District Weddings

Bride Blogger Catherine pops in today to tell us all about the importance of trial and error…before the big day!

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As the wedding gets closer, I realize that I like being prepared (a little bit of a control issue), and during the planning process I discovered the importance of trials and errors.

I know that you may be thinking about where to save money when it comes to the budget, and naturally the hair trial seems like a safe contender to cut.  However, finding the right person to style your hair is essential for ensuring your comfort the day of the wedding.  Here’s why.

I had been going to the same stylist for a little over a year.  I chose the salon well before I was engaged because of three factors: yelp reviews, a convenient location, and – although I hate to judge a book by its cover – it looked very cool.  My stylist seemed nice and my haircuts seemed good, so why not commit and ask this person to take care of me the day of the wedding.

I scheduled a trial and brought a close friend to help me decide on the perfect style that would get me through the ceremony and dancing.  I brought two photos with me to help decide if I want my hair down or in an updo.  My stylist suggested that we try both, and immediately began to curl my hair.

Photography Credit: Brides, Brides

Within minutes, he burned me with the curling iron.  He burned my ear (okay, accidents happen), but then he burned my forehead.  Now, I’m not a hair stylist, but I know not to burn the forehead because that is noticeable, especially in photos.  I squealed in pain and he continued to curl the rest.

So, he presents the first style and it is just a curled version of my hair.  It’s nice, and I’m seriously considering it until he mentions that the style likely won’t last for several hours.  Okay, well I know that I want a style that will last until the start of my evening wedding, so he continues to create style two: the updo.

Honestly, I can’t even remember what was going through my mind at this point; I could only see the red burn on my forehead.  When I looked up next, I saw my hair styled into a formal mullet – a look straight from 1992 that he suggested for one of the most important days of my life.  I shook my head no and he finally moved on to create the second photo, a classic low chignon.   When I saw my hair in a ballerina bun, pulled back so tightly that my forehead was just getting redder, I knew that this was not working for me.

Photography Credit: Brides, Brides

It’s not that I didn’t like my stylist’s usual work.  I just really hated his updos.  Every stylist has his or her strengths; it’s probably better to ask in advance how they feel about special event hair.  And in Washington, there is no shortage of talented people to give you the look you want for the big day.  It took me a night of errors to understand this and the importance of trials.