Laura Bradley-Richards

Hoar Cross Hall, Staffordshire

25 July 2015

I arrived bright and early at 6.30am for the Wedding makeup of Laura (the bride), her mom and Sophie (Laura's sister) who was head bridesmaid. Laura married Liam at Brewood Church and later had their wedding reception at Hoar Cross Hall and spa. 

Hoar Cross Hall is a Grade II listed stately home retreat in Staffordshire that pairs period style with modern luxury and attentive service. Commissioned by Hugo Meynell Ingram as a home for his family, it was completed in 1871 and has a distinctive Elizabethan style with Jacobean overtones. Lofty gables, turreted water towers, 48 chimneys and mullioned windows are all excellent examples of the period and exude a level of grandeur.

Hoar Cross Hall

I was the first to arrive and was welcomed into an excited household, even dad. Laura and her mom had said that they didn't sleep very well and were up at 4.30 playing Mastermind before Laura then decided to go out for a run?!?!? 

I was offered an array of beautiful fruit, fresh juice and even Buck's Fizz and all before I got my coat off, I was in heaven lol. 

As I was unpacking my kit the hairdresser Tracey from Chequres Hair and Beauty arrived. We discussed how we were going to work and I was going to start on Amy, the brides sister but she was still in the shower so I had a cuppa before starting. Laura and her mom made a joke about how Amy is the worst time keeper and if anybody was going to be late it would be her. Amy was certainly very relaxed. 

Laura's mom showed me that they had all had dressing gowns made with the date and their names of the back which she was very proud of and even posted a photo of the back on Facebook. She said she was new to Facebook but has enjoyed going on it and posting each day up until the wedding little messages and a countdown to the wedding. 

The general theme of the wedding was romantic with a baby blue colour scheme. So we decided to keep the makeup simple and elegant for everybody using neutral colour's. 

For Amy and Laura's makeup I used a lot of colour's out of my Urban Decay Naked Basics pallets and then for just a pop of highlight I used Mac "all that glitters" on the centre of the eyelid. 

Eyeliner to define the eyes and lots of waterproof mascara. I was told that everybody was 'cryers' so to make sure I used waterproof mascara. 

Everybody had dry skin so I mainly used MAC face and body foundation which I applied with a sponge. Then powdered with MAC's mineralise powder just on the T-zone. 

I gave a light contour using 'two faced Chocolate solero' and natural roses cheeks using MAC's Rosey Outlook. 

I used Motives 'Pink sugar' to give a natural lip with a little bit of shimmer. 

Laura was next to have her makeup done and we kept to the same products as Amy. Laura was sat in my chair which was in front of the window so she could see the weather outside quiet clearly. 

The weather couldn't quite make its mind up and had beautiful clear sky's one min then heavy downpours the next. Laura said as long as the rain held off for her getting in and out the car and for the photographs she wasn't too fussed about the rain. 

Laura was having a early wedding and the church service was to start at 11am. Laura was adamant she didn't want to be traditionally late as all she wanted to do was marry 'her Liam'. Laura and Liam were a perfect match and have been together for 10 years after meeting at a dance that was organised by both of their schools. I met Liam on Laura's trial and it was so obvious how much they loved and cared for each other. After Laura's trial he was taking her out to Marco Pier Whites restaurant and later to the theatre as to not waste the makeup. 

I asked Laura why she had such a early wedding and she said it was because all she wanted was to marry Liam and enjoy the much of the day as she could with her love. 

Liam had delivered a beautiful box of wedding presents to Laura by his best man. Laura had her nails done the previous day so was struggling to open the wrapping on each gift but got there in the end. 

We were now joined by Laura's other 4 bridesmaids who had had their hair done elsewhere. Laura said she had so many good friends from different friendship groups so found it very hard to decide who to have as bridesmaids as she could of had a lot more. 

The photographer Mitch at SMD Wedding Photography arrived and made a joke about how organised Laura was and pulled out a itinerary of how the day was planned right up until he was ok to leave at the end of the night. Then Laura's mom said everybody was emailed a detailed itinerary of how the day was planned. The photographer said Laura was the most organised bride he had ever had in his whole career of a photographer. 

