I'll be Your Mirror: Our 2022 Fashion Hair & Make Up lead Melinda Grant Bridal talks on both seeing yourself and feeling yourself in the wedding world.

Melinda Grant is bringing it to the Most Curious runway! Our hair and makeup artist for the A Most Curious Wedding Fair fashion show, Melinda has been a makeup artist for five years, but during the pandemic she branched into bridal and launched Melinda Bridal, her wedding makeup business.

“There was a huge backlog of brides having to reschedule their wedding, so I made use of that and made myself available. I worked mainly in fashion makeup and wanted to work with brides,” she tells me.

Pandemic brides are a favorite sociological experiment of mine; as a pandemic bride myself, I find it fascinating how we have changed, may of us coming into our own before (finally) walking down the aisle. I’m curious if Melanie can also sense a shift in the expectations. “I am finding brides are wanting to try different options that’s not the typical bridal colours. I had a bride recently who wanted a red lip that verged more on the orange side. It was a Mac lipstick called Morange. Last year I had a bride that wanted to try a pastel green eyeshadow as she wasn’t wearing a typical white wedding dress. I’m definitely seeing more brides-to-be ask for less typical bridal looks,” she tells me, confirming my suspicions. I wonder what is making us so bold, but I am proud of every bride who’s really going for it! 

I wonder—is this a blip, a trend, or something deeper that the pandemic has unearthed? “I see more natural skin, less blocky eyebrows, a more natural defined brow and graphic liner,” Melinda says of current trends. Looking to the future, she has high hopes for the pandemic bride aesthetic to really take root and transform the idea of what a bride should look like. “I would love to see more adventurous looks in bridal makeup. Brides can opt for brighter eyeshadow than the usual muted tones and still look super chic. I did a beautiful coral red lip on a bride on her request and she looked beautiful. There is nothing wrong with golds and beiges but there are other colours that can be used that will still give bridal vibes but with a twist. Hopefully I will give some inspiration to this idea with the Most Curious catwalk show.”

Often inspired by the world around her, Melinda tells me a story of seeing a young 20-something applying makeup on the tube—a skill and practice Melinda admires. “She did this perfect black winged liner. The rest of her makeup was pretty minimal which was a lovely balance to this dramatic graphic liner.” I ask a bit more about her inspirations and the process for coming up with the looks that we will see walk the runway in just a few short weeks! She’s really excited about the looks, which lean into the boundary-pushing aesthetics Most Curious is known for and pandemic brides are embracing! “My process usually begins with me listening to a playlist on Spotify whilst I look at Pinterest and research makeup looks from past catwalk shows at fashion week that I can translate into a look…Sometimes it can be the outfit that inspires me, like the texture or colour of the fabric. Most of the time I have the look in my head, I just need to find images that represent the idea I have. I then like to arrange a makeup test, which is basically trying the makeup on a model to see it come to life and make any adjustments if needed.”

Also a fan of texture and finding inspiration in textile-based fashions, I’m not surprised to learn that Melinda has a background in fashion design. “I originally thought I wanted to be a fashion designer when I went to college and then realised there were other aspects to the fashion industry that I wanted to explore,” she tells me. Now, she’s found them—frequently found backstage at fashion week, Melinda is an expert in both hair and makeup.

Working with models for years and now with brides, I ask her if there’s anyone in particular whose makeup she’d love to do? “I would love to do makeup for an actress,” she says, naming Jessica Chastaine and another familiar face. “Probably the Duchess of Sussex. Although I have wanted to do her makeup long before she became part of the Royal family. As I was a big fan of Suits.” Despite the lack of actresses in her chair, Melanie is proud to report that her brides often tell her that the care and pampering she offers them makes them feel like a celebrity for a day.

A consummate professional, Melinda works with different hair textures and skin tones; she gives me a mini-tutorial in how colour theory works and we discuss the movement towards widespread education in hair texture for hairstylists in the UK, something I’m really passionate about. “I’m so glad I am seeing the UK become more aware of different textures,” Melinda says with no shortage of relief. “Working backstage at Fashion week I did see some neglect when it came to working with afro textured hair. I remember one model close to tears when she came to me for makeup after coming from the hair team. This was years ago. Since then I’m beginning to see more of a diverse team of hair stylists which is always a joy to see.”

“Is there room for more diversity when it comes to hair and makeup teams? Absolutely.”

“I’m happy to see more hair stylists that want to learn and work with all hair types rather than thinking I will just work with one type of clientele. If you have a passion for hair then it should be for all hair types. Why only have knowledge about one particular hair type, I find it’s just limiting yourself and knowledge.”

Not one to limit her skills, knowledge, or desire to make anyone in her chair feel special, all Melinda wants from her clients is kindness. “A kind person,” she reiterates. “It’s really that simple.” 

With this small, but important stipulation in mind for her ideal client, I want to know more about her thoughts on inclusivity in the weddings world. “Inclusion for me is everyone seeing a reflection of themselves. I strive to always have a team that is diverse, and to be fair it comes rather easy to me. I want clients to feel like the person who is doing their hair or makeup really understands their hair type and obviously can colour match tones to their skin.” 

“[As a hair and makeup artist] you will be a vital part of someone’s big day and it’s as much about personality and making someone feel good not only with makeup and hair but making someone feel great just as much as look great. It’s not just about having great makeup skills but great people skills too. Also there is a huge amount of skill to it too. Good makeup artists have an understanding of how your makeup will look in photography. A bride will be photographed all day. Once it goes into the evening there will be flash photography. So light reflecting makeup and highlight has to be placed correctly on the face.“

Her biggest and best tip for all brides to be? “Look after your skin. Great skin allows for great makeup. Use products that are suited to your skin type. I say less is more. A great cleanser, exfoliator, serum and moisturizer. And not forgetting a face mask once a week.”

Given all the pampering she gives to her clients, particularly her brides and now our Most Curious Catwalk models, I want to know what Melinda is doing to give herself the celebrity-treatment. “As much as I love my job, I also need to have a healthy balance of also enjoying other things in life. Spending more time with family and friends.. With working freelance there is no structure of a 9-5. or days off. I’m always working on things behind the scenes. I need to give myself time to switch off,” she admits. “Last year I went to Sicily to work on a wedding which was a wonderful experience. I would love to travel to the Caribbean. That could partly be because I’m yearning for a sandy beach and tropical sunshine.” 

Here’s hoping this hard-working makeup artist and hair stylist, who launched her bridal business mid-pandemic after five years working behind the scenes at high-profile events such as London Fashion Week, will soon be standing on sunny, sandy shores! She deserves it! Until then, catch Melanie’s show-stopping looks on the Most Curious Catwalk, taking place in the Truman Brewery on March 5th & 6th! Buy your tickets by following the link!