Bride's Make-up

It's the one day in your life when everything, just everything has to be perfect. From your hair to your make up to your clothes to your shoes. And its no easy task ensuring that you look that way. A lot of careful planning and coordinating goes into creating the perfect look for the perfect day.

Scary? Yeah. But not if you follow these simple practical tips to get your make-up in order for the big day.

1. Do go in for a prior consultation with your beautician at least a week before the wedding. Take along your wedding outfit and samples of the jewellery you would be wearing. Another good idea is to take along references of looks you like from magazines and ads of the kind of look you like, so that the beautician is not working blind towards creating your look.
   
2. The most basic must do's are to coordinate colours. If your outfit is a blazing pink, you cannot dare to wear red lipstick and nail polish.
   
3. Do get a great beautician and hairstylist. No point in settling for a budget beautician when the look of an entire lifetime is at stake.

When you plan your make-up, think about the camera. You don't want to look too chalky or pasty or even sallow. Here from the experts, is all that goes into making a bride look like a bride.

"Every bride is unique, therefore we try and give a unique look to each bride that is distinctively her," says Doris Godambe, hairstyle expert, who works as a team with her husband Bharat Godambe. Much sought after by brides for their ability to make a bride look like a movie actress, the duo have done the make up and hairstyling for most of the recent brides in Mumbai.

"A good clear skin is a great base to work on," says Bharat. The first thing to do is the base. A well applied base, can even out your complexion, cover spots and pigmentation and conceal dark circles. Use a yellow based concealer for heavy duty coverage. Do use your base as a method of contouring your face, with the help of darker and lighter shadowing. You can create the illusion of a perfect oval face, you can make your nose look perfect and your chin a little less dominating if you use base and contouring well.

For a bride, make-up should always err towards creating the illusion of perfection. Says Clint Fernandes, make up expert, "The look right now is glitter and sheen. A great dramatic look would be one with high gloss and sheen over eyelids and lips." But for those who like their look a little more traditional, the matte finish make-up is a great option.

Hair Style

Terrific hairstyles that make you look positively gorgeous. Gone are the days when what your hairstyle was didn't really matter because you invariably had to cover your hair and half your face with a ghoonghat. The contemporary bride shows off both her glorious hairstyle and her confidence, therefore, what you do with your hair is critical to making or breaking your look.

Getting those glorious hairstyles sported by models and film actresses is not something only the glam world can achieve, you too can get the same look with the help of your hair stylist.

Check out in advance with your hairstylist what style will go with the shape of your face, your outfit and yes, even your groom. Yes, groom. For instance, if your to be hubby is much taller than you, an uplifted hairdo will narrow the height divide, while if your groom lacks in the height department, you might want to have a low slung hair do to keep yourself at the same height as he is.

Here are some unusual yet practical styles for the big day.

Style One: Pile your hair into a ponytail on the top of your head. Pull out little individual sections of the hair and roll them carefully into little horizontal loops, and apply some slick wax to each section. Use a straight pin to hold each hair loop in place. Finish with a spray of setting lotion. You might want to add some hair ornaments or pearl pins in each section to add interest.

Style Two: Apply hair mousse to wet hair and rough dry it. Divide hair into two sections and back comb the top half. Form a quiff with this and fasten at both ends with hair grips. Twist and fasten the bottom half with hair grips at the base of the quiff. Here you have an elegant upswept style, that is ideal for the sophisticated look. If you want to soften the look, you could pull out strategic strands around the face and gently curl them with heated tongs and set them with setting wax.

Style Three: If you want to wear your hair low, try this. Make a zig zag part through the center of your hair and sprinkle some gold glitter in the parting. Section each zig zag and part it through the width of the head. Pin each section at the base of the neck. Use a tiny rubber band to hold the hair together at the base of the neck. Take a section from the bottom of this ponytail and wind it around the band to conceal it. Use mousse to make this hair manageable and gently fluff it around in gently curling waves.

A final word of advice-do make sure whatever products you use in your hair are not going to lock your hair rigidly into a mould of cement. I remember my long awaited suhaag raat turning into a frayed nerves night with my grandly elaborate hair do refusing to let me put my head down on the pillow. After all, you do want him to be able to run his fingers through your hair later...

So go ahead, and make your mane, truly your crowning glory.

Health and Fitness before your wedding

All the months of planning and preparation for a wedding can really take their toll on you.

Here are some effective ways to destress and look fresh, dewy-eyed on your wedding:

1. Yoga to improve energy levels, posture, flexibility, body tone, concentration and relaxation. Very effective in getting those knots you've tied yourself into, undone.
   
2. Visit a spa where they provide the full treatment. You know, something like a full body aromatherapy massage and a facial full of rich minerals to nourish your skin, followed by a relaxing hydrotherapy or milk bath. Make sure you go for something that alleviates stress, pampers you and restores vitality.
   
3. Do some trampoline jumping to get the roses back in your cheeks.
   
4. Get your beauty sleep. Don't let anything disturb those rejuvenating eight hours.
   
5. Listen to soothing music while you soak those poor achy feet in a tub of warm, sudsy water. (Ignore this option if you're in the middle of winter unless you want to replace the dewy-eyed look with a drippy-nosed one).

Fix that smile

Smile - it increases your face value. You've undoubtedly been paying great attention to D for Diet for that perfect 10 figure. But what about D for Dentist for those perfect 32? So while you're reinventing your figure to fit into your fabulous bridal attire, don't neglect your smile. Remember it's going to share the spotlight with you. As the gracious and demure bride you'll have a lot of smiling to do, and no designer outfit, however gorgeous, is going to come to your rescue. So don't let your smile let you down.

