The pros explain exactly what you need to do now for glowing, radiant wedding-day skin.
There are quite a lot of things you'd like to look right (not to mention go right) on your big day, and one of those is your skin. While makeup does a pretty impressive job at covering breakouts, brown spots, and redness, you'll want as clear of a canvas as possible to ensure a flawless wedding-day look. To achieve this, estheticians suggest taking great care of your skin well before your wedding day arrives. "Similar to how you can't really plan a wedding in a few days, you can't wave a magic wand and make beautiful, picture-perfect skin appear a few days before your wedding either," says Bella Schneider, esthetician to stars like Michelle Pfeiffer, Maria Shriver, and Gayle King and owner of LaBelle Day Spas. Luckily, you can score a head start on prepping your skin for your big day with these esthetician-approved skin care tips for brides.
Care for your skin as usual.
Just because your wedding is coming up doesn't mean you should bend your normal skin rules (like wearing sunscreen, for one). "You want to be timeless and that goes for your skin as well," says West Hollywood-based celebrity esthetician and founder of SkinLab, Joshua Ross, who works regularly with celebrities like Lisa Rinna. This means wearing an SPF of 30 daily and staying out of the sun (and tanning beds) as much as possible.Exfoliate regularly.
If exfoliating isn't already something you do one or two times a week, the months leading up to your wedding is a fine time to start. "Proper exfoliation is one of the key elements of great skin because it increases cell turnover, bringing fresh, soft skin to the surface," says Olga Lorencin, celebrity esthetician and founder of Olga Lorencin Transformative Skin Care and Olga Lorencin Skin Care Clinic in Beverly Hills, California—and she knows what she's talking about, as she counts actresses Halle Berry and Sacha Alexander as clients. "Just be sure not to exfoliate daily, as too much will cause your skin to be red and sensitive."Don't start a new regimen just before the wedding.
While you want to make sure you're cleansing your face twice a day, removing all your makeup and applying all the right skincare products, experts recommend against trying anything new—even a new serum or mask—too close to your big day. "This is certainly not the time to experiment, as it will be hard to target and correct any issues in time for your wedding," warns celebrity esthetician Shani Darden, whose A-list clients include Jessica Alba, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Shay Mitchell, and Kelly Rowland. She also recommends against starting a retinol-containing product for the first time in the weeks leading up to your wedding.Schedule monthly facials.
Monthly facials are a great way to get your skin on the right path. "An esthetician will be able to address any skin-related concerns and set you up with the best skincare regimen given your timeframe," explains Darden. Some of her favorite facials to give clients leading up to their wedding include oxygen treatments (which arm your skin with extra oxygen and nutrients), microcurrent to tone, tighten and lift the skin, and LED light therapy, which boosts collagen in the skin, minimizes fine lines and wrinkles, speeds up healing and adds an amazing glow.Consider dermaplaning two weeks out.
Ross recommends a treatment known as dermaplaning, which remove peach fuzz from skin along with a superficial layer of dead skin. "The peach fuzz tends to collect dirt and excess oil in the follicle that sits on the surface of the skin that can lead to blackheads and invade your pores," he says. "In addition to removing the peach fuzz, it exfoliates, leaving your skin with an instant brightening effect and a smooth surface that will make your makeup application so flawless it will look likes it's been airbrushed on."Don't pick!
You very well might experience a breakout leading up to (or on!) your big day. Whatever you do, don't pick! Instead, Lorencin recommends applying ice and doing a gentle home peel (something like the deep detox facial in a box). "If your skin feels or looks a bit dull or tired, try to use one of the at home super mild peels two nights before the wedding but only if you have used it previously with no complications," she says.
See more at: Martha Stewart
