It’s time to start your Christmas shopping… I can’t believe it’s this time of year again already! If you would like to treat a loved one to a make-up service (make-up lessons are very popular again this year) please get in touch as I am able to issue gift vouchers for you to give on Christmas Day at no extra charge.

I am offering £10 off single-person bookings or a 10% discount off group bookings for special occasion, bridal and photographic make-up in 2009.

This applies to your Christmas parties, your bridal make-up, your dinner date, your family portrait shoot…

… contact me now to get booked in!

£10 will be deducted from new single-person appointments or 10% off group bookings and is only available for make-up application in 2009 (excludes pre-appointment consultations/trials and make-up lessons).

Bookings are coming in thick and fast for 2010 weddings now so if you’d like to secure your date with me, please get in touch as soon as possible.

I’ve had another amazing Summer with many wonderful brides. I’ve also met lots of amazing photographers and ladies who have either booked themselves or received a make-up lesson as a gift.

I do still have some availability left this year so please do get in touch to check.

Sarah x

It’s the busiest time of year and I’m now fully booked for consultations and weddings in July, August and September.

I have begun taking bookings for 2010 so please get in touch to check availability if you’re planning your 2010 wedding.

Sarah x

Hello! It’s been such a long time since I have updated this blog… I’m sorry! It has been a very hectic year for me so far so I thought I would let you know about my current availability.

I have very few dates left for weddings this year, so if you’re thinking about booking me, please get in touch as soon as possible to check if your date is free.

I am unable to take bookings for 2010 weddings yet but hope to do so from July/August onwards.

Appointments for trials and make-up lessons are currently available evenings and weekends only but I aim to be as flexible as possible to find the perfect time for you.

I hope everyone has enjoyed the first half of the year… I can’t believe how fast it’s gone!

Sarah x

I would just like to say a huge congratulations and thanks to all the brides I worked with over the busy summer this year. I met some wonderful brides, bridesmaids, mums, dads, photographers and hairdressers. I really appreciate the thank you cards and emails I received too - I have really enjoyed hearing about your big days. I have all the lovely, cosy winter weddings to look forward to now.

I have finally updated my website with new testimonials and will hopefully be able to add some new photos to both my bridal and my photographic galleries soon.

Enquiries and bookings for 2009 are now coming in thick and fast so if you’re considering booking make-up for your wedding next year I would urge you to get in touch as soon as possible. Hopefully all the information you need is on my website, but if you do have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Sarah x

Considering I do at least a couple of weddings a week, the nerves really set in when my sister got married on 23rd August. I was determined to make the morning run smoothly without too much stress though, so I devised an itinerary (which I usually do for my brides as time disappears on wedding mornings) much to the amusement of my father and brother - I learnt the hard way three years ago after my own wedding that some sort of itinerary is essential, they seemed to have forgotten this, though.

The night before the wedding I was at my parent’s house making the bouquets and button holes. A couple of bottles of wine were consumed and we were all a weird mix of excited, stressed and nervous.

We woke up on the wedding morning at not much past 8am at my parents’ house - my husband was back at our flat as he was determined to stay far, far away for as long as possible! My mum and sister-in-law had to go to the venue to take the cake and do some last minute venue dressing. Fortunately the co-ordinator at the venue had taken care of most of it though so there wasn’t much to do. In that time I took care of a few bits and bobs and tried to relax a little - the odd glass of bucks fizz helped!

The morning went on and I set to work on styling my mum’s hair (I can do basic light hairstyling but never usually do wedding hair, only makeup). Then my mum put the heated rollers in my hair while my sister-in-law cooked a huge fry-up for everyone. Our fry-up had to wait though as my hair was taking longer than we thought it’d take.

After we chowed down our fry-up it was time for me start work as a make-up artist. I did my mum’s make-up first, then my own and finally my sister’s. Tick tock tick tock…. somehow we’d lost time somewhere and there was a little bit of a last minute panic. When I finished my sister’s make-up we took our rollers out of our hair and there was the funniest moment where we just looked at each other and broke into hysterical laughter - our hair hadn’t gone quite as planned - huuuuge hair! Anyway, no time to faff, we had to get dressed. Upstairs my ever-organised sister-in-law had already got into her bridesmaid dress and was waiting to dress my sister. I hurriedly got my dress on so I could also help out. We got downstairs and the other two bridesmaids had arrived and were looking beautiful. We grabbed the bouquets etc and headed off!

My sister had an amazing day… and it turns out that I know far too much about weddings - I received many comments that I should become a wedding planner!

Anyway, here is a picture of my sister and me.

After the wedding, my husband and I drove down to Devon for a holiday with our friends and we had an amazing time - although I now need another holiday to recover!

It’s been such beautiful weather recently which has been brilliant for my last two brides who both have had their wedding celebrations at Dodmoor House, Northants. Sarah married there on Saturday and Jo got married there yesterday.

I absolutely love Dodmoor. The staff are always friendly and helpful, and it seems like such a relaxed venue. It’s one of my favourite venues to do bridal make-up in too because there is so much space to work. There’s plenty of room for everyone… bridesmaids, mum, photographer, hairdresser! And the added bonus for me is that it’s only 15 minutes down the road!

Tomorrow I’ll be in Barford, Warwickshire for Jenny’s wedding and then at Moxhull Hall for Anne on Sunday. I’ve got my fingers crossed that the weather stays beautiful for them both.

The other day I finally took the plunge and ordered the pro bag of Beautyblenders from www.camerareadycosmetics.com. I’d read so many good things about the sponge so I thought it was worth a try…

… and I love them! I’ve been using them for over a week now and I think they’ve definitely earned a permanent place in my kit.

Applying foundation is quick and easy, it blends the foundation onto the skin perfectly. It’s also great at applying and blending concealer and cream blushers. Apparently you can also apply dry powder products with it, but I’ve not yet tried that. If you’re devoted to your foundation brush you can still apply your foundation with the brush and then blend over with the sponge to create a seamless finish.

The Beautyblender has a gorgeous feel to it and it’s a great shape to get around the nose snd eyes etc. So far the majority of people that I’ve used it on have commented on how nice it feels on their skin.

It’s different to ordinary sponges in that it can be used many times before you need a new one (less waste and so much better for the environment!), which is why they have made a special cleanser for it.

Here’s the Beautyblender video.

And there is more information at their website www.beautyblender.net.

They are as easy to clean as what you see in the video and you definitely need to buy the Blendercleanser with your sponge. In the UK you can order the sponge and cleanser from www.justbeautydirect.co.uk - Just Beauty Direct are a fantastic company where I get all my Smashbox Cosmetics - quick shipping and always brilliantly packaged.

A definite thumbs up for the Beautyblender

Yesterday I went up to Chasewater in Cannock for a test shoot… and it was very, very hot! I’m now a little sun burned - my hands especially! - but it’s a beautiful location and we had a fantastic day.

Here’s a little taster of what went on…

Photographer: Hannah-Beth
Model: Cymone Astella

I’ll hopefully update my portfolio with some of the images over the next few weeks.