It's amazing what a transformation a good dental job can achieve for your face. It would be wise to get an appointment with your dentist a few months before the wedding. Don't wait for the last minute. You don't want to appear for your wedding with a swollen face and cotton between your pearly whites, do you?

Let your dentist attend to those cavities and get a root canal done if necessary. That's as far as the vital aspects are concerned. On the aesthetic front, there's a lot that cosmetic dentistry can do to give you a radiant, breath-taking, incandescent, million-watt smile.

A good cosmetic dentist will first study your facial structure and then work on your teeth so that they will flatter your face. You can get your smile tailor-made for you. Whether it's small teeth you want, or an endearing, overlapping incisor, nothing is impossible these days for your dentist. Your cosmetic dentist may not look like Cinderella's fairy godmother, but her drill can do as good a transformation as her magic wand.

Coating, capping and polishing. These are some of the options that cosmetic dentistry offers. Coating your teeth helps if the enamel on them has worn off. You can cap your teeth too, but only if they are chipped or broken.

Capping healthy teeth (involves cutting original teeth) merely to enhance their appearance is not recommended. You want to fix, not cause irreparable damage to the pearls that you inherited.

Coffee, tea and nicotine leave residues that build up over a period and darken the teeth. If your teeth are stained, perhaps you should consider polishing or whitening them. You can buy a whitening kit from your dentist or avail of the do-it-yourself whiteners available in the market. The contents bleach supercial stains on the enamel making the teeth appear whiter. Having fixed your smile, all you need to do is brush and floss your teeth regularly. Finally, use a minty breath freshener, and of course, smile, smile, smile.

Skin Care the big day

You have a month to get married, and your skin is well, ah so dull.
What do you do? Where do you go? Here are some quick solutions to ensure you look your glowing best.

1. Schedule a regular series of skin treatments and facials from your beautician leading up to your wedding day.
   
2. Skin looks its best two days after a facial, so schedule the biggest skin treatment facial at least two days before Dday.
   
3. Do start regular home treatments, there is something to be said for haldi, milk cream and gram flour baths that make your skin glow.
   
4. Make a solution of equal parts of glycerine, lime juice and rose water and refrigerate. Use all over face and body after a bath.
   
5. Start conditioning your hair with deep conditioning treatments every alternate day. Sit with your beautician and decide on what low maintenance, high style hair cut could take you through your pre-wedding events and wedding day styles.
   
6. Get on a detox diet. Switch to raw veggies and fruits. Drink tons of water. You lose weight and your system stays clean. Voila-glowing skin.
   
7. Use a raw potato slice on your face as often as you can. It's a natural bleach and exfoliator.
   
8. Do schedule in a weekly manicure and pedicure, you want your hands and feet to look their best. Leave the all over body waxing till three days before the wedding.
   
9. And lastly, get enough of your beauty sleep. You'll need it.

Look Beautiful on your honeymoon

Your Hair You need to keep your hair in style and you need to keep it protected from sun, wind and other damaging elements. The sun bathing you may do on the beach (If you're honeymooning on the beach) strips your hair of its natural oils, resulting in straw hair. Solution : Use a straw hat or a scarf. Do remember to condition your hair thoroughly with intensive conditioner after every wash. Rinse your hair after every swim, even in a pool. Chlorine can wreak havoc with hair condition. Style - Use clips and interesting hair accessories to hold your hair off your face. Shoulder length hair looks great left seductively loose around your face. Must do - Get a great hair cut before your wedding so that your hair is in its best shape ever. Secret tools - Do carry a hair drying system with you to add instant volume and glamour curls in a jiffy.

Your Make-up

You have to carry the radiant, blushing bride look through your honeymoon. Do ensure that you have a natural blush at hand to keep you glowing naturally. Don't slap on the colour though, just use a slight hint to create a slight flush. Blend colour well. Carry along a big fluffy brush to help you blend blush on the apples of your cheeks.

Creating cheekbones is passe, instead use colour on cheeks. Use a sheer wash of eyecolour to accentuate the shape of your eyes. Do keep along a jojoba lip balm to keep your lips moisturised and unflaky. Use a lipliner to define the shape of your lips, plump out thin lips or narrow down overfull lips. Fill in lip colour with a lip brush -- use a light shade if your complexion is fair and your lips are narrow. For fuller lips you can go darker.

Powder your lips after the first coat, and reapply lipstick for longer staying power. Or get one of the longstaying lipsticks available in the market --Revlon, Maybelline, Avon, Lakme, Orchids and L'Oreal all have slimsticks with longstaying benefits.

For the night

Use a light base that matches your skin tone. Use a concealer to hide your spots and dark circles. Use loose powder to set your face and dust off excess with a big fluffy brush. Use a powder blush or tinting powder (Indian Earth from Oriflame) for a soft glow.

Use a complementary eyeshadow to define your eyesockets and line your eyes with either pencil or liquid liner close to the lashes. Apply two coats of mascara, either black or coloured, for that final touch and you're set. Line your lips and fill in colour with a lip brush.

For the day

Use a concealer for your dark circles and spots, and put a thin veil of sheer colour with a gel blush. Use a natural brown eyeshadow or eyeliner and slick a coloured gloss on lips. The aim is to look attractive without looking made up.

1. To help make up stay use an oil free foundation and compact.
   
2. Colour your entire lips with pencil before layering with lipstick.
   
3. Do use waterproof mascara if you use contact lenses. You don't want to look racoon eyed.
   
4. Use a top coat and a nail hardener to make your nail polish last.
   
5. Line your inner lower eyes with white pencil to make them look clearer and brighter.