Look Inside My Bridal Makeup Kit!

Hello everyone!

I'm doing wedding makeup this weekend for my friend Kalee! She is one of my very best friends and I am so thrilled for her and Jonathan! Click here to see one of my recent vlogs with Kalee. She is hilarious, fun, and is going to be a beautiful bride! I'm honored to be part of the festivities as a bridesmaid and also to be doing her makeup. I've done her makeup many times, so I'm very familiar with what shades work for her... and while I'm not doing everyone's makeup- past experience has taught me that other members of the bridal party may will ask for help here and there. And it's my pleasure to assist! So that's why I'm bringing quite a few "extras" outside of what I'd use on Kalee. 

My On-the-Go Storage

I'm using two of the bags recently featured in my Caboodles video. In the picture above, you can see the Tres Chic train case and the Envy polka dot bag by Caboodles. I have a much larger train case, but didn't feel like lugging it around, so I split my stuff into these two bags. The one thing you won't see packed that I'll also be taking is my brush set (they're freshly cleaned & drying) and will eventually go in the polka dot bag.   

The bulk of the makeup I'm taking is in this train case. As I mentioned in the Caboodles video, this is not the most durably constructed case in the world, but I'll be the only one handling it :) And for the amount of products I'm taking, it keeps them nicely organized. There is an open space in the bottom and three narrow trays on each side. I'm not really going to detail EVERY single product in there, but I'll mention some of the key things I like to take. 

On the left side of the kit, I have a bunch of eye products. Key things that have been VERY good for teary brides in the past have been the Mally Evercolor Automatic eyeliners, as well as Cover Girl Lash Blast Waterproof Mascara. I always use Too Faced Shadow Insurance in wedding situations, and I'm bringing along another neutral base- it's the Sigma cream shadow in Persuade. The second tray has a bunch of tools and lash/brow products. You never want to forget a lash curler, tweezers, and sharpeners! I also have some brow gel, lash glue, and the Sigma brow powder duo. Finally, the last tray is holding both of my Naked palettes. They provide a great selection of neutral shadows and fit easily in the kit!

On the right side of the kit I have concealers, lip products, and some other random stuff. I packed a variety of concealers with varying textures and coverage levels. Some, like the Bare Minerals Stroke of Light are brightening, while the Sonia Kashuk palette and Laura Geller's Real Deal concealer are full coverage. As I said- I want to be prepared! :) In the second tray I have a variety of lip products- glosses, lipsticks, and lip liners. I really like the staying power and colors in the Milani Color Statement line, so I'm bringing several of those. The dresses are coral, so I'm going with a pretty natural look on the lips... kind of a "your lips but better" look. I have lip liners by Too Faced, NYX, and Jordana in the kit... I always find laying liners & lipsticks results in the best staying power. In the third tray I have some random things. That little NARS illuminator looks really pretty mixed in with body lotion. I also have some ELF blotting tissues, Maybelline Dream Bouncy Cream Blush in Hot Tamale, and a Nivea Lip Butter. 

The bottom of the kit holds skincare, primers, foundations, powders and bronzers. I'm bringing lots of shades (just in case), but a few key things include Revlon Colorstay Whipped Creme foundation, L'oreal True Match Pressed Powder, and Milani Multitasker powders. I also have a couple of great primers- Mally Perfect Prep primer and Smashbox Photofinish. I have a small size of one of my favorite semi-matte highlighting products in there too- it's the Laura Geller baked highlight in French Vanilla. It's very similar to the Wet n Wild Reserve Your Cabana. 

I was able to fit a few more palettes in the bottom part. For a full range of neutral matte colors, I wanted to have the LORAC Pro palette. I also have my IT Cosmetics My Sculpted Face palette with a variety of contouring colors, and my Coastal Scents blush palette. Those blushes are so nice and pigmented- and it saves me from throwing in a bunch of individual blush compacts!

The polka dot bag holds a lot of extra supplies that just don't fit that great in the train case. I just LOVE this bag! I love how the little holders on the sides keep my bottles upright and there's still a lot of room to sit my brushes on top. 

This is a small Lori Greiner bag that came with a larger makeup bag (I'm taking my own makeup in that bag- still need to get it all packed!) I have a lot of disposable stuff in here, like lip gloss wands, mascara wands, q-tips, cotton pads, etc. I also have my business cards in here. Fun fact: My mom also likes to keep some of these cards in her purse and share them with people! :) 

I have a few different styles of false eyelashes- including my favorites, the Salon Perfect Demi Wispies! :) I'm all for spreading the joy of false lashes so I'm packing plenty!!  

My bottles! I have a little bottle of alcohol to sanitize makeup and tools, my on-the-go brush cleanser spray, Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray, some Cocoa Butter lotion, and the RCK Body Glow... it's gorgeous! I'm not doing any hair (except my own) for the wedding, but who doesn't need a little extra hairspray before the big moment? I have my trusty Tresemme Tres Two. 

There's a little mesh pocked inside the polka dot bag where I'm keeping tissues, Neutrogena makeup remover wipes, Wet Ones, and a couple of snacks if anyone needs them! 

Finally- the emergency kit. This is something I first got together for my Wedding Day Touch Up Kit video, and I've added to it since then. This bag contains a bunch of handy things- like disposable Wisp toothbrushes, a Tide pen, Excedrin, deodorant, mints, earring backs, a sewing kit, floss, and more. This has come in VERY handy over the years! 

♥

I hope you enjoyed this post! And if you want more wedding-related makeup information, I have a bunch of videos on my Bridal Beauty Playlist on YouTube! I also did this blog post about a year ago when I did makeup for my friend Katie's wedding. That day I did makeup for 8 people, and in the blog I talk about what worked and what I would do differently. In a nutshell, I'd encourage anyone doing wedding makeup to be prepared! :) Chances are there will be some nerves on the big day, so in addition to doing makeup, I try to take it upon myself to put the bride at ease and help her feel relaxed. Even if YOU feel nervous about doing makeup, sometimes you gotta fake it 'til you make it! :) The more prepared and organized you are, the more you can enjoy yourself and have fun with the process. Thanks for checking out this post, and I hope everyone has a safe Memorial Day weekend!

Daily Nuggets...

• Been checking off a long to-do list throughout the day... glad I had time to write this post! :)
• In case you missed Beauty Broadcast Live this morning- here's the link! 
• I also just posted a new Color Lovers video on Rose Gold makeup!
• Been drinking green tea all afternoon... and making frequent trips to the bathroom.
• Isn't it mind boggling how quickly guys can pack? Tyler hasn't even started, and I know when he does, it'll probably take no more than 5 minutes. 
• You know what's really uplifting? (insert sarcasm) You lose a little weight and then on your latest video someone comments, "so are you pregnant or did you just gain weight?" First off, I have cheeks. Always have, always will. Second of all, you can't see my body in said video, so... whatevs. Third- why does it even matter one way or the other? Oh well. Officially moving on after this mini-rant. :)