The Bride Guide

The Ultimate Countdown to Flawless Skin

You’ve finalised everything from flowers and invitations to dresses and suits. Now all that’s left to get in order – is you! Preparing for a wedding can be stressful and certainly take its toll on your skin. Many brides suffer from breakouts, lack luster skin tone and dullness as well as discolouration and pigmentation. Leaving your skin woes to the last minute can cause even more stress and in turn make the skin look even worse. Dedicating time and efforts into your skin to show off that wedding day glow is just as important as finding the perfect bouquet. Luckily there are so many options to help you on your way.

We asked Dr. Kate Jameson, Cosmetic Physician and the Medical Director of Youth Lab, Australia’s premier medical aesthetics clinic, the perfect skin solutions to get you glowing and picture perfect for your special moment.

YOUR TREATMENT TIMELINE

12 Months

Preparation is key here. 12 months is the perfect time to commit to your wedding skin and start investigating options.. The first step is to consult with your skin therapist or cosmetic doctor to establish your bespoke wedding plan.

If you have any major skin concerns such as pigmentation, redness, acne, scarring, fine lines or wrinkles, this is the best time to address them. Treating these skin conditions takes time, and treatments generally require multiple sessions with cumulative effects and come with a little recovery down time. Committing early will result in much less stress leading up to the big day and also prevent that extra stress wreaking havoc on your skin.

This too is the best time to put an effective home skin care routine into practice. Results will be further enhanced when you feed your skin high quality, active ingredients that work in synergy with clinic treatments and achieve a balance within your skin. We always recommend starting on a retinol such as Cosmedix Serum 16 as well as a hydrating serum such as PCA Skin Hyaluronic Acid Boosting Serum.

6 months is the perfect time to look at laser and light treatments, to allow plenty of time for healing as well as for results to become evident by the big day.

For the majority of skin types a laser treatment such as the Sciton Halo will deliver phenomenal results targeting texture, scarring, uneven skin tone and wrinkles. This is generally a one off treatment which will deliver the “Halo Glow” from 4 weeks afterwards, with results continuing for up to a year. Follow up the laser with Broad Band Light (BBL) treatments which can be tailored to address concerns of redness, pigmentation, acne or anti ageing. Results are cumulative, therefore a series of 3 treatments spaced 4 weeks apart will achieve the best results.

6 Months

The big day is slowly creeping closer and by this stage your major skin concerns will be addressed and confidence will be increasing. Now is the perfect time to look into cosmetic injectables.

Even for someone who has never had cosmetic injectables, such as wrinkle relaxers or dermal fillers, now is a great time to give them a go. Anti-wrinkle injections do not have to result in a frozen or fake appearance and tiny doses with precise injecting can result in a smoother complexion, with a softening and mattefying effect to the skin. Your makeup on the big day will be easier and smoother to apply, resulting in a photo ready finish.

Dermal fillers such as cheek and lip enhancement can also be used to enhance your beauty and naturally sculpt your features. Small volumes will look natural and your skin and lips will appear more hydrated and subtle.

This is also a good time to begin any injectable treatments as the effect of wrinkle relaxers only last 3 to 4 months so if the treatment is not for you then you will be back to normal at your big day. This then allows up to do your second treatment one month before your wedding to ensure the correct dose and result (as you would have had the practice run already). Ultimately the sooner you start the better as this gives plenty of time for any fine lines to soften and smooth out.

3 Months

Now it is time to step things up with only 3 months until the big day. By this stage your major skin concerns will be well on the way to resolution with a reduction in scarring, redness, pigmentation and an overall improvement in skin health, barrier function and hydration.

We now need to focus on those treatments that will have you looking luminous at the alter, reception and for all of the photos that come with it.

To boost your pre-ceremony glow, a series of light antioxidant chemical peels and Healite LED therapy sessions is a super-charged combination for radiant skin with very little down time.

Chemical peels can be known for being aggressive and intensive resurfacing treatments. However there are options for botanical antioxidant peels as a gentle exfoliation and stimulation of the skin – a perfect treatment to incorporate into your pre-wedding skin preparation. These peels use a combination of alpha hydroxy acids that increase the water content of the skin, as well as fruit enzymes that have an exfoliating effect, while simultaneously infusing antioxidant rich ingredients that brighten complexion and promote skin health, as well as fight free radical damage. These peels have minimal downtime, and leave you fresh faced, hydrated and radiant.

At the 3 month mark we also recommend you pay another visit to your cosmetic doctor to check in on your injectable treatments and to review your results from your skin treatments. Any changes to your plan can be discussed at this stage too and treatments intensified if your skin is stubborn or problematic.

2 Months

Now things are getting serious! Now is not the time to start any intensive treatments or to change up the regime at all. Balance is key.

In the home stretch, a series of fortnightly Hydrafacials combined with Healite LED will ensure your skin is picture perfect with that signature Hydrafacial glow.

Using Alpha Hydroxy acids and Beta Hydroxy acids to exfoliate and clarify the skin, and finishing with an infusion of Hyaluronic Acid, Peptides and Antioxidants, this treatment truly luminates your skin from the inside out. With minimal to no downtime, it is the perfect last minute treatment that can be done in the final weeks leading up to your event.

1 Month

This will be when you book in for your final wrinkle relaxer touch up. This isn’t something you want to leave until the last minute, to allow adequate time for the product to work and see the full results.

In the final few weeks we hold off the more intensive treatments and recommend the Healite LED to help calm the skin and boost your pre-wedding glow. If any last minute skin problems occur, such as a breakout from stress, you and your skin team are now in the perfect position to manage this as after over 6 months of getting to know your skin will give the best methods of combating any problems.

1 Week

A favourite in the week leading up to the big day is the Aquagold Fine Touch Facial which uses a cocktail of solutions including hyaluronic acid and anti-wrinkle injections to smooth the skin, delivering optimal moisture and giving an airbrush appearance. You will notice less facial sweating, decreased pore size and makeup will sit perfectly.

Following an Aquagold it is time to focus on beauty treatments and relaxation such as organising your tan, getting a massage and tidying up your lashes and brows. And voilà, you will be picture perfect on your special day!