myself in the colder months when everything feels a bit tight.

Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face Base - this is what I use on almost everyone on a wedding morning. The perfect base for makeup, it primes while it moisturises to give a smooth finish. Smells INCREDIBLE!

Exfoliating Toners:

Medik8 Press & Glow Toner (PHAs - gentle intro to acid toner. Great for radiance and texture refining with minimal irritation)

Pixi Glow Tonic (Glycolic only)

REN Ready Steady Glow Daily AHA Tonic (Lactic)

First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads (Lactic and Glycolic - for general clarity and refining)

Dr Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel (the gold standard - 5 different acids - also available in an Extra Strong version for the hardcore amongst us!)

Alpha H Liquid Gold (Glycolic only - the original and still great)

Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant (Salycilic - for breakout prone, oily skin and enlarged pores)