Your wedding day is one of the most significant days of your life. It’s also a day when you’ll want to look your finest because all eyes will be on you! From the gorgeous dress to the pretty bridal shoes, every tiny detail is thoughtfully planned. Brides want to feel confident and look their radiant best from the first kiss to the last dance.
A healthy, glowing complexion is the finishing touch on your wedding day, but how do you achieve beautiful skin in time without causing irritation or something worse?
Skin specialists agree that a little pre-wedding skincare planning can keep you on the right track before saying “I do.” A high-quality hyaluronic acid serum or cream is a superb choice for a radiant complexion that’s smooth and supple.
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1. LED Therapy
Everyone who takes a walk down the aisle has a unique complexion and unique skincare goals for how they wish to appear on their wedding day. One popular trend is LED light therapy, which uses red and infrared light that penetrates the skin to reduce inflammation and build collagen. A once-weekly treatment of LED therapy for a month before the wedding can help balance the skin tone, smooth fine lines and minimize the appearance of pores. LED therapy works best with a topical skincare routine.
Some brides-to-be plan these visits at a spa or dermatologist’s office, while others use at-home LED masks or LED wands. These offer great benefits and are generally low-risk beauty treatments, but it’s not wise to overuse them. LED therapy can interfere with certain medications, and retinoid topicals can heighten the skin’s sensitivity to ultraviolet light. If you’re unsure, check with a skincare specialist before trying LED therapy.
2. A Proper Sunscreen
It doesn’t matter if your walk down the aisle takes place on a mountaintop, along a sandy shore or inside a quaint village chapel. Wherever you choose to tie the knot and whatever time of year you plan your wedding for, don’t forget the sunscreen! A beautiful complexion needs the ultimate protection, and today’s advanced formulas give you amazing options. A mineral sunscreen can provide an excellent, broad-spectrum shield against the powerful UV rays, and some formulas offer sheer tints for a glowing, hydrated complexion.
There are also mineral-based sunscreens for sensitive complexions, infused with color-correcting factors that neutralize red skin, add soothing moisture and seamlessly blend in a neutral tint.
Some brides prefer a natural-looking complexion on their wedding day, and a sheer-tinted, lightweight, mineral sunscreen with SPF-30 protection can deliver a luminous, even skin tone.
3. Superb Skincare Topicals
Skincare experts agree that applying harsh serums or creams or undergoing a strong chemical peel close to the wedding day can upset the complexion and cause breakouts, or inflammation. Avoid acids and retinoids for at least two weeks before the big day. Maintain a basic skincare routine, sticking with products you use regularly that you know won’t cause a reaction. Focus on hydrating formulas to soothe the skin.
Two outstanding topicals include a hyaluronic acid product and a vitamin C serum.
Hyaluronic acid (HA) is a skin-rejuvenating topical for people of all ages, and the research done on HA shows that it’s well-tolerated on all skin types and effective as a topical and a dermal filler.
When applied to the skin, hyaluronic acid provides exceptional moisturizing, suppleness and a youthful bounce to the skin. HA has the incredible ability to draw and lock in moisture, giving the complexion a luminous finish.
A quality vitamin C serum is another wedding day topical you can try. Vitamin C is a wonderful antioxidant and a multi-performer. Brides can create a brighter, smoother complexion with a vitamin C serum or cream to correct hyperpigmentation, brown spots, uneven skin tone, or a dull complexion.
HA and Vitamin C topicals are impressive on their own, but brides can also layer both topicals in their pre-wedding beauty routine as well as on their wedding day. Skincare pros say to always apply a vitamin C product first to cleansed, dry skin. Allow the antioxidant to sink in, and then follow up with your hyaluronic acid.
4. The Perfect Drink
Adult bodies are made of about 60% water, so hydration matters. Weddings are stressful enough without feeling unwell because you’re dehydrated. Proper water intake keeps your skin and hair looking soft and bright and your body feeling energized. For example, caffeine can dry the skin because of its diuretic effect. If you rely on that cup of joe or soda for hydration, note that the caffeine can exacerbate dullness, dryness and premature fine lines, according to estheticians.
Drink plenty of H2O for radiant skin weeks before your wedding day, and if you enjoy the caffeine boost of coffee or cola, here’s some advice: For every cup of a caffeinated beverage that you reach for, drink a glass of water to stay hydrated. Or simply follow the general advice of drinking at least 8 cups of water every day — that’s just a cup every couple of hours.
Your wedding is one of the most memorable moments of your life. Every bride wants to be the most radiant and loveliest version of herself. Whether that means makeup to the max or bare, natural skin, a smooth, clear complexion is like the icing on the wedding cake. Take good care of your skin, and it will “glow on.”
