The Ultimate Wedding Beauty And Grooming Timeline: 3 Months Out

Congratulations on your engagement! We understand how exciting this period of time is, but we also know how stressful it can be. That’s why we’ve put together the ultimate wedding beauty and grooming timeline to get you and your S.O. looking and feeling your best for the big day. From the surgeries to consider a year (or more!) before you walk down the aisle to the last minute treatments you can enjoy in the final weeks and everything in between, allow us to be your guide to wedding beauty and grooming.

You are three months away from your wedding day! Has it sunk in yet? By now, you hopefully have most of your wedding vendors booked and details in place. If not, let’s take a few deep breaths together because — full transparency — I’m three months away from my wedding and still haven’t booked a band or a DJ...

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s talk about your beauty and grooming plan for the next three months. In our previous wedding beauty timelines, we covered the bigger things (think: cosmetic surgery, laser hair removal, body sculpting procedures, and multi-visit skincare treatments), but in the final 90 days we are here to talk about the smaller — but no less important — hair, makeup, and beauty services that will have you ready to walk down the aisle.

Book Your Beauty and Grooming Vendors

First up, let’s talk about hair and makeup. Depending on when and where you are getting married, bridal beauty vendors (i.e. hairstylists, makeup artists, manicurists, and groomers) book up fast. Now is a good time to start scheduling your hair and makeup trial(s). Each makeup artist and hairstylist will have their own personality, skillset, and aesthetic, which is why it is so important to do a test run. By meeting with them well in advance, you can have peace of mind that they understand your vision and will make you feel as comfortable as possible on your big day. During your appointments, you should plan to try out different hairstyles (and maybe even hair colors!), as well as an array of makeup options. Now is also the time to give some thought to the timing and location of your wedding manicure, pedicure, and/or waxing session.

Consider a Lash Blast

Whether you are always on a quest for fuller, flutterier fringe or are concerned about shedding a tear (or two!) on that walk down the aisle, lash extensions may be just what the doctor ordered. While you may say you’re not going to cry, you can’t be sure. And you know that ‘no cake smashing’ pact you made with your fiance? Well, just how much do you trust him? Oh, and in case you needed yet another reason to strongly consider lash extensions for the big day, know this: they are guaranteed to look more natural than any false eyelash sets your makeup artist would glue on. Do I have your attention now? Good — you can read my full review on what it is like to get eyelash extensions here.

If you’ve never tried lash extensions before, you may want to consider a trial run now, so you can be sure they yield the results you are hoping for with plenty of time to remove them. If you already know you're interested, you might as well go ahead and book your final appointment. After all, each detail you check off the list now will only make the final weeks that much more enjoyable and, most importantly, stress-free!

Find Your Faux Glow

If you are hoping for a tropical vacation-worthy glow without the trip or, well, sun, a spray tan is the quickest and safest option. Appointments should begin roughly three months before your wedding date, and, when you arrive at the salon, there are a few things to keep in mind:

1. Establish Rapport: First and foremost, make sure you feel comfortable with the technician. There is nothing worse than being in a vulnerable state with someone that doesn’t make you feel your best or share your aesthetic.
2. Find Your Shade: Discuss the different shade and treatment options. Many tanning salons offer a standard and express package, and one might work better with your schedule than the other. The shade choices are usually the same for the both options, but you should confirm with your tanning technician.
3. Set a Schedule: Once you have settled on the perfect shade, come up with a game plan. In other words, figure out when the right time to get the spray tan is and account for any activities (think: bachelor and bachelorette parties, rehearsal dinner, etc.) leading up to the wedding that you might want to be sunkissed for.

For brides and grooms who are contemplating self tanning, plan to do a test run with the product several weeks (or months!) in advance — especially if you’ve never used it before. If you don’t like the results, you still have enough time to let it fade and book a professional treatment.

Master the Art of the Eyebrow

The three month mark is an ideal time to start thinking about your brows. For brides and grooms who are serious about achieving the perfect arches, microblading may be the solution. The semi-permanent technique uses a cosmetic tattoo pen to deposit pigmentation in the skin. The result is the illusion of fuller and more defined eyebrows that last a year or more. The treatment requires one initial session and a touch-up six to eight weeks after. For that reason, we recommend getting started no later than three months in advance of tying the knot.

If you are looking for a natural alternative, you can also go to a beauty bar to get them professionally waxed, threaded, tinted, and/or shaped. After that, you’ll have time to maintain them and treat with a growth serum, if needed. Brow lamination can also provide a temporary boost ahead of the big day.

Plan for Pearly Whites

When it comes to teeth whitening, there are a couple of routes you can take: at-home kits or in-office treatments. Both come with their own set of pros and cons. The argument for going with professional treatments is that at-home whitening strips and pastes are, arguably, not as potent or effective. Most over-the-counter products have a lower concentration of whitening agents and, in turn, do not have as strong of an efficacy as the professional alternatives. Further, in-office treatments require less of a time commitment and last anywhere from six months to two years.

On the flip side, professional teeth whitening will set you back anywhere from hundreds to thousands of dollars, whereas most over-the-counter teeth whitening kits cost under $50. Those at-home products also don’t require you to schedule an appointment with your dentist. When it comes to how you get your brightest, whitest smile, it’s all about personal preference.

The Takeaway

Your countdown has dwindled to the double digits and things are getting real. In between wedding planning, you should be booking your hair, makeup, and tanning vendors, shaping your eyebrows, and working towards a whiter smile. Taking all these beauty and grooming steps now will allow you to enjoy yourself even more in the final weeks and days. Speaking of, we have two more guides — one for a month before the big day and one for the last week — to go!