Trial Hair and Makeup at In the Buff

"You're just the kind of client I like,"

my stylist at In the Buff exclaimed. Her statement came just moments after I confessed not having a clue how to wear my hair for our upcoming wedding (okay so I had a vague inkling of an idea.) I'm not exactly the most imaginative with my hair, which usually ends up in a bun on the top of my head or pulled back in a ponytail. This has been my style it seems for years and I have been saying for years also that I would do something with it when the opportunity arose...for weddings, graduations...the list goes on and on. Unfortunately my hair has never ranked as a high priority during events, despite my desire for it too, which is a crying shame, since my long and thick hair is a dream of endless possibilities.

Fortunately, for my upcoming wedding my priorities have shifted and I have placed my hair and its styling a bit higher in the ranks than it's been before. I'll admit this is partially because Johnny hinted at wanting to see what my hair might look like professionally styled or curled. The ponytail and bun have been an exhausted fashion statement around him. So I did not wish to disappoint him, which is how I ended up in the styling chair at In the Buff with my stylist Katie for a trial run this past Tuesday. I had visited their booth briefly at the Pink Bridal Show in January and it was like this light bulb going off in my head with me doing a giddy dance! I can be a girly girl with beautiful hair and flawless makeup without all the stress of trying to do it myself! So there I sat, staring at my reflection in the mirror with their pretty peach salon garb wrapped around my shoulders, ready for styling magic to happen!

I had already undergone a makeup session with Erin, who had applied airbrush makeup in natural tones. I wouldn't trust myself with this task, since I have about as much experience if not less applying makeup to my skin as putting my hair up in an up do. I have never worn makeup and usually preferred a natural feel to my skin. I also really question this venture, because I have a tendency to touch my face and become teary eyed at emotional events. The tears will no doubt fall at my wedding and I do not want raccoon eyes. So although the airbrush makeup is beautiful and it doesn't cover up my freckles (which Johnny adores and was protective of the moment I mentioned makeup) I may decide later not to include its application. I did however, seem to enhance the beautiful masterpiece that later became my hair and complete my finished look.

For my hair, the possibilities were endless and I needed to narrow a particular style down to a few pictures that I liked. After scouring through hundreds of pictures on Pinterest (really there is no other site for inspiration) I had come up with a couple styles that I really liked and that earned an approval from Johnny (whose opinion mattered the most.) I personally really love braids, braids of any kind really and simply adored the picture shown above. I even like the pink, but I could never dye my hair like that all at once and some people might never get over the shock factor. Another favorite was the windswept and wreath look in the following picture to the left. I could see that loose and carefree hairstyle going very well in the green outdoor gardens of our wedding. I love the free falling tresses of hair and the garland of flowers adorning her crown. Although, I liked this look, I could also imagine it being a very hot style to wear if it gathered against my neck in the June heat and humidity. It's windswept look might even be a very genuine look too, after three hours of in between time from the end of my appointment until the wedding. With this thought, I kept complete up dos more in mind.

My inspiration finally came from a picture in a magazine. I do not recall which magazine it was now, but I snapped a photo of it with my iPhone and kept coming back to it thinking, "My hair could look good like that." I really liked the wisps in the front and the part through her hair, oddly enough. The hair in the back was not pictured, which led me to the picture on the right that I found on Pinterest. These two images shaped my final style later and allowed the wheels in my stylist head to start turning as I gave her the vaguest of outlines to follow, "I want something like this in the front, it pulled off my neck, and curls. Whatever you think looks best!"


 

I wasn't too picky, which earned me the status of being the best type of client to work with and a very happy one too! 

Because nearly two and a half hours later, I watched a gorgeous masterpiece consisting of two ponytails, 73 bobby pins, and a ton of hair spray take place and transform my hair! It looked absolutely amazing!

Johnny thought so too! I let him inspect the style when he saw me after work and he couldn't stop grinning from ear to ear! So I'm thinking he approves (wink wink.) So this is it - my hair style for the wedding! The day of the wedding, we are going to pull a few more tresses of hair out at the front and shorten them a tad, but other than that, we have our wedding hair!