How To Save Money On Wedding Hair And Makeup In 2022

*This post has been reviewed by an Illinois Registered CPA. However, when making important financial decisions, it's best to speak with your financial advisor.

Last Updated on September 10, 2022

Saving Money On Wedding Hair And Makeup

Your wedding day is a very important day. You are getting married to the person you love, surrounded by your family and friends and will want to look great. There will be tons of photos, and you will want beautiful memories to share with your kids and grandkids. But let’s face it, weddings are expensive.

If you are wondering how to save money on wedding hair and makeup, you are in the right place. There are many ways to save while planning your wedding and accessories. For example, to save on planning the wedding, you could:

Avoid getting married on a Saturday, because it is the most expensive day for a wedding
Choose a date that isn’t during wedding season or on a holiday
Choose seasonal flowers
Use digital invitations
Rent your dress

Find out more about saving on wedding hair and makeup by reading this article where we discuss many tips and tricks.

Planning A Wedding

Planning a wedding is not easy. It requires time and resources. You will spend a few months planning your dream wedding. As we said, weddings can be expensive. You have to pay for the space, the food, the music, the cake, and so on.

The list is extensive. If you are the bride, the list gets longer. You must consider the wedding dress, hair, makeup, shoes, and jewelry. Below are the average prices for wedding-related items:

Wedding	Average Cost
Venue	$10,700
Invitations	$530
Dress	$1,800
Catering	$75 per guest
Cake	$500

Seeing these prices, it is important to know that if you want to have the wedding of your dreams, you should have some savings first.

Choose Your Look In Advance

Before you start saving on wedding hair and makeup, choose your look and what you want. That is important because without it, you might waste time and money deciding.

Also, make sure to include all the details. For example, choose colors in advance, which includes your hair and makeup too. Choose the lipstick color, and search for long lasting products. You do not have to use fancy products that cost thousands of dollars. Your regular products will do the job.

When choosing a look, make sure that it goes with your dress. For example, take into account whether it has a veil. A veil could change everything, so determine this first.

Also, establish if you want a daytime or nighttime look. That is important since you will have that look for the whole wedding day. After you specify what you want, make sure to stick to the plan. Do not change everything at the last minute. It would waste money, and you could end up without the perfect look.

Skip The Professionals And Go With Family And Friends

If you want to save money on wedding hair and makeup, skip the professionals and ask for the help of family and friends. It is likely that you know at least one person who is familiar with hair and makeup. Have a discussion with them about your budget for the wedding. They may be glad to help you out since it is your special day.

If you are not comfortable with receiving services for free, you can propose that they gift you this service for the wedding. It would be perfect since you would have your dream look and save money.

Visit Your Regular Salon

Another way to save money on wedding hair and makeup is by visiting your regular salon. Almost every woman has a regular place to do their hair and makeup. You know what to expect from your regular salon, and you can communicate with them about what you want.

You can ask for a discount as a regular customer and clearly, you will be returning there in the future. In your regular salon, you should get great treatment since there is already a connection. To choose the best team for wedding hair and makeup, even if you go to your regular salon, ask yourself these:

How many people do you need?
How many people need services?
What exactly do you want?
What is the cost, and is there a cancelation policy?
Are there any other customers that day?

Skip The Professionals And Go With The Assistant

You could book the assistant instead of the professional to save money. Many professional salons have assistants. Chances are the professionals are going to be fully booked.

With the assistant, you could get the same treatment as the professionals. They are trained by professionals and have the necessary skills. They might be available to be booked. Because they have trained with a professional, you will be in good hands.

Also, booking an assistant instead of a professional means you might pay much less. With the professional, you are paying for a brand. When using the assistant, you could use that extra money for other wedding-related expenses.

Do Not Tell Them You Are The Bride

Weddings are to be celebrated, but you may be able to save money by not saying that you are the bride. Many salons tend to increase prices for these events and other special occasions. Call a few salons and ask them for a price when you are a bride, a bridesmaid, or another wedding party member. You may notice the prices are different and much higher when you are the bride.

To save money, tell them that you need a hair and makeup look for another event, or that you are a bridesmaid. Just be sure to avoid the words bride since they could inflate prices and charge you more.

By saying you are a bridesmaid, you will get the same attention and services as a bride for a lower price. That rule might not apply when you visit your regular salon. There you could even get a discount for being the bride and their regular and loyal customer.

Take A Course And Do It Yourself

To save money on hair and makeup on your wedding day, do everything yourself. If you have the necessary skills and a little bit of knowledge, you could make your dream look come true. If not, you can always watch free tutorials or use Pinterest ideas to choose your look and practice it.

For the occasion, try not to buy any particular products. Instead, you can achieve the look with the makeup products and hair accessories you already own. Be creative to come up with the right idea.

If this does not help, you can also take a course for bridal hair and makeup. It won’t take much time since these courses only last for a few weeks. You can learn the basic skills and ask the teacher about tips for your wedding look. It could be free advice for you.

