PRODUCTS & TRENDS

A beauty-editor-approved guide to prepping your hair for an upcoming wedding

Written By: Shannon Lawlor

Having been a beauty journalist for nearly a decade, I have long considered myself an oracle of wisdom when it comes to hair health. I have absorbed all of the best advice from the top hairstylists the world over. But, when it came to planning my hair look for my wedding last month, there were a few things even I wish I had known. So, in order to ensure no other brides fall at the same hurdles that I did, here is your first-person account of a complete wedding-hair timeline…

One year

UNTIL THE BIG DAY

1 Year before

Even if you’re not sure what exact style you want to go for, now is the time to at least make your mind up on the cut and colour you want to have for your big day. I knew that I wanted to be much blonder for my wedding day, so I sat down with my colourist as soon as I got engaged to make a plan of action. If you’re looking to make a colour change, you need to start the journey as early as possible in order to mitigate any bleach or chemical damage.

It turns out, I still hadn’t really left enough time, and ended up having two colour appointments in the space of six weeks—which, in hindsight, was probably too much for my fine hair to handle. It meant I ended up chopping more off the length than I ideally would have liked in order to have things looking smooth and sleek on the day.

One month

UNTIL THE BIG DAY

1 Month before

By this stage, you should really know what sort of style you’re going to opt for on the day—whether you’re wearing it in loose waves, sleek and straight, half-up-half-down, embracing your natural texture, or going for a full up-do. Over the next few weeks, I would really recommend booking in your hair trial (or doing a runthrough if you’re doing your hair yourself).It is at this point any glaring issues you might want to address get highlighted. For example, during my hair trial I realised that if I wanted my hair to look really sleek, I needed to get on top of my breakage issue, so I started being extra vigilant with protection during my heat styling routine.

My hair heroes:

Oribe
Invisible Defense Universal Protection Spray

It might be expensive, but I can attest to the fact this stuff really works. It provides heat protection up to 450°F and contains heaps of conditioning and strengthening ingredients (such as plant-based collagen and vitamin B) for a super-sleek finish.

KEEO Genius
Styler

With Contoured Plates and a Protective Air Gap to promote hair health and minimise heat damage, putting the task of any heat styling firmly in the hands of the Genius Styler helps to reduce any of that typical straightening-inflicted breakage.

My hair heroes:

Oribe
Invisible Defense Universal Protection Spray

It might be expensive, but I can attest to the fact this stuff really works. It provides heat protection up to 450°F and contains heaps of conditioning and strengthening ingredients (such as plant-based collagen and vitamin B) for a super-sleek finish.

KEEO Genius
Styler

With Contoured Plates and a Protective Air Gap to promote hair health and minimise heat damage, putting the task of any heat styling firmly in the hands of the Genius Styler helps to reduce any of that typical straightening-inflicted breakage.

One week

UNTIL THE BIG DAY

The week of

If you have coloured hair, I’d recommend seeing your colourist just before your big day. I booked in for a colour refresh the day before. I was adamant I didn’t want any more bleach to touch my hair, as I didn’t want to risk any further breakage and certainly didn’t want any mishaps with no time to fix it. My colour was toned and my roots smudged out to ensure things were looking tip-top for the day itself.

My piece of advice here is an important one: do not incorporate any new products into your routine the week before your wedding. Keep things simple and pared-back. I stuck with the same shampoo and conditioner duo I used before my hair trial so that we didn’t face any surprises. For example, if you wash your hair with a super-softening conditioner or mask the morning of your wedding, it can be much harder to style. Instead, keep things consistent and wash your hair no sooner than the evening before if you’re not planning on a blow dry as a part of the styling process.
The wedding day

If you’re anything like me, damage isn’t at the top of the worry list on your wedding day—you just want your hair to look its best, by any means necessary. Because my chosen look was centre-parted, slicked-down and with some lift at the back, I had heaps of grips and bands in there to keep things super-tight. My top tip? Release any clips and bands the minute you can. I ended up with a tension headache by the end of the night, and the tight clips and bands did cause some breakage. The minute I got back to my room, I jumped straight in the shower to wash all of the product out and prevent any scalp irritation.

