Sometimes I start a job and think to myself, “I’m involved in an event that is part of a new movement.” This is how I felt when I got a call from Laura and Sam about their bridal beauty.
They joined Jill Hammelman and me on a chilly St. Patrick’s Day (perfect for our Irish girl, Laura, with her long auburn hair and freckles) and spoke to us separately about their custom gowns and how they wanted to look on their wedding day. Pretty standard for a bride, but here’s the thing: they were two brides, planning a lavish wedding to each other, surrounded by loving and supportive friends and family.
The couple met when Sam pledged Laura’s sorority at Emerson University, and over the years, through travel, breakups, and life events, forged a bond that they wanted to acknowledge to the world. I liked them immediately. They are smart, fun, beautiful and stylish – and I knew that I wanted to be a part of their event.
Laura and Sam are part of a new wave: same-sex couples who are coming of age when coming out is still challenging but not unusual. For the Abbys (Laura and Sam created a new last name to share) and their contemporaries, all under 30 years old, they came up/out at a time when it became okay to allow themselves to picture the wedding of their dreams, protection by law, building their own family, and living their lives as regular married folks.
Same-sex marriage is common where I live and now is legal in 35 states. At the time of this writing, almost 64% of the U.S. population lives in a state currently issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples statewide, according to FreedomToMarry.org.
Now, to the beauty! Laura wanted long, flowing mermaid hair and glowing, perfect skin to wear with her emerald green custom Kathryn Conover gown. She really wanted to try airbrush makeup and a lip stain for long wear (we used The Balm Stainiac under Smashbox O-Gloss). I used MAC’s Indianwood cream eyeshadow as a base to ensure durability, and then added more peaches and coppers to bring out the warmth of her auburn hair and make her green eyes twinkle.
Sam wanted the focus on her huge blue-green eyes, so I used an eye base of Smashbox Topaz and added warm metallic shadows and a long lash. Her bright eye color was enhanced with the warm neutral tone of MAC Freckletone lipstick. To finish her look, Sam wore the headpiece that her mom had worn on her own wedding day to Sam’s father.
A little over a year after the wedding, NY Magazine Weddings published the Abby’s wedding in their Winter 2015 issue, and it looks like a great party! Please check out the pictures above. It was our pleasure to work with both Laura and Sam at their Cedar Lakes Estate wedding, and an honor to be included in their editorial, shot by Heather Waraska.
SB Beauty is proud to be an open and affirming business that supports and celebrates marriage equality.
Venue: www.cedarlakesestate.com
Photographer: Heather Waraksa
Gowns: Kathryn Conover and Vera Wang
Band: Tangled Vine
Event Design: That Time Events
Makeup: Sharon Becker
Hair: Jill Hammelman