A Wedding

Last weekend I had the opportunity to do the makeup for a large bridal party. These ladies were some of my favorite wedding clients I've worked with so far. There were no bridezillas, or drama queens. No jealous bridesmaids or sibling rivalry here. They were all there to actually help the bride be relaxed and ready for her wedding day - imagine that!

The Bride and her sister struck me the most. They are the only children, and the happy home with their parents was evident by the ease of conversation and natural show of affection they all showed to one another. The framed pictures of the two hugging sisters throughout the house were bittersweet considering the significance of the day.



I had some time to sit back and reflect on all this, while I was waiting for one of the girls to be finished in the hairdressers chair. There is such a rollercoaster of emotions that are happening to the brides family members. Especially a family like this. Nowadays, this close family connection is an anomaly. The mother and father are trying to be brave and sensible, knowing they can't keep their daughter forever. They love their soon-to-be son in law, they appreciate his goodness and love for their daughter....but having the knowledge of the complicated changes of life in their own twenty-two year marriage, they wonder if the two young ones will stand the test of time. Sitting in my makeup chair, her Mother reflected nervously to me, but soon began to relax. She was worried that her daughter wasn't making the right choice, but at the same time, she trusted her daughters judgment and hope for the future. She asked, "As a parent, what else can we do?"

The other daughter, the Bride's younger sister was also very touching to me. She has a fascinating beauty about her. Tall and thin, she has the perfect fashion model physique. A very unique look, and air about her. She is only 19, but I felt she had somewhat of an "old soul" to her. Perhaps experiences in her life that happened too soon, some that felt darker or sadder to me. But her love for her sister and the sadness she was leaving was very much there. She was the one who had found me originally to be the Makeup Artist for the wedding. I could tell how much work she had put into this, and how much she wanted everything to be perfect for her big sister.

The Bride herself was happy and relaxed, giggling to herself as she painted her toenails and chatted with her bridesmaids. Her fiancee was in the army, and they would be moving to Alaska right after the honeymoon. What a shock to the system! Getting married is one thing, and then moving thousands of miles away from your close knit family when you've lived at home your whole life? Definitely climactic. But she seemed calm and reassuring, hoping for the best I'm sure. Full of fresh hope and dreams for the future. I remember that feeling.