Booking Beauty Vendor Timeline
Congrats you’re engaged! You have the venue. You have the date. You even have your rentals, photographer, videographer, and decorations. But what about beauty? There are some vendors who understandably come later in the booking process but the exact “when” is always up for debate. There’s a lot of (mis)information about how far out you should be contacting your glam squad. Well, fortunately for you this hairstylist is here to spill the tea so you don’t miss out.
You should reach out to your dream beauty team 6+ months out. In reality there are factors that could make 6 month conservative & a year would be safer. What are those factors? Your location, your date, your look & the team. Some dates are more desirable than others & that can make competition fierce for those coveted dates or seasons ( ie October weddings, fall, June Weddings, spring weddings). If your date or month is popular you need to reach out sooner but if it’s a slower time ( August weddings for instance) you have more time to work with. Your location can play a huge factor too. The bigger the city typically the more competitive for vendors & the further people book out. We have a team in the Washington DC area & northern Alabama. The DC area books about a year out whereas in AL you’re likely safe 6-8 months out. However the big contradiction to this is that if you live in a smaller town or there are less stylists you may have less options. If a team seems perfect for your wants you don’t want to miss out so inquiring early is ok. This is especially true when it comes to your style. Some styles require specialized skills . This makes your options more limited so you should contact them sooner rather than later. Also true if your aesthetic is not the “trending” aesthetic of the region you’re in. Finally is the factor of the team. If a team or artist is popular they will book further out regardless of the other factors. Being in high demand will mean that once you find them & love them then you’ll need to inquire & be prepared to secure your date.
Between booking & your trial you can acquire accessories, veils, extensions etc. Or you don’t have to acquire any of it & can wait until the trial where they will likely have options for you to play with. However this is the time to be thinking about those details & gathering inspiration photos for your trial.
For your trial you should reach out to schedule it 3-4 months before just to get it on the books. If your or the stylist’s availability is limited it better to reach out earlier so you know you have an appointment. Your trial should be scheduled for 2-3 months prior to your wedding date. If you absolutely have to push it back then personally I’d recommend 6 weeks prior as the latest. This will allow hairstylists to still be able to have time to order any accessories, hair extensions etc.
About 2-4 weeks prior to your wedding you should be finalizing your numbers & timeline. The last 2 weeks will be busy with anticipation. You don’t want to cloud that excitement with tasks or finalizing details. Trust me it’ll make it all much more enjoyable & less stressful.
Once the big day is here it’s time to celebrate! But what about after ? Yes, there’s one last thing on your timeline that’s actually after. That’s writing your reviews. Why does this matter? Well, people like you used reviews to verify the quality of a vendor, right? Others planning their wedding do so as well so your first hand experience can help the vendor you enjoyed so much continue to have a thriving business.
Now if you’ve waited & this timeline is thrown to the wind don’t have a meltdown. Stylists want to help create magic on your date. Just be understanding & flexible to bring all the important details together more rapidly & efficiently.