The wedding flowers were delivered too which were beautiful flowers arranged by Patricia Cooper in Penkridge. Laura mentioned that the lady that had done her flowers was also the florist that had made her moms wedding flowers when she got married, which she said was an extra special touch. 

The wedding morning was filled with lots of love and laughter. Laura had compiled a playlist of songs on her iPad to be played and were all my favourite songs so was having to sing a lot in my head as to not ruin the atmosphere with my bad singing lol. Laura then played the song she was to be walking down the isle to and everyone was in tears again. It was a good job waterproof mascara was used! 

I did the makeup of Laura's mom last and I wanted to add a little colour into her look. I used my YSL Eyeshadow palette to add a little blue onto her eyelid. 

She was super excited for the wedding and couldn't find a outfit she liked so had one made for her. She asked if I could help put her in her dress as it had little buttons all the way down the back and couldn't reach. On the trial I was also asked if I would put Laura in her wedding dress as it had a corset back and she didn't know how to do them up. 

Laura's mom was so proud of her girls and was sharing with me some fond memories of when the girls were younger. More tears were to come when she said that last night laura gave her a Thank you card which included a reading from one of her favourite books that she used to read to laura as a little girl. 

Time was moving on, it was 10.15, both me and the hairdresser had just finished So raced upstairs to get Laura and her mom into their dresses. 

I started to put Laura's mom in her dress first which was beautiful, the colour was light powder blue with lots of little buttons to the back. First time doing them up I realised I must have missed a button so started again, but was then helped out by 'hairdresser lady' who finished them off so I could make a start on Laura's dress. 

Laura's dress was beautiful. It was white and had little bead and crystal details to the bodice. The dress was a Viva Bride dress and bought from Wed2be.  I helped Laura into the dress and laced up the back. She looked like a princess. Nobody was allowed to see Laura  or her mom in their dresses until everyone was downstairs ready and waiting. 

Laura came downstairs and made the grand entrance into the lounge she took everybody's breath, her dad looked so proud.

Laura had gifts to give to her bridesmaids so everyone gathered around her as they opened then, they were presented with a gorgeous Tennis bracelets to wear with their bridesmaid dresses. 



























It was time for everyone to go to the church and for me to say goodbye.

The bridesmaids and mother of the bride were being driven by family friends in their car and Laura and her dad were driven in a Regent Landaulet In Black And Ivory With Wired Wheels Car supplied by Love Wedding Cars.



Laura looked so excited and happy. Thank you for choosing me to do your wedding makeup. It was lovely meeting you. I wish you and your family a happy future and look forward to seeing your wedding photos soon x x 

Here's a little video of Laura's wedding morning, Please click on the photo x

If you would like to book me to do your makeup. Please take a look at my website www.helenpearsonmua.com 

You can also find me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pintrest, LinkedIn you can email me helenpearsonmua@hotmail.com 

or ring me on 07826 542 676

Anne-Marie Corrado

The Moat House, Acton Trussell

15 June 2015

Anne-Marie and I go way back as we used to be best friends in primary school until she changed school, so it was a lovely to get a email asking me to do her wedding makeup. 

It was a sunny day so it was a lovely day to get married. 

Anne-Marie married Christopher at the Moat House in Acton Trussell on 15 June after planning the wedding for 18 months. 

The Moat House which has been one of Staffordshire’s most popular wedding venues for the last 25 years is Located alongside the Staffordshire and Worcestershire canal in the picturesque village of Acton Trussell, the venue is set in stunning grounds and surrounded by tranquil waters. The moat house is certainly one of my favourite venues because I had my wedding reception there 8 years ago.

The colour scheme that the couple chose was Peach and cream as it held a lot of significance as it was the colour scheme of Anne-Marie's parents when they got married. 

Anne-Marie and Christopher decided upon having a small and intimate civil ceremony of just 30 guests of their closest family and friends, then a reception for everyone on their return from honeymoon in Jamaica.

I was booked by Anne-Marie to do the wedding makeup of herself, her bridesmaid Kirstie and her mom Christine. 

Gemma Neville from Dream bridal hair was also booked to do the wedding hair of the bridal party. 

When I arrived early at the Moat House, Anne-Marie was quite relaxed and chilled out. She was joined in the room by Kirstie her best friend from school and Kirsties daughter Ellia. (Who is my daughters best friend at school).

