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Diet & Exercise
Feeling Healthy
A Sparkling Smile
Hair Makeup & Nails
Grooms & Male Attendants
Diet & Exercise
Planning ahead for the big day brings
excitement and joy, but for most couples it also brings some anxiety.
Couples want to look and feel their best and as is with all the details
of their wedding this too takes forethought and planning.
Almost every bride wants to lose some weight
or trim down in a particular area for her wedding day. Experts
steadfastly recommend that no crash diets be undertaken, however. Not
only can they play havoc with dress fittings, but they can also result
in fatigue, dizziness and even nausea - all undesirable (as well as
unpredictable!) the day of the wedding.
Controlled weight loss can be accomplished through a combination of
calorie reduction and exercise. The best place to start is with a
physician. Once you have talked to your doctor you can begin to consider
the countless choices available. Many weight loss programs provide
sensible menu plans along with, exercise, encouragement, information and
counseling. Nutritionists and exercise professionals can also be
helpful. Today, options for exercise include a variety of great fitness
centers, health clubs, gyms, specialized yoga, martial arts, aerobic and
dance classes, not to mention local parks or even your own home. Without
a doubt the most successful diets and exercise plans are started months
in advance and can lead to healthy habits for a lifetime.
Feeling Healthy
A headache, neck ache, or
backache can leave you feeling tired and worn down. Today many men and
women are turning to chiropractic care to relieve these common though
irritating conditions. Massages have also gained popularity as more
people look to relieve their daily tensions and stress. Day spas have
opened their doors to provide a haven from the cares of the world. These
one-stop relaxation spots may offer services including spa treatments,
facials, massages, manicures, pedicures and more. Day spas are not only
popular for brides, they also provide a great way for her attendants to
get together, relax and be pampered for a fun shower or pre-wedding
treat!
A Sparkling
Smile!
Today more than ever, we see numerous commercials and
products geared at whiter teeth. Many dental professionals are now
specializing in satisfying this market with special treatments aimed at
whitening and brightening smiles. Along with whiter teeth, they are also
providing ways to straighten and perform aesthetic services without the
traditional unsightly braces or surgery.
Hair Makeup
and Nails
All area beauty experts agree on this initial fundamental
piece of bridal advice: the bride should not try to look like someone
else on her wedding day. "I tell the bride to choose a look that will be
an extension of herself," one local consultant explains. "Don’t do
something different with your hair style or make-up that will make you
tense or unsure of yourself. There is enough stress on the wedding day!"
Changes and experiments in new looks can be made successfully, the
consultant adds, if the "new look" is tried out in advance. Beauty
consultants and salon professionals should be contacted 4 to 6 months
before the wedding day for a personal consultation. This consultation
may cover the bride’s cosmetic background, hair history, headpiece
selection and wedding day schedule of events, in addition to serving as
the beginning of a working relationship between bride and stylist that
will continue up to the wedding. The consultant will want to discuss the
bride’s expectations concerning her nails, hair and make-up, and what
can be done to meet or exceed those expectations.
The stylist will help the bride decide on
hair length, type and placement of headpiece, placement of flowers,
highlighting and all other hair concerns. Experts remind brides that
their hair will have to endure the long wedding day with all its
photographs, hugs and dances, not to mention the ensuing honeymoon,
which so often includes sun, wind and water. To help brides decide, many
salons have styling books for brides to browse through, and customers
are encouraged to bring in photographs depicting styles they like.
The first styling is often done 2 to 6 weeks
before the wedding, depending on the style, amount of hair cut,
highlighting, etc. The final styling is done on the morning of the
ceremony.
Beauty consultants remind brides of the
importance of make-up on the wedding day: the bride is the center of
attention, the day is long, and countless photographs are taken. Make-up
helps the bride maintain her radiant good looks throughout it all.
Brides may bring in favorite make-up colors,
fabric swatches, headpieces and any other items which can help establish
color choices. The consultant is trained to look at skin tone to advise
on the best color and shades to enhance the bride’s natural hue.
As with hair styling, a practice makeup
application is suggested 1 to 4 weeks before the wedding to check for
allergies and compatibility. One area salon owner suggests doing a
practice styling with headpiece and make-up application for the
newspaper announcement photograph as a practical trial run.
"Nail care is one area some brides overlook,
but they forget about all the handshakes, people looking at the ring and
the popular photographs featuring hands," a local manicurist explains.
Whether performed in a beauty shop, day spa
or nail specialty salon, nail care is important to overall appearance.
Brides can choose from a multitude of colors and are encouraged to bring
in a fabric swatch for matching ahead of time.
In addition to manicures, many brides treat
themselves to pedicures. A pedicure can improve a bride’s self-image,
help her to relax during the busy preparation period (they take about an
hour) and assure lovely feet on the honeymoon!
By establishing a
relationship with a beauty salon well in advance of her wedding day, the
bride can receive the best worry-free care possible, culminating in the
Saturday morning visit (for a Saturday afternoon wedding) to the salon
for final manicure, styling and make-up application, usually scheduled
well in advance. Some brides are accompanied by their mothers as well as
attendants, producing an appreciated time of relaxed preparation in a
friendly atmosphere. Some salons offer special packages for brides
and/or bridal parties.
Grooms and Male Attendants
Not surprisingly, today many men are taking advantage of salon services.
Most male clientele will get their final haircut 1 to 2 weeks before the
wedding day; they will return for a final shampoo and hair trim (beard
and moustache included) 1 day before or the day of the wedding. A
manicure for the laboring man is an easy way to clean and soften
work-toughened hands, as many men are discovering.
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