There are SO many inspiration photos out there & it can be daunting to say the least. Too commonly do we hear from clients that they “just couldn’t find their style” or “didn’t know what to search” so they … gave up. Took what they could find & assumed that was all they could possibly get from the internet. What if it was easier? HINT: It is! With the right search words.

First & foremost a disclaimer. This is not the AI art generator of bridal hair & makeup though introspectively I do wonder if that’s going to start popping up as inspiration photos…. another topic for another day! What I mean is that it’s VERY likely you will find elements from one photo & elements from a different photo that we can then mesh together in real life. It’s not always the case to find exactly everything you want all in 1 photo. That’s why for trials we ask for 1-5 photos to get a good general idea. When you are looking for inspiration photos you want to think in terms of search words or hashtags.

So let’s break down the search into a few categories. First up is the vibe. What’s the vibe of your wedding? Is it boho? Is it glam? Is it edgy? It’s a good starting point as you can see what constitutes a mood which sometimes can be something as simple as a shift in the shades, lashes, texture & accessories. Identical buns with different accessories send off very different energy. From your results you narrow down by trusting your gut reaction of “I like this”, “I don’t like this” & so on.Good examples to search are #bohobridalhair #bohoupdo #bohomakeup #glammakeup #glamupdo #altbride #alternativewedding. Essentially vibe + hair, makeup, bride, wedding or updo & you’ll find some results to send you in a direction.

Glam waves and half up hairstyles on bride and wedding party at Great Marsh Estate in Bealton VA.

Secondly are there important factors? Such as someone with naturally curly hair who wants to keep their natural curls for their wedding day would have a more realistic vision if they found inspiration with natural curls. So you may want to search #curlyupdo or #curlybride . Yes there will be some people who use the hashtag that have no business using it as it’s not curls ( which is rude & wrong) but the vast majority are accurate. Other important factors include makeup for someone of color or various eyeshapes such as monolid or Asian makeup in general. You can search the ethnicity + makeup or ethnicity + bride etc. A few examples could be #blackbride #blackbridalmakeup #indianbridalmakeup #monolidmakeup #koreanbride . These are just a FEW examples.

Third are there any limitations? Limitations such as short hair. While many styles can be converted into a version for your hair length it’s always good to find inspiration that’s in a similar family to yours unless your planning for extensions. If you’ve never considered extensions but are curious & wonder then this article may help to determine if you really need them. Some options to search would be #shorthairupdo #shorthairbride #shorthairhalfup .

Other factors could be your hair color. The same hairstyle will look different on a blonde vs a brunette. These searches definitely don’t yield as many results but they can help you to realistically see how a technique or style would look on your hair. Simply search hair color + updo or hair color + bride etc. For example #blondeupdo #brunettebridalhair

As silly as it sounds one of the best ways to search is to describe your desired look. Is the updo “messy” or “clean”? Is the makeup “natural” or “dewy”? Is the half up half down or braided? Just type adjective + makeup or updo or hairstyle or bridal hair/makeup. Such as #dewymakeup #halfuphalfdownhairstyle #naturalbridalmakeup. I know that it may be challenging figuring out how to describe but don’t overthink it. Hash tags are just the google search of social media. Start somewhere & you can adjust.

Romantic half up half down hairstyle on Huntsville Alabama bride.

Which bring me to my final point … see what the HMUAs are hash tagging. If you search one thing & like a lot of the results then hop on that artists page to see what else there is. Chances are you’ll see more you like ( which may lead you to your dream artist if you don’t already have one) & see what hash tags they are using. Admittedly industry professionals may use different buzzwords than the general public on some things & while we try to phrase things in way our clients would search for by you seeing the tags we use you may open up more possibilities . For example let’s say you searched #bridalbraid & found a braid you loved specifically. The artist called it a #fishtailbraid . Now you have a specific direction for that specific braid. Also don’t hesitate to switch around the words. For examples #glamwaves yields much better results than #glamcurls so synonyms are helpful!

Do we feel like we have more of a sense of direction? I hope this will make searching process easier. I encourage you to go down the rabbit hole. Search & search & search then go back & edit. You’ll see common trends that show up over & over which likely means you lean that way. You have full permission to explore & enjoy the process!

Buzzwords : Searching For YOUR Ideal Look

The Stylist Abroad