The dresses were all hanging up and were beautiful. The bridesmaid dresses were from the Dressy dress shop in Stafford and the Wedding dress which was a Mori Lee dress was from Celebrity in Bridgetown. 

I did the makeup of Kirsty first who had a natural cream eyeshadow to compliment the dress and a nude pink lip, while Gemma made a start on Anne-Marie's hair. 

There was a knock on the door which was the first of many and was the flowers, which were supplied by Natalie's bloom room for flowers. The Bridesmaids had a gypsophila hand tied bouquet with lace to match the wedding dress and Anne-Marie's were soft blooms of roses and freesias, in peach and pastel colours.. Freesias are special to Anne-Marie as they were her nan's favourite and they have both passed away. The flowers were delivered  just at the right time as we were then joined by the photographer Kerry from KMS Photography, who had Ellia as a mini assistant throughout the morning. 

A special delivery of flowers and a card from the groom arrived to the room which was good timing as I hadn't done Anne-Marie's makeup, and there were a few tears. 

Christine was next to have her makeup done and has never had it done professionally before so was very nervous, especially when it came to mascara. On Anne-Marie's trial she mentioned how nervous she was of people even touching her eyes so I gave her coping techniques to practice while I did it.  

Christine doesn't wear much makeup so wanted a soft natural look but enough to look good on photographs. 

Considering she was nervous of anyone touching her eyes she was amazing and coped very well, especially when having her eyelashes curled.  Eyelash curlers scare the life out of a lot of people so she wasn't on her own. 

I then did the makeup of Anne-marie who doesn't wear much makeup so whilst looking for inspiration she came across one  of my previous brides and liked the makeup I recently did on a Becky. Because Anne-Marie's dress was so elegant and lacy it was a perfect makeup look for her. Annie-Marie's concern was to cover her skin as she wanted a flawless complexion that lasted the day and night. 

Anne-Marie usually has problems getting foundations to last the day so I used a technique of application that would ensure a long lasting wear time. And the day after when I messaged Anne-Marie to check everything was ok she was over the moon and shocked at how long and amazing her makeup was. 

I used the Motives Cosmetics Malven palette for the eye shadow, bobbi brown eyeliner with waterproof mascara  and individual eyelashes. Her eyes looked amazing and well defined.

Everybody's makeup was finished with a long wear setting spray and I helped move all the wedding clothes and items to the bridal suite. 

Before we all knew it the time had flown by and we were left with the last golden hour to get the ladies all dressed. The bridesmaid dresses were a corset top so while Anne-Marie was getting her dress on with her mom, myself and gemma helped Kirstie and Ellia. 

The photographer took some amazing shots of Anne-Marie and at one point took a picture of the bride and groom holding hands with only a door between them preventing them seeing each other. 

The registrars knocked on the door a little later for the pre-wedding questionnaire  so I got a few photo shots of Kirstie and Ellia. 

Click on the photo below to see the mini video

Annie-Marie was getting married  in the Colin Lewis suite and because it was a lovely day she decided to walk outside round to the top part of the building rather than through the bar area. It was here I said my goodbyes and wished her luck. 

I was so proud to have been with Anne-Marie on her special wedding day  let alone do her makeup. 

Thankyou so much .....

Enjoy your Jamacia Honey moon and Congratulations. 

Helen Knox

Somerford Hall, Brewood

13 June 2015

I've looked forward to this wedding for over a year now as Helen used to be my hair dresser at Edens Hair salon in Heath Hayes. 

Helen got married to Malc at Somerford Hall in Brewood. Somerford Hall is an enchanting Georgian mansion set amidst extensive landscaped gardens, providing a true sense of occasion for your wedding celebrations. The wedding theme was elegant yet quite traditional with the colour scheme being cobalt blue.

The couple met at the zoo where they went for the day with friends and embarrassingly Helen ended up falling over and Malc was the one that rushed to help her up. Helen said they still laugh about it now and Malc even mentioned this on the wedding day in his speech.

On the wedding day I arrived super early at this gorgeous venue to do the wedding makeup of Helen and all her bridal party, and it was such a joy as a lot of them were girls I knew from the Salon. They were all dressed in matching blue silk dressing gowns except for Helen's which was white. 

