Mattie’s Hotel Monteleone Bridal Prep
Bridal prep sets the tone for your wedding day. Is it going to be a rush and stressful? Pure chaos? How do you ensure that it is a calm relaxing start to your wedding day? Below I will give all the tips from my years of experience as a wedding photographer!
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What makes a good bridal prep location?
The cardinal rule is space, space, SPACE! The more space to allow the professional hair and makeup team to spread out their equipment the better. Best yet if there is a separate location to have hair and makeup done than where the bride is ultimately going to put on her wedding gown. Assume each person having their hair and makeup done will come with a minimum of two bags, not including their gowns. You want plenty of space for the group to spread out. Space is also important for food! You do not want breakfast sandwiches or chicken nuggets anywhere near the wedding gown or bridesmaid dresses.
Natural light is also a must for both makeup stylists and wedding photography alike! Make sure that there are plenty of windows and white light bulbs.
Pro Tip: Hotel Monteleone is by far one of my favorite hotels for wedding prep in the French Quarter!
Have your wedding details organized and on the side for photography
Place your wedding details in a box on the side for when I arrive to your bridal suite. Having everything in one place prevents you or your bridesmaids from running around hunting down wedding invitations, earrings and the like.
How many people are having their hair and makeup done?
Keep the number of women in the bridal suite limited. Seventeen people having their hair and makeup done means that styling most likely will start earlier than you want to be awake on your wedding day. Always inquire with your hair and makeup team how many people will be doing hair and makeup on the wedding day: and get it in writing. I have seen too many times when twelve women have to have hair and makeup done and there is just one stylist.
How do I decide the order of people having hair and makeup done?
Timing for the order of hair and makeup is incredibly important when building the timeline with your makeup artists and wedding photographer. If pajama pictures are being taken, I try to ensure everyone is finished hair and makeup. The one bridesmaid without lashes on definitely stands out. Below I will include a rough tips for the order people should get their hair and makeup done in. The hard stop time for hair and makeup should be 30 minutes prior to photography beginning. This is because you want buffer room for the hair and makeup artists.
People that will be in the room assisting the bride in putting her dress on should be the second to last people to have their makeup finished. The bride should be middle of the road for hair and makeup to be finished. A bridesmaid that is not going to be in the room can go last.
We do an order typical to this so that the people that will be in the most important photos are ensured to have their hair and makeup done. If they are delayed it will delay putting the bride in her gown which could push back the rest of the day or worse, rush the bride into her gown. (A big no-no)
How to ensure cute pajama photos
- Make sure pajamas are steamed and in the bridal suite. It stands out if there is a bridesmaid who is missing slippers or wearing the wrong shirt because she misplaced her matching set.
- Pajama pictures typically happen on a bed, balcony or couch. Ensure these locations are kept orderly by not having tons of food or makeup supplies in the area. If pictures are happening on a bed, make sure the bed is neatly made and not wrinkly.
- It looks SO good when all of the bridesmaids have matching champagne glasses. I always bring a few extra bottles so that the glasses are always full for the photos.
- Have fun! Once hair and makeup are finished, the day truly begins! So hype up the bride, giggle with your girls and have some fun!
The Bridal Suite
Ensuring that the bride has a clean, uncluttered and private place to put on her gown is so important. I always let the bridesmaids know that we need privacy so there are not people coming in and out of the space interrupting the bride from such a special moment. It is typically the last part of the day truly to herself so I always try to ensure as much peace as possible.
I always tell my brides, “Once the wedding dress is on, you will blink and be married, blink again and you will be having your first dance, blink again and you will be doing your formal exit.” So l try to make it as special of a time as possible.
Beautiful photographs truly result from a brilliant team working together! A HUGE shoutout to the vendor team for being so incredible on this wedding day. Wedding prep is typically not something a wedding photographer would showcase. This day was truly special because everyone was calm, organized and filled with love and joy. Any of the vendors below I give a five star review to for your future wedding.
Design: Brown Art Design, Mattie Rozas
Coordination: The Uncommon Camellia, Maria Gomila
Bridal Prep Venue: Hotel Monteleone
Wedding Gown: I Do Bridal Couture Covington, Atelier Beccar
Hair & Makeup Stylists: Hair by Katie M & Hair by Hannah Shread
Photography: Cheryl Cole Photography New Orleans Fine Art Wedding Photographer
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