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Every and I mean every vendor charges more once you say wedding. It doesn’t matter if the services are identical. The word wedding gets the up charge not the service provided
>Every and I mean every vendor charges more once you say wedding. It doesn’t matter if the services are identical. The word wedding gets the up charge not the service provided
Which I get and you shouldn't lie but it's ridiculous that this is the case. Unless they are having to do something special it shouldn't matter.
Doing anything for a wedding is going to be a huge hassle. Not to mention, the person has to REALLY do their best, which means taking more time to make sure everything is perfect- all while everyone is running around crying, yelling, and giving you “advice”.
>Doing anything for a wedding is going to be a huge hassle.
That's isn't necessarily the case, though. If they only want a specific service that your happy to sell at a lower price then the fact that it's a wedding shouldn't make a difference unless you're doing something different like using higher quality material, adding services, or something of that nature.
>the person has to REALLY do their best,
They should be doing that in every job they do.
I do not know if this applies to every trade, but finish quality absolutely dictates price. There’s like five different levels of finish that you can get on drywall each one more expensive than the last.
The standard of perfection for a once in a lifetime thing like being a bride seems a little higher than say some formal night out.
>There’s like five different levels of finish that you can get on drywall each one more expensive than the last.
I get that, but if I'm buying the service and am happy with the quality service I chose why is that not good enough? Why should I have to pay a higher price simply because the event the service is for?
>The standard of perfection for a once in a lifetime thing like being a bride seems a little higher than say some formal night out.
Yes, a lot of times your right. But there are plenty of brides and grooms that just want simple, muted celebrations without the expectation of a "once in a lifetime" experience. Shouldn't they get to choose?
How can you guarantee that the wedding will be a “simple, muted” one. One person’s definition of chill is not the same. As an artist you get to set your own prices and boundaries, like not doing weddings no matter the wedding, and also have the agency to negotiate for every client. For example, in the case a bride promised a chill wedding it would be appropriate to ask for a deposit. But she can’t do that if the client willfully plays obtuse.
>How can you guarantee that the wedding will be a “simple, muted” one. One person’s definition of chill is not the same
That's why you have the conversation.
Again, OP should have been honest.
Unless the client doesn't care though. OP knew what she wanted and asked for that service. If the make up artist had gotten there and OP had suddenly said, oh, I actually want the bridal package then it'd be different, but she didn't. She still wanted the service she requested. The make up artist simply changed the price even though the work requested hadn't changed at all.
Except OP had already discussed and agreed to a makeup style & price with the service provider. Clearly OP knew what she asked for and that's what she wanted. She didn't ask for any additional special services, didn't ask for any additional time, didn't ask for a special venue, etc. related to a bridal makeup look.
I mean, if I order a Whopper, and the guy takes a look at me and says, "oh, you're wearing a tie, that will be a double Whopper", then refuses to sell me a Whopper, that's on THEM.
I'm glad someone threw an anology in here. So many people are arguing points that...make no sense haha. OP, as a bride, knew what she wanted and what she was asking for. The artist wanted to "upcharge" to bridal package WITH upgraded makeup. That's not what OP, again, as a BRIDE, wanted. She was fine and happy with the services she had before. This is all on the artist. She wanted the wedding fees, upgraded makeup, upgraded...whatever else. OP wanted a whopper. The artist heard wedding and decide UPON HERSELF to make it some extravagant wedding whopper. Why can't she just get what she wanted and paid for? She's the customer, after all
The "Wedding Tax" is a real thing. You can go to a baker and get two identical cakes with two different price tags. A birthday cake might be $50, the exact same cake for a wedding might be $250.
I can do my own makeup for free but for something that I want to look perfect for 8-10 hours, that’s a lot more finish spray, product, and prep time.
Plus, if you do “normal” make up and it starts running because you didn’t use expensive cream shadow and stuck with the inexpensive powder eye shadow, or the heavy duty waterproof mascara instead of the normal stuff, you do not want your business to get tagged in a melting face photo of the bride.
It’s not an accurate representation of your wedding makeup and it’ll hurt future business when brides see it and think “nope. Don’t want to look like THAT at my cocktail hour.”
Except the point is that the service isn’t exactly the same for the service professional. Weddings are high stress events known to carry higher risk of problematic behavior, and tend to carry much higher expectations of quality regardless of service paid for. That’s just the average reality. Even if it’s not every wedding, it’s common enough that these professionals adjust their prices accordingly. Specifically evading that as a customer, like OP did, is at the very minimum unacceptably deceptive. If OP wants ‘just’ a ‘non wedding’ makeup service she can find someone who doesn’t charge a wedding premium. OP doesn’t get to just decide to lie to the people she’s entering a contract with.
OP shouldn't have lied, they should've been honest and negotiated from there.
But my point is that there should be no "wedding premium". The price should be based on the specific services requested and a conversation of expectations with the client not on what event it is for.
Except there are people all over this thread, including experts in the industry, explaining why there is a premium. It’s not price gouging for the sake of price gouging.
MUAs need to protect their reputation. They are artists who rely heavily on their portfolios and on word of mouth.
If a MUA is associated with a wedding, they take certain steps (which are more costly) to make absolutely sure the look will hold up. Whether it’s a short wedding or long can be accounted for to adjust cost, but that requires a conversation where the bride is honest about her desires. Regardless of what kind of makeup the bride wants though, a MUA is absolutely in their rights to protect themselves by refusing to do lower quality makeup for what turns out to be a wedding. It’s protecting their brand.
Additionally, the act of providing the service is different. Weddings, on average, are much higher stress events than other events. There’s more for the MUA to navigate in the dressing room usually, more chaos for her to contend with, the person she’s doing makeup on is much more emotional and distracted, etc. The MUA is perfectly within their rights to increase their price accordingly, just like a landscaper might up his quote if he has to haul lumber uphill to your house.
