Getting Married? Celebrity Artist Gucci Westman Shares Her Expert Bridal Makeup Tips

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If you’re a beauty enthusiast, chances are you’re already familiar with the work of Westman Atelier founder and makeup legend Gucci Westman. She’s powdered the faces of celebrities including Anne Hathaway, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Emily Ratajkowski.

As part of her namesake brand, she has launched Westman Brides, an online destination that offers step-by-step tutorials to achieve one of three types of wedding-inspired makeup looks curated by the artist herself: Classic Bride, Romantic Bride, and Mother of the Bride.

“A lot of brides are looking to really enhance and really amplify themselves, as opposed to more of a transformational concept, and that’s what Westman Brides is all about,” Westman tells Bazaar. “It’s very intuitive if you want to play around with makeup—the destination gives you a lot of confidence, because it’s so easy to use these products on your own.”

Each beauty look includes an accompanying how-to video showing Westman creating a look from start to finish, along with a list of the exact products she uses, as well as additional recommendations. The artist notes that these tutorials are not meant to be intimidating, but rather serve as an easy, fun way for a bride-to-be to build up her makeup application experience.

“It’s not like you have to take 500 steps and transform how you look; maybe you can create this beautiful finish to your skin, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised also by how easy it is to do,” she says. “And then, you can kind of have a little bit more experience in terms of what you’re asking of the makeup artist, if you are having a makeup artist.”

For everything to know about bridal beauty this season and beyond—from seamlessly prepping for makeup trials to keeping your look in place on hot summer days (and nights)—read on for a few of Westman’s expert application tips.

What are some of the key components of bridal makeup?

I think it’s really complexion-focused—a timeless bridal look starts with a fresh and radiant complexion. You want your skin to look as if you’re the healthiest you’ve ever been, the most radiant—in the right way—you’ve ever been, and that your features are kind of on point.

After prepping with Skin Activator serum and Vital Skin foundation, blend on Face Trace Contour and Baby Cheeks in Poppet for a sculpting and skin-brightening pop. For eyes, I would define the lids with a soft wing and a hint of elevated sparkle using Eye Love You eye pencil in Khôl Noir, Eye Pod eye shadow in Les Jours, and our Eye Want You mascara in Clean Black. Neutralize any shine-prone skin with a sweep of pressed powder where you need it, and finish by enhancing the lip’s natural tone using Les Nudes lip palette.

In summer months, it’s humid, which is why it’s important to have the right amount of radiance—especially for photos—and you don’t look too shiny. It’s also nice to do maybe more of a golden complexion with something fresh on the lips. When the opportunity comes for your actual wedding photos, I definitely suggest having a little touch-up kit with you to freshen up.

In your expert opinion, is a bold lip a no-no for brides during the wedding ceremony?

Absolutely not! I think the most special and most beautiful part about being a bride is that there are no rules. It’s really all about you as an individual and what suits you the best. If it suits me to have black lipstick at my ceremony, and I felt the most beautiful that way, then that’s what I’m going to wear.

I couldn’t agree with you more on that. In terms of makeup trials, do you have any recommendations for brides-to-be to prepare for those ahead of time?

I know a lot of brides are interested in doing treatments ahead of their trials and weddings, like a facial or something like that, which is totally fine. I would just advise focusing on treatments where there’s no excessive squeezing involved, aggressive products, and no need for downtime. I think a gentle exfoliation the night before a makeup trial is nice to make your skin look and feel more naturally radiant.

You also want to make sure to communicate with the makeup artist if you have any sensitivities around products, and then it’s always great to show a few reference pictures as well. Lastly, it’s important to explain what kind of conditions you’re getting married in—if it’s on the beach, at night, whatever it may be.

If a bride plans on doing their own makeup for a shower or rehearsal dinner, what are some go-to products they should consider for a successful beauty look?

It really depends on what you want to look like, but I think keeping things kind of simple is always really elegant. If you’re someone who normally wants to play up your eyes, maybe go more classic. Or maybe focus on the skin being as magnificent as possible and add a pop of color to the lips, for example.

It’s all about you as the bride, and it’s kind of fun to experiment with something that might be a little bit different from what you’re going to look like on your wedding day.

Vital Skin Foundation Stick

Eye Pods

Face Trace Cream Contour Stick

Baby Cheeks Blush Stick

Bonne Brow Defining Pencil

Lip Suede in Les Rouges

Eye Love You Eye Pencil

Eye Want You Mascara

Vital Pressed Skincare Powder

Do you recommend differentiating makeup looks for the wedding reception versus the ceremony? Why, or why not?

From the ceremony to the reception, I wouldn’t necessarily change a look too much, just touch it up—I’d focus on changing your outfit instead. Ideally, a bride will feel the most beautiful that they’ve ever felt, and you kind of want to just keep pumping it up and not change anything too drastically.

Are there any common mistakes you’ve seen when it comes to executing a bridal look?

Maybe the most common mistake would be to overdo it with makeup, and being a little bit heavy-handed because you think it’s the thing to do. I also think tan lines are important to pay attention to, if your dress is revealing.

What are some easy makeup tips for guests attending black tie weddings?

When the dress code says black tie, nothing looks better than luminous skin and a striking statement lip. For the former, use our Vital Skin Foundation as a spot concealer. Follow with a touch of red blush in shade Bichette and a glassy champagne highlight in shade Pärla for a touch of low-maintenance glamour. For evening affairs, I love to smudge the Khôl Noir pencil across lids for a subtle smoky eye. Finish the look with a deep aubergine lip stain and matching transparent gloss—like Lou Lou—for extra dimension.

Any final makeup tips for brides-to-be?

If you’re going to use our products and think you’re gonna cry, maybe opt for a waterproof mascara. Also, for our Eye Pods eye shadow specifically, you can always add a little translucent powder at the end to get more longevity out of their formula. But Westman Atelier is a really beautiful brand, especially for brides. It’s all about amplifying what you have and creating the very best version of yourself, which I think is kind of like being a bride in a nutshell.

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