If there is one thing you should know about me, it’s that I am not what anyone would describe as a “go-with-the-flow” bride. I am a spreadsheet bride. A color-coded timeline bride. The kind of bride who created a wedding planning folder before she was even engaged and somehow convinced herself that researching linen swatches at 11 p.m. counted as a relaxing hobby, much to the chagrin of my now-husband.

So when it came to my civil wedding day, there was one decision that surprised nearly everyone around me—including, at times, myself: I decided to throw caution to the wind and, instead of entrusting a team of beauty experts or celebrated-MUAs, I did my own makeup.

To be clear, this wasn’t some grand statement against professional makeup artists. Quite the opposite— I have an almost embarrassing level of respect for them as someone who’s version of makeup is much akin to Hannah Horvath’s in Girls, only wearing mascara on Saturdays. Makeup artists possess what feels like a supernatural ability to transform a face while somehow making it look effortless. They can contour without evidence, conceal without texture, and create the kind of glow that makes you look like you drink three liters of water a day and have never experienced stress. I, meanwhile, often give myself such aggressive blush placement that I look like I’m going through my yearly summer rosacea flare-up.

Latest Videos From

Yet, the closer I got to my wedding, the more I found myself gravitating toward the idea of doing it myself. Part of it was practical. As any bride quickly learns, weddings—even those that just involve a trip to City Hall—have a magical ability to turn ordinary purchases into luxury expenditures.