My hair heroes:

Got2b Glued
Blasting Freeze Hairspray

If you want a hairspray that’s going to keep your look in place all day, all night, trust me when I say this is the best one for the job. Every hairstylist I know keeps a can in their kit.

Tigi Bed Head
Wax Stick

I once had a conversation with Hailey Bieber whereby she revealed to me that this is the product she uses for her iconic bun. So, it’s needless to say this is the thing I turned to in order to keep my wedding hair firmly slicked-down.

My hair heroes:

Got2b Glued
Blasting Freeze Hairspray

If you want a hairspray that’s going to keep your look in place all day, all night, trust me when I say this is the best one for the job. Every hairstylist I know keeps a can in their kit.

Tigi Bed Head
Wax Stick

I once had a conversation with Hailey Bieber whereby she revealed to me that this is the product she uses for her iconic bun. So, it’s needless to say this is the thing I turned to in order to keep my wedding hair firmly slicked-down.

Post-wedding

With the bleaching that took place beforehand and the intense backcombing, use of extreme-hold products and heat styling that took place on the day itself, it’s almost needless to say my hair needed some TLC post-wedding. In a bid to get my hair back to its strongest, healthiest self before it sees any more bleach, I have been taking some serious action. For starters, I’m leaning heavily on bond-repair products, like Olaplex No.3 Hair Pefector, to mend and restore broken bonds. Nourishing hair masks have also been a key part of my routine. Once a week, I give my hair a deep-condition with a hydrating treatment, like the Kérastase Blond Absolu one below, in a bid to restore some shine and bounce.

When it comes to styling, I have massively stripped back my routine in hopes that less processing and fewer products will fend off any further damage. For example, when it comes to heat styling, I have continued with the religious heat protector application that I adopted just before the wedding. Because, although it might sound odd, I have continued with the heat styling. Why? Well, because for fine hair like mine, I have learned from both experts and lived experience that leaving it to air dry can often lead to more breakage. You see, the longer your hair remains wet, the more compromised a strand’s protective outer cortex becomes, paving the way for brittleness, dryness and breakage. It also means I don’t need to reach for the straighteners every single day—instead just utilising the more hair-friendly KEEO Genius whenever I want a poker-straight or curled look on the odd day I feel that way inclined.

In further attempt to prevent more breakage, I have made a conscious effort to be kinder to my hair while brushing. My super-long hair is prone to knotting and I have little to no patience with it. In fact, I’m somewhat infamous among my friends for tugging at my hair in fury with a brush. But since the wedding, I have taken much more care with my brushing, using my favourite Kent Paddle Brush to carry out gentle strokes from the ends up.

All of this, combined with following my colourist’s advice on swapping out my abrasive linen pillowcases for silk ones to reduce friction-related snapping overnight, has slowly but surely made a big difference. (I know I should have boarded the silk pillowcase train much earlier, but I have long detested their somewhat ugly appearance. Recently, I bit the bullet and bought a more aesthetically-pleasing one from Slip—although I still put it away in a cupboard during the day so that my linen bed set remains matching during waking hours.)

My hair heroes:

Olaplex No.3
Hair Perfector

In the case of bond repair products, this pre-shampoo treatment is the best of the best. With Olaplex’s patented (and scientifically-proven) formula, it leaves hair feeling and looking stronger, shinier and smoother from the get-go.

Kérastase
Blond Absolu Cicaflash Treatment

This conditioning treatment mask isn’t just packed full of hydrating ingredients like hyaluronic acid and edelweiss flower to amp-up gloss and shine, it also helps blonde appear brighter and more vibrant.

My hair heroes:

Olaplex No.3
Hair Perfector

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Kérastase
Blond Absolu Cicaflash Treatment

This conditioning treatment mask isn’t just packed full of hydrating ingredients like hyaluronic acid and edelweiss flower to amp-up gloss and shine, it also helps blonde appear brighter and more vibrant.