When I arrived a very talented Helen from Eden in Heath Hayes (who did my wedding hair 8 yrs ago) had already made a start blow drying and styling the girls hair, Helen's dad was sat in the lounge area looking overwhelmed by the amount of females in the room haha. 

Champagne and cups of tea were flowing nicely too. 

I set myself up and made a start on the bridesmaids' makeup. 

I did the makeup of Helen's sister Louise first who was quite relaxed and happy about whichever makeup look I gave her. I used a beautiful shimmer taupe colour on her eyes and a natural pink lipstick. Louise had amazing cheeks so used a gorgeous pink to show them off even more. 

Next I did the makeup of Helen's mom who like the other girls didn't wear much makeup. She was wearing a blue suit with a fascinator so I decided to add a bit of colour to her makeup and gave her blue eyelids to compliment her brown eyes. I diluted the foundation with a moisturiser to give a more natural coverage. For her lips I kept it neutral again and used a beautiful Estée Lauder tinted lip gloss. 

Helen the bride was next who was very conscious of her skin as she experiences rosacea to her cheeks (redness). Helen also wanted a natural bridal look and didn't want to be caked in makeup, on the day Helen was over the moon with how flawless her skin looked when I finished. For Helen's eyes I went with a cream and light natural brown eye shadow and lined the eyes lightly with gel eyeliner. I used a natural peachy lipstick with a peachy blusher to compliment her spray tan. 

It was lovely seeing Helen after a couple of years, we had a good catch up on a lot of things including her amazing holidays abroad to Dubai and particularly her Hen celebrations when she went to Los Angeles and Vegas for the week and had a day in London with all the girls from work and a family meal. 

I did the makeup of Jodie next who was super beautiful. I did Jodie's makeup on the trial too as I was told Jodie is super fussy, but luckily for me she loved the makeup I did so was hired for today. 

Jodie loves makeup and so I decided to give her a sparkling healthy English rose look, with the most amazing bright coloured lipstick from MAC called Moronge. The combo totally worked and she looked amazing. 

It was lovely seeing Jodie too as I knew her from the hairdressers. I enjoyed hearing about the hen weekend, particularly the bit where Jodie met someone on the plane and ended up dating him. 

Helen's last bridesmaid to have her makeup done was Liz her sister in law. Liz  doesn't normally wear much makeup so I used the same sort of colours on her too. She was conscious of her skin blemishes so of course I gave her a natural but flawless look. She looked amazing. 

After finishing everybody's makeup we made our way over to the main building where everyone was to get dressed. 

Not long after we got into the bridal suite the wedding flowers of blue begonias and white roses were delivered by Lynn from Fine Flowers in Rugeley. They matched the colour of the bridesmaids' dresses perfectly which were a gorgeous royal blue with one strap over the shoulder, purchased from White Rose Bridal in Rugeley.

We were joined by the photographer Steve Ford Photography who started taking his photos of the bridesmaids in their dressing gowns and then took photos of the dresses and flowers in the room.  

We were doing really well for time and then the time came that the bridesmaids needed to get dressed. As each bridesmaid came into the main room dressed I started topping up everybody's lipstick as everyone had been eating and drinking lots of lovely champagne. 

Afterwards Helen went off into the dressing room to put her wedding dress on with her bridesmaids, where I heard lots of giggles. I went in to see Helen and she looked amazing. Helen also had her wedding dress from White Rose Bridal in Rugeley. And it was a perfect choice. She looked like a princess, so beautiful, the dress really suited her. 

The bridesmaids were brilliant and very hands on helping Helen get ready she's lucky she was surrounded by hairdressers as she then needed her veil put in, while another bridesmaid used Vaseline to line all the shoes to prevent the shoes from rubbing. Everything was covered and organised. 

The registrars came to do the interview with Helen and then she was ready to go down and get married. She looked so happy and excited, I felt privileged that she asked me as I'd known her for over 10 years. The venue's wedding coordinator came and collected the bridal party and took them downstairs. I followed taking a few of my own snaps and videos and noticed a big white post box and a picture frame with hearts where you can write your name on. 

Here is a little video I've put together, please click on the picture to view.

If you would like to book me to do your makeup. Please take a look at my website www.helenpearsonmua.com 

You can also find me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pintrest, LinkedIn you can email me helenpearsonmua@hotmail.com 

or ring me on 07826 542 676