Your wedding day is one of the biggest days of your life, and whether you’re a hands-on, DIY kind of person or opt to lay the responsibility in the hands of professionals, planning a wedding takes a lot of time and consideration. While the venue, menu, guest list and more tend to take up a lot of the planning budget, how you look and feel on the big day is arguably the most important part.
In both photos and memories, your wedding day will live forever, so you want to make sure your hair and makeup are absolutely perfect for the vibe you’re trying to achieve. Picking a hairstyle you won’t regret in 10 years is no easy feat with how quickly trends shift nowadays, but ahead, expert hair-stylists and celebrity hair gurus share their favorite wedding hairstyles.
Featured Experts
- Paul Labrecque is the creative director, master stylist and colorist Paul Labrecque Salon and Skincare Spa
- Johnny Lavoy is a celebrity hairstylist who has worked with A-listers like Rosie Perez, Miranda Lambert and more
- Christin Brown is a celebrity hairstylist and curl expert
The Best Wedding-Day Hairstyles
From updos to loose strands to extensions and hair accessories, here are some of our experts’ favorite wedding hairstyles and even some of the products they use to ensure the looks last all night long.
Wedding Day Hair: Tips for Styling
While many people opt to have professionals do their hair for the wedding, some brides will choose to style their hair themselves for the big day. Whether you’re worried about humidity or curls staying put, Lavoy has some expert products lined up for nailing your wedding day hair.
For humidity, I love Color Wow’s Dream Filter ($24),” Lavoy begins. “This product will not only keep the frizz away but also give your hair a beautiful shine. Redken Thermal Sprays ($27) are great for hair that has a problem holding curl, and they have both a light and a strong for different hair types. For finishing, I am a big fan of L’Oréal Paris Elnett ($27). It’s great for hold and combating humidity but it’s also brushable without loosing the hold.”
“I have three big tips for wedding day hair,” says Brown. “First just because you heard once that ‘dirty hair’ holds a style better doesn’t mean that you should necessarily show up having not washed your hair in a long, long time. If you have naturally curly hair, you can go a few days after washing and yes, you’re going to have amazing wedding day hair because there’s volume, definition, and movement. But, if you have straight hair, day two hair is a better move. Even if you washed it on the day of the event, we as stylists still have products to give us the boost we need to make the style amazing.”
Brown continues, “If you don’t like the style when it’s all said and done, say something and say it with kindness. Instead of pretending to like it, tell your artist that you would like to make an adjustment and let them do it for you. There’s nothing wrong with needing to make a switch up! Give the stylist a chance to get it right—any great stylist would welcome notes.”
Finally, Brown’s third wedding day hair tip is simple: have fun. “A lot of us feel that because it’s such a ‘formal’ event, we’re unable to find exploration within the hair styling process. If you’re use to having your hair down all the time, think about how can you add a slight variation on it. If your hair is up all of the time, consider how can you change just a little bit of it to where you’re still you, but you took a tiny risk that opens up your beauty world. I love this tip because as an artist, I really love to show people the side of themselves that’s still there and always been there, but maybe needed a little healthy push.”