The Ultimate Pre-Wedding Skin Guide

Learn how to prep your skin before your wedding day with SkinCeuticals. Discover the must-have products for glowing skin on your big day.

When it comes to setting skin goals, there’s none bigger than having flawless, glowing skin for your wedding day. Everyone wants to look and feel their best for their big day, and one of the key elements to that is nailing down the perfect wedding skincare routine. A good wedding skincare prep means that your skin will be clear and luminous and it will help your makeup stay put so you can enjoy yourself without worrying about your beauty look—aside from a touch-up here and there!

If you’re looking for the ultimate bridal skincare routine, we’ve got you covered. Read on for top tips and SkinCeuticals product recommendations for every skin type and concern to get your best skin yet, just in time for your wedding day.

4 Skincare Steps You Need to Consider Before Your Wedding

Have a Game Plan

To get glowing skin for your wedding, you need to have a step-by-step plan in place to help you achieve your goal. This includes a general timeline starting about six months before your big day to ensure that you’re taking all the precautions and properly planning your every skincare step to set yourself up for success. That’s where we come in! This guide will help you create a game plan for getting that glow, no matter if your skin is oily, dry or acne-prone. SkinCeuticals has dermatologist-approved skincare products that tackle every skin concern, including tried, tested and true vitamin C serums and a hyaluronic acid-infused mask that helps to plump and hydrate all skin types.

Be Treatment Savvy

If you’re someone who likes to dabble in professional skin treatments, whether that’s getting injectables like Botox or treating yourself to regular chemical peels, you might be considering amping those up before your wedding day. While there’s nothing wrong with exploring new treatments, it’s important to do so at least six months before your big day. This is a key tip for wedding skincare prep. It will ensure that you’re not going to have any adverse reactions or undesirable results right before your wedding. If you want to top up your regular medi-spa treatments before you tie the knot, try booking your appointments about a month before your wedding day. This will give your skin plenty of time to bounce back after having anything done, but the results will still be fresh.

Go Easy on the Actives

Using potent actives like vitamin C, glycolic and salicylic acids and retinol in your wedding skincare routine is an excellent idea as these types of ingredients help to tackle common skin concerns such as dullness, fine lines and blemishes. While using actives regularly in your routine as wedding skincare prep is a must, you don’t want to go overboard in the two-week period before you walk down the aisle, as they might cause redness and irritation. About a week before your wedding, you should shift your skincare routine to focus on soothing and hydrating the skin to ensure you have a glowing, plump canvas.

Seek Professional Help

If you’re feeling really lost when it comes to planning your bridal skincare routine, chat with a professional. Dermatologists, medical aestheticians and skin experts can be great resources for helping to navigate the often-confusing world of skincare treatments, and they can answer any questions you may have about wedding day skincare.

The Best Pre-Wedding Skincare Products

Vitamin C

This much-loved antioxidant is a staple in many people’s skincare routine year-round, and it’s easy to see why. It has a laundry list of skin benefits, from delivering environmental protection to improving fine lines and wrinkles to boosting collagen production to help with firmness and giving skin that covetable dewy glow. Vitamin C is a must-use ingredient in any wedding skincare routine, and SkinCeuticals has three efficacious vitamin C serums suited for different skin types. SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic is formulated for dry and normal skin, SkinCeuticals Phloretin CF is for oily and combination skin and SkinCeuticals Silymarin CF works best on oily and acne-prone skin.

Retinol

Retinol is another holy grail skincare ingredient that is a great addition to any wedding skincare prep. A form of vitamin A, retinol helps to promote healthy cell turnover and improve the appearance of fine lines, pores and discoloration and can even help curb breakouts. What’s not to love? While retinol has tons of scientific data backing up its benefits, it should be noted that it can sometimes cause irritation when it’s properly not introduced into a routine. So, slowly introducing retinol into your bridal skincare routine about six months before your wedding is a great plan to avoid unwanted skin sensitivity. SkinCeuticals has two effective yet gentle retinol creams to choose from: SkinCeuticals Retinol 0.3 Refining Night Cream and SkinCeuticals Retinol 0.5 Refining Night Cream.

Acids

There are many different types of acids to choose from in the skincare realm, from alpha-hydroxy acids (like glycolic and lactic acids) to beta-hydroxy acids (like salicylic acid). Exfoliating acids work to decongest clogged pores and remove dead skin cells from the surface of the skin. These actives go a long way toward helping minimize breakouts and give skin a radiant glow. Oily and combination skin types can try SkinCeuticals LHA Toner as it contains both glycolic and salicylic acids and is an excellent addition to any wedding skincare routine. SkinCeuticals Retexturing Activator works with all skin types to exfoliate the surface of the skin while replenishing moisture to give you glowing skin for your wedding.

SPF

It goes without saying that using sunscreen daily is one of the most important steps you can take to have your skin age gracefully. Using an SPF every day (yes, even on cloudy and rainy days!) is an important step in getting your skin in great shape for your wedding day. SkinCeuticals Physical Fusion UV Defense SPF 50 provides high sun protection for all skin types, and applies beautifully alone or under makeup.

How to Get Glowing Skin for Your Wedding Day

Getting glowing skin for your wedding can be achieved by using the right skincare products and nailing down the right routine.

Do the Prep Work

Make a plan of action that begins six months before your wedding and takes you right up to the big day and lists all the steps you need to achieve your skin goals. This should include using ingredients like vitamin C and retinol and, of course, sunscreen.

Hydrate and Soothe

Starting a week before your wedding ceremony, shift the focus of your skincare routine to hydrating and soothing your skin. The best canvas for your wedding day is smooth, plump and moisturized skin! It’s best to avoid anything in your wedding day skincare routine that might result in redness and irritation.

Don’t Forget the SPF

Don’t forget to slather on the sun protection on your wedding day—especially if you’re having an outdoor ceremony or party!