Beautify Me!

So I've kinda been debating on what to do with my makeup on the day of the wedding. I see different brides on weddingbee and such talking about hiring professional makeup artists for their big day and I'd love to do this BUT....I live Birmingham, AL. It's not exactly NYC or LA and we don't have a plethora of amazingly talented makeup artists that do the makeup of celebrities and such on a daily basis. So...I wasn't sure where to start or what to do. Throughout my planning process, I've hit this same road block multiple times.....living in Birmingham, things aren't as easy access as other places. I mean just look on the boards for the Knot or Weddingbee and you'll notice that there aren't nearly as many brides from AL commenting on those sites and there aren't nearly as many reviews of vendors in our area. That's just how it goes. B'ham (and AL in general) hasn't exactly picked up on this trend it seems. So, if i can't necessarily turn to the internet (where I find practically EVERYTHING for the wedding) then where could I turn??

Well, I tried asking different vendors that I'm using in Birmingham. That lead me to one makeup artist who seemed very good...but she was booked for my date. She then suggested a few others and I of course tried googling them. I found websites for two of them and from one of the girl's website I found a "cosmetic spa boutique" in Birmingham. Coincidentally, it was right around the time of my FMIL's birthday and my fiance was having trouble coming up with a present to get her. I suggested that we get her a gift certificate to NVogue (the cosmetic spa boutique) because they offered a service called "Makeup Lesson". This service included both the makeup lesson AND the cost of the lesson was redeemable in products. Sounds like a good deal, right? And who wouldn't love a makeup lesson from a professional?? (especially when they had a big event coming up like their son's wedding!!) :) So, Mark and I talked it over and we decided to get this for her as her birthday present. When I called to purchase the gift certificate I decided to inquire about bridal makeup. And guess what?? They most definitely do bridal makeup!! The fee to have this done was less than what i had been quoted previously (from the M/U artist that was booked) and it included a trial run, day-of, free lipstick AND a free makeup session for the Mother of the Bride on the day of the wedding! Um...sold!!! So, I made appointments for my FMIL and I to have our makeup done at the same time at the spa.

I told the makeup artist at Nvogue (Tammy) that I would like a fresh/natural kind of look that played up my eyes a bit. I told her I wanted something very soft and romantic, but something that would show up well and look good in pictures - not to mention last ALL day in the May heat of central Alabama!

Here's what she came up with:

So what do you guys think?? Do we have a winner??