No matter what your wedding style – traditional or modern, glamorous or simple – the one thing that all brides want on their big day is to look their best, and that means having gorgeous, crystal clear skin for the best wedding day beauty.
“Beautiful skin is the canvas for beautiful makeup, so I find that it’s the most important beauty priority,” says online beauty guru and makeup artist Rae of The Raeviewer, who has helped many brides achieve their most radiant look for their wedding day.
In addition to planning the guest list, the flowers, and the dress, you should also be planning your skin in advance. Rae’s recommended timeline? “Three months before the wedding, to combat and prevent any damage from occurring,” she says. “Those with more serious skin concerns like acne scarring can start anywhere from four months to one year before.
With help from Rae, SK-II put together the ultimate bridal skincare countdown to the big day.
This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. Click here to read our full disclosure policy.
3 MONTHS TO GO
Stick to your skincare: When the wedding is only a few months away, refine your skincare regimen to get your best skin on the big day. After cleansing, use a softening toner and a serum followed by moisturizer. Always remember to use SPF religiously every day, and eye cream at night.
Mask it: Begin using masks as frequently as possible – Rae suggests the Facial Treatment Mask three times a week – to strengthen your skin condition and keep it smooth and hydrated. “In my experience, masks make the most noticeable difference,” says Rae. Bren agrees: “I have seen impressive changes in my skin.”
Eat clean: Be mindful of your diet so your body stays in peak condition, encourages Bren, who recommends “eating healthy as much as possible” a few months before the wedding. Rae agrees: “Avoid MSG and excess salt, which will cause bloating and water retention. Eat healthy, organic whole foods and plenty of greens whenever possible,” she suggests.
1 MONTH TO GO
Work out regularly: Exercising will keep your energy up and also help you to look slim and toned on your wedding day. “Working out can also be beneficial to your overall skin health,” says Bren.
Try out your look: “Make sure you schedule a makeup and hair trial so you can decide exactly how you want to look on your wedding day,” suggests Rae.
Don’t neglect the skin on your body: “Remember to take care of your neck and shoulders,” reminds Bren. “All the visible parts of your body need to be perfect and smooth on your big day!”
5 DAYS TO GO
Fill up on water: Both Rae and Bren recommend brides drink more water in the week before the wedding – at least eight cups every day – to keep the skin hydrated and looking supple and smooth.
Get some rest: “Try to get eight hours of sleep during the week of the wedding to prevent dark circles,” suggests Rae. Essential Power Eye Cream can also help keep eye issues at bay. “My makeup artist used eye cream before applying concealer,” says Bren, “and I saw a huge difference! So I add this step in my skincare routine to avoid crow’s feet.”
Stay disciplined: There may be last-minute emergencies for the wedding, but stick to your daily and nightly skin care routines no matter how tired you are. “Do not make excuses and stray from your skincare routine!” Rae insists. “There’s a lot of time and work involved, but it will pay off.”
Here’s another article for more ways to get that bridal glow 5 days before your wedding day.
Pre-wedding primping is important – who doesn’t want to feel beautiful and confident on their wedding day? The following products are wedding beauty treatments that thousands of people have agreed are awesome and actually work. I sorted through thousands of products on Amazon to find the most highly recommended, most-reviewed and most effective items to suggest for you. Check them out here and suggest your own awesome finds in the comments below!
Uncover Your Beautiful, Blemish-Free Body (and Face)
Use this amazing scrub absolutely ANYWHERE. It has almost 15 thousand reviews and still maintains its position as the #1 facial scrub on the website. I don’t know about you, but that speaks volumes to me. I haven’t tried this one personally, but I just ordered it, so I can tell you about it soon!
Following are a few more products for your face that I can personally vouch for because I’ve been using them for years. The reason I bought them originally is because they were so highly rated on Amazon!
Fresh, Fabulous Face
First, remove makeup. I have a few different ways to do it, depending on how much I have on. If I wore a lot of makeup for the day, I start with the Neutrogena Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes. I had to use a couple of these the other day when I was filming and wooooo, was there a lot of makeup on my face!
My second step is removing the last bits of makeup that are left by the wipes. The corners of my nose, the mascara and eyeliner that I refuse to scrub at with those towelettes (hey, it’s tender skin, people! I want to stay young!) I use cotton pads to wipe my whole face with micellar water. My absolute favorite is Marcelle, but I’ve also used Vichy, Garnier and this Majestic Pure with nearly identical results. My suggestion is: don’t go with the most expensive. Go with what works for YOU.
If I don’t use the micellar water, I often finish up the cleansing with witch hazel toner ($8.32), because I love how it leaves my skin feeling before I add the rest of my products. It just feels so clean and fresh and pure. I also start my day by wiping my face down with this, for the same reason. I rinse off my face and then use the witch hazel toner before any other products.
I Wanna Be Forever Young
I found these products earlier this year and I’m sharing them here because I love the results I’ve had. I feel like my skin is softer, fresher, more supple and less wrinkle-prone. Seriously – I stopped doing botox after using these products for six months.
I start with a clean face and add this Vitamin C serum all over my face, neck, and decolletage for brightening and fading all of my sun spots. Did you ever read the Nora Ephron book “I hate my neck”? I read it at 27 and started obsessing about how wrinkled my neck might look. 
After the Vitamin C serum I use a Hyaluronic Acid serum all over my face, neck, and decolletage for wrinkle and fine line reducing. Seriously, check out the reviews. This stuff is the same product as most – if not all – of the brand name serums and costs 1/4 of their price.
The third step is to use a retinol serum.
I’ve tried this Tree of Life Retinol Serum for six months and I don’t have deep wrinkles in my forehead anymore, and it never irritated my skin. The eye gel has been on my wishlist for a while now, but I haven’t purchased it. If you do – reach out and let me know how it works for you!
Finally, I use this retinol moisturizer at night. During the day, before I put my makeup on, I use this SPF 30 Olay Regenerist Micro-Sculpting Cream .
If you were to purchase a skin care regimen from a name brand, you’d end up spending hundreds of dollars to get all of these products, and they would only last you one to three months. The three basic products (the vitamin c serum, hyaluronic acide serum and retinol serum) lasted six months. It has been my best idea YET (in terms of skin care, at least)!
Here are a few more products that are top sellers on Amazon, and again – tell me below what your favorites are!!
Aveeno Active Naturals Daily Moisturizing Lotion, 18 Ounce
Baby Foot Deep Exfoliation for Feet peel, lavender scented, 2.4 fl. oz.
[TONYMOLY] I’m Real Mask Sheet Pack of 11
[…] and stress makes you feel and look older. Start working toward wedding day beauty with these wedding beauty treatments as early before your wedding as you […]