FRESH FLUSH
Weddings aren't the time to wildly experiment with your makeup, but one trend that does translate is a subtle, ombre lip stain for that perfect rosebud pout. A soft, smoky eye also adapts nicely, but as this look — by Sam Morrison for Jane Iredale from NZ Fashion Week's Weddings Show alast month — demonstrates, beautiful skin is always your best starting point. She recommends using Iredale's hydrating Liquid Minerals Foundation, $92, for light to medium glowy coverage, or as a tinted primer that can be layered up with pressed powder.
The mineral brand’s international makeup artist Natalie Soto-Carlisle, who was in New Zealand this month, loves a bold lip on a brave bride, but cautions to choose a classic red, rather than anything too fashionably dark that will date in photographs. She recommends always trialling your makeup in advance and accepting that even if you prefer a natural look, a little extra coverage is needed to photograph well.
LAIDBACK LUXURY
Great news for anyone who prefers minimalism over layers of lace, diamantes and ruffles — New York-based bridal studio Stone Fox has partnered with online retailer Eloquii, extending the size range of their signature luxe bohemian dresses to offer sizes 16-24. Eloquii's creative director Jodi Arnold has helped ensure quality of the fits, down to details such as adding opaque inlays to Chantilly lace straps, meaning a bra can go unnoticed.
Visit stonefoxbride.com
JAPANESE INSPIRATION
Lush, freshly foraged bouquets that look as though they've come straight from the meadow have long been popular but there's another more sculptural trend emerging in wedding florals. Ikebana, the Japanese art of arranging cut stems, leaves and flowers, is an ancient technique that favours form, balance and simplicity. So, rather than carrying a wild mass of prettiness down the aisle, choose just a few individual flowers to offset your elegance. Or arrange stems asymmetrically in interesting bowls as part of your table settings.
Locally, Mark Antonia creates arrangements that put negative space to great use. Now offering a new service that salvages bridal bouquets into beautiful dried arrangements (pictured above), that can be kept long beyond your wedding day. Visit markantonia.com
BRING THE OUTSIDE IN
Get back to nature with the table settings trend sweeping Pinterest: white and green, with a splash of metallic. Create your own Garden of Eden with delicate, white flowers and greenery in small copper vases, place-names attached to stems of rosemary or lavender placed on white napkins, copper or gold cutlery and gold-rimmed glassware. Effortlessly elegant, it's a look that complements both indoor and outdoor settings.
You can even forego the flowers altogether, by draping vines over the table, interspersed with a few white candles, or by hanging a green canopy over your guests. Like this beautiful use of greenery by Two Foxes, an Auckland-based husband and wife duo whose speciality is wedding styling with a n "authentic" approach. Visit twofoxes.co.nz
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Hair ornamentation complements the more ornate approach to bridal gown decoration. This can be simply done with a bejewelled slide, as seen at the Marchesa show at New York Fashion Week this month, where Moroccanoil's global ambassador Antonio Corral Calero crafted these pre-Raphaelite curls (pictured) and a sophisticated slicked back straight style, both finished with Moroccanoil's Luminous Hair Spray.
PLEASE YOURSELF
The most modern approach to finding a dress, according to the bridal spring 2017 season? Forget traditional rules and go for something that truly speaks to you, whether that means opting for an unexpected shade, such as pink, mauve or pistachio green — seen at Jenny Packham, Marchesa and Naeem Khan — or a flapper-esque thigh-grazing length. For those with an aversion to dresses, polished pants and jumpsuits are big news too — like this, from Elie Saab. If you're looking for bridesmaids' dresses, be inspired by our edit.
