Bridal · PlanningWedding Skin: A Timeline That Works Backwards
The single rule that prevents almost every wedding skin disaster: nothing new in the last four weeks. Everything else is just sequencing.
Why brides come unstuck
Not because they did too little. Because they did something new too late. A first-ever peel a fortnight before, a new active introduced the week of, a treatment booked on a recommendation with no time to see how the skin reacts.
Every treatment on your plan should have been done at least once, far enough out that you know how your skin responds. That is the whole trick.
Nothing new in the final four weeks. Everything else is sequencing.
Twelve to six months out
Consultation and skin analysis. This is when a course of anything has room to run properly — microneedling for texture or scarring, peels for pigmentation, acne work, or laser hair removal.
Laser is the one that cannot be rushed: six to eight sessions six to eight weeks apart is close to a year. If it is on your list, start now or drop it.
Six to three months out
Run the courses. Trial your hair and settle the colour, so there is time for a correction if you hate it. Start monthly Hydrafacial. If you are having injectables, this is the window — not later.
Eight to six weeks out
Final injectable appointment if any, so there is time for it to settle and be reviewed. Hair colour appointment. Last sessions of any course. From here, nothing invasive.
Two weeks out
Final Hydrafacial — the sweet spot, because it leaves the skin at its best with no downtime and time for anything lifted during extraction to settle. Final colour or toner. A back facial around now if the dress calls for it.
The last week
- Three to five days before — dermaplaning, brows shaped, LVL or lash extensions
- Two days before — spray tan, if you are having one
- The day before — nails, and a final blow dry
- The morning — hair and makeup
The trial nobody books and everybody should
A hair and makeup trial is where you find out that the look you saved months ago does not suit your face shape — with time to change it rather than two hours. £30 for a wedding hair up-do trial. It is the cheapest insurance on the whole list.
The bits people forget
- Patch tests — 24 hours before any tinting, 48 before any hair colour, and they cannot be skipped
- The bridal party needs booking at the same time as you, not later
- Summer Saturdays go a long way in advance
- Grooms and fathers of the bride: a Hydrafacial two weeks out photographs very well
One building
Skin, hair, brows, lashes, nails and makeup are all at 16 Oldgate, which matters most on the morning — one place, one team, no convoy between three appointments. Our bridal page has the full price list.
Common questions
Frequently asked
When should I have my last facial before the wedding?
Two weeks before. That leaves skin at its best with time for anything lifted during extraction to settle completely.
How far ahead should I book?
Start the conversation six to twelve months out, especially for a summer Saturday. Any course of treatment needs that long.
Do I need a hair or makeup trial?
We would strongly advise it. £30 for a hair up-do trial, and it is where you find out whether the look actually suits you.
Can I have injectables before my wedding?
If you choose to, the last appointment should be six to eight weeks before so it can settle and be reviewed. Never in the final month.
Can the bridal party get ready together?
Yes, at 16 Oldgate on the morning, with hair and makeup running alongside each other. Tell us numbers when you enquire.
Start with a consultation
Free for bridal. Bring the date and we will build the plan backwards from it.
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