If you do not have much time, you can take an online course for hair and makeup and practice with your friends. These courses could save you much more money than going to a salon. Although you will have to pay a price, it would not be as high as going to a salon.

Visit A Cosmetology School

For your big day, you could go to a cosmetology school and let the students practice on you. Chances are you will have a great time and service. These students already have the knowledge and some practice. Using this option, you could save money on hair and makeup and use that money for something else for your wedding.

Also, a plus would be that you won’t have to switch places to do your hair and makeup. Everything will be in the same place. You could even make a deal with the school and students to visit a few times before your big day and let them practice. It would be a win for everyone since they get to practice, and you get your perfect look in the end.

Use Coupons and Deals For Your Wedding Look

Search for coupons and discounts for a wedding look. Some stores and salons offer promotions to attract more customers. Check your local salons or ask your friends. You can also check online to find deals on makeup and hair. If you are doing your makeup and hair and need additional products or accessories, check deals for products.

Go Natural

If all this is not enough for you to save money, you can always choose to go natural on your wedding day. It is probably the cheapest and most economical option. Some brides decide to do this, whether for economic reasons or because they prefer it that way. Also, if your wedding is on a beach or somewhere outdoor, this could be a perfect solution for you.

Where To Search For Wedding Hair And Makeup According To Your Budget

To find an affordable place to do your wedding hair and makeup, first do your research. Call and ask local salons about the prices. Then, compare them and choose the best option for your needs. Also, you can hire a makeup artist on the internet according to your wishes and budget. Some places to search are the following:

The Knot
Wedding Wire
Carats And Cake

Frequently Asked Question (FAQs)

How can I save money for a wedding?

You could save money for a wedding by using budgeting methods for a few months. For example, you could use these methods:

The longer you save, the better for your budget. Set your priorities and figure out how you want to plan your wedding. Then, you could separate your budget into smaller targets. For example, you could use digital envelopes to save for your wedding like this:

Envelopes	Target Amount
Wedding dress	$2,000
Wedding hair and makeup	$300
Wedding cake	$600
Catering	$1,000

How can I organize a wedding?

To organize a wedding, you should first plan it. Sit down to create a vision for your wedding with your partner. Then, make a list of goals and tasks for each person. Divide them between the two and set deadlines.

Also, if you are a person who can’t save money, work on that because weddings typically require some savings first. Many people have consequences because of this and go into debt for their wedding. Then, they need to fix their credit score to be able to buy a house or make other large purchases.

How can I find the cheapest wedding dress salons?

Even if your wedding day is the most important day of your life, try not to overspend. You can still get married on a budget. For example, you can shop at cheaper places instead of getting a fancy dress that costs a lot of money. Here are some places to get your wedding dress for under $1,000:

ASOS – they have wedding dresses for under $100
David’s Bridal
The Outnet
Amazon
Lulus

How much will a wedding cost you?

According to The Knot’s 2021 Real Weddings Study, a wedding in 2021 cost around $34,000. That includes the ceremony, reception, wedding dress, cake, and everything else. You can see that weddings are expensive. To lower the costs, you could:

Shorter the guest list
Avoid hiring pros and go with beginners
Postpone the wedding

Could you do your wedding hair and makeup by yourself?

Yes, you could. If you are good at hair and makeup, you can do it yourself without spending money on professionals. If you have a friend who is good at it, you can ask them to do it for you for free or as a wedding gift. Also, if you are not a professional, do not worry. There is no need to use something extravagant; you could go simple and easy for your wedding hair and makeup.

How much will wedding hair and makeup cost?

US brides tend to pay around $300 for wedding hair and makeup. They spend about $115 on makeup and about $130 on hair. This figure depends on your desires and looks for your wedding day.

Sources:

Forrest, K. (2022, February 15). This was the average cost of a wedding in 2021. theknot.com. Retrieved August 30, 2022, from https://www.theknot.com/content/average-wedding-cost#:~:text=An%20internal%20study%20found%20out%20exactly%20what%20couples%20spend%20on%20different%20wedding%20vendors%20last%20year%20on%20average.%20See%20the%20average%20cost%20of%20wedding%20vendors%20in%202021%2C%20below%3A

Kristen Bateman, L. S. (2017, January 29). The 20 best places to shop for affordable wedding dresses. Allure. Retrieved August 30, 2022, from https://www.allure.com/story/best-places-to-shop-affordable-wedding-dresses

Sims, M. (2022, July 28). How much does wedding hair and makeup cost? theknot.com. Retrieved August 30, 2022, from https://www.theknot.com/content/average-cost-wedding-hair-makeup

The Knot Research & Insights Team. (2022, February 15). The knot 2021 Real Weddings Study is here. theknot.com. Retrieved August 30, 2022, from https://www.theknot.com/content/wedding-data-insights/real-weddings-study