Wedding hairdresser and Matrix Artist Ambassador, Carol Ritchie gives her views on what it takes to be a great bridal hairdresser.
An impressive portfolio
Any prospective bride will do her research before opting for a hairdresser to style her wedding hair. The first thing they will look for is someone with an impressive portfolio of wedding hair looks. How do you get a portfolio together if no-one is taking a chance on you? You don’t have to be working on a wedding to create bridal hair. Start by practising on mannequin heads, then progress to your friends and other willing models. Take images of every look you are happy with and when you feel you have a portfolio that will showcase your talents as a bridal hairdresser, create a website and post them on social media with all the relevant hashtags. It may take a while for clients to approach you, but once you have worked on one wedding, word of mouth and your own social media marketing will start to build your reputation as a skilled and trustworthy bridal hairdresser.
Amazing hair-up skills
Not all brides want hair-up for their big day, but many will. If you are serious about being a bridal hairdresser, you will need to practise your hair-up skills until you are an updo master! Take advantage of any education that is available to you and watch and rewatch videos by hair-up maestros until you feel totally confident in your abilities.
Excellent organization skills
Being skilled at hair-up techniques is only part of what makes a great wedding hairdresser. You also need to be totally organised. Before the big day, you need to ensure you have regular consultations with the bride-to-be, including a practice run of the look with any veil the bride plans to wear. On the day itself, you need to be on it! If you are styling a wedding party as well as the bride, you will probably be working with a small team, who will all need to be briefed and working to a tight schedule. You need to make sure you have every tool and product required to pull off the bridal look, as you’ll likely be working in a hotel room, and there won’t be time to nip out to get what you need!
A good listener
Conducting a thorough consultation and really listening to what the client wants has never been as vital as when you are creating a bride’s look for her wedding day. If you get it wrong, not only will the bride be devastated, but she’ll almost certainly tell everyone that will listen how unhappy she was. The bride’s happiness and your reputation hang on you listening and understanding what the bride wants and then using your skills to deliver something that will utterly delight her.
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