Wedding Beauty Timeline: When to Get Procedures and Treatments, According to Experts

“I recommend starting facials at least six months before the wedding day. This gives your skin time to respond to the facials and for your aesthetician to see how your skin reacts,” Dr. O’Connell says. She recommends an oxygen facial, an LED facial, or a high-frequency facial. All of these will benefit your skin in different ways leading up to your wedding.

Retinol

Your skin will thrive on any extra care between now and the day of the wedding. Incorporating a retinol into your skin-care routine at this time will reduce fine lines and wrinkles by increasing the production of collagen. Dr. O’Connell points out that it takes several weeks and sometimes months to start seeing the positive effects of retinol. Six months out is ideal because retinol can often cause dryness and mild irritation of the skin, and this interval will give it ample time to get adjusted. 

Elective eyelid surgery

Board-certified oculoplastic surgeon Christopher Zoumalan, MD, says that there has been a tremendous uptick in eyelid surgery the past two years, especially with the WFH lifestyle and being on Zoom calls all day. “With wearing masks, people are becoming more aware of the changes with aging around their eyes,” he says. This procedure is certainly elective and not necessary, but it will help those who have noticed sagging and loose skin on their eyelids. It’s done in-office under local anesthesia, and the recovery time is around three months, with swelling reduced in two weeks.

4 months ahead

Injectables

When you’re four months out from your wedding, it’s officially crunch time. This time period is perfect to look into injectables. Dr. O’Connell says it’s very important for filler and Botox to settle and for swelling to subside, which can take several weeks. It’s also important to be able to visualize the impact injectables can have on your appearance, which is best done months prior to the wedding. Injectables can be great for both the bride and the groom.

If you are considering injectables, you should know the difference between the options available to you, as well as what may work best for you. Fillers can add back volume and youth to the face but can leave you with some swelling and bruising that can last up to two weeks.

“Sculptra is one of my favorite injectables; it’s not a filler but instead a bio-stimulator,” Dr. O’Connell says. It will give you a very natural, youthful appearance but is usually done in two sessions about six to eight weeks apart, and results are not immediate. She recommends starting Sculptra at least four to six months before the wedding day.

Lip filler can plump your natural volume. If you’re interested in adding a little extra to your lips, ensure you do it four months prior to the wedding and possibly two to three weeks later if you need a minor touch-up. If you’ve had lip fillers between six to eight months before your wedding, it’s best to leave them be and only get a touch-up if needed.

3 months ahead

Teeth whitening

The wedding is literally right around the corner, which is the perfect time to start experimenting with teeth whitening. You’ll most likely be in a thousand or more pictures, so taking the time to achieve results you’ll notice is ideal around three months or sooner.