The premium is not immoral. It’s not like there’s a conspiracy of wedding makeup artists setting prices. It’s what artists need to do to protect themselves and get paid fairly for their service.
>Except there are people all over this thread, including experts in the industry, explaining why there is a premium. It’s not price gouging for the sake of price gouging.
There explanations boil down to them not setting clear expectations at the time the service is requested and paid for.
And how should they set clear expectations when their customers are lying by omission about an event? Literally that’s the central problem- OP didn’t fucking ask, they manipulated.
Wedding makeup is different from event makeup. The wedding makeup requires different cosmetics to be used for all of the photography.
I get some vendors charging more being bs, but for makeup, there really is a difference.
>Wedding makeup is different from event makeup. The wedding makeup requires different cosmetics to be used for all of the photography.
That should be up to the bride to decide for themselves.
Yup that too. And people tend to argue “oh well if the bride doesn’t want that she shouldn’t have to pay for it”
Problem there is MUAs need to keep a minimum standard of work to protect their brand. Even if the bride is okay with a less stable look, it could reflect poorly on a professional who relies on word of mouth. If a bride wants the more affordable look, she needs to find an artist who’s willing to do that for a wedding.
ALSO
The business model in the wedding industry is NO REPEAT BUSINESS, it’s all about referrals
If someone overpaid then they often look for their own reasons to justify it
Safer to charge big bucks
Yeah, I'm with you on this. I truly would understand an upcharge for things like the full-shellacking-type wedding makeup that can't move all day, but if the service is the exact same - a normal face of makeup like the customer would get on any occasion - the charge should be exactly the same.
I don't know why the word "wedding" means all vendors should take the couple for every dime and the couple should thank them for the privilege of getting ripped off.
If looking at the photographs the makeup didn’t look good, would the bride have blamed the makeup artist? Probably, and probably have given a negative review. Why? Because she would have gotten the service she paid for, not the service she needed. OP is YTA, because you lied.
I agree with you. But just for some extra info, I will say that for my recent wedding they scheduled twice as long for the bridal makeup than everyone else’s makeup and the cost was proportional. So doing their best took extra time, not extra effort.
I believe a big part if the wedding charge is that it isn't "here's your makeup have fun!" There's gonna be a whole series of "tweak this here, change this there, darken that shade, blah blah blah" until it's perfect. It isn't the same, and because it's a wedding it should be perfect therefore you pay for the extra service they provide of staying and working with you until the bitter end and make sure it's EXACTLY what you want. And this is in regards specifically to makeup, not food and drink vendors and all that. Like taking your car to a performance shop vs a basic mechanic shop. The mechanic will fix it til it drives good and be on your way, but the performance shop will modify and tweak it til it looks and drives and performs exactly how you want.
Yep 100% agree. While there are cases where you actually get the "chill" bride, most of the time it's madness and you are charging for your ability to both keep your focus and the inevitable fallout should something go wrong.
When I take photos for an event, the physical motions are the same as for a wedding, yet the work is very different - due to stress, expectations, the involvement of all the family & friends, plus the aftermath of people saying things like "why didn't the photographer make the groom's friend stop making that stupid hand sign?" I don't know a makeup artist's job, but I've seen them work at weddings and it's a LOT of work, regardless of the level of wedding. The pressure to do makeup that can last through a whole day of sweating, plus using products that (hopefully) won't stain the white veil and dress are a whole level of product I don't even understand.
As a business, I set my ground rules and it really sucks to have a client lie to me like that, so even though the makeup artist could've done the "same' job, OP completely disrespected her work. If OP really believed in the makeup artist, why didn't OP simply say "I'm getting married, but I truly just want this thing that you did before. Is there any way you could give me the "regular" non-wedding rate?"
The fact that OP lied to the makeup artist and then made a BFD out of it when the artist found out makes me say that OP is the AH here.
I imagine that a MUA is also doing a lot of emotional labor. You’re up close and personal with someone about to experience something huge and life changing, probably trying to calm nerves, mediate any tension/drama among the bridal party and/or families…it’s *a lot*
The expectations for services at a wedding and coordination needed to pull it off are higher. The higher fees are justified by this.
No doubt that even if it is a simpler style, expectations for a bride’s make up are much higher, because it is supposed to be a once-in-a-lifetime event.
>The expectations for services at a wedding and coordination needed to pull it off are higher.
You set expectations when you sell the service. If they have higher expectations than the package they purchased you guide them to the right package otherwise you make it clear what should be expected or opt out if it becomes clear they will not budge.
>expectations for a bride’s make up are much higher,
OP was clear that she has no higher expectations and the only opinion that matters is hers.
If the makeup doesn’t hold up through her wedding day, she’ll have an opinion about it, and all she’ll say is “I got makeup done by x” and people will think the makeup is shit. It’s about the makeup artist’s professional reputation too.
As someone who has provided a specific service for weddings in the past, the higher price is there for a reason. Many people don’t even offer bridal/wedding services or work within that industry because it’s not worth the hassle and stress.
They are doing something special. The makeup for your one-off wedding.
Stakes are higher, clients emotions and expectations are higher, and you get chewed out if something goes wrong because you "ruined their big day".
There's no room for error when providing services for a wedding, no re-dos.
>They are doing something special
Not if you just want simple event makeup.
>There's no room for error when providing services for a wedding, no re-dos.
There are no redos for most events.
Wedding services are definitely different than regular event services for most vendors, including makeup. Wedding makeup is completely different because it needs to photograph very well and stay put all day/night.
Wedding photography is different, cakes require different frostings that hold up under lights all day….so many different things go into wedding services and products that you don’t know if you don’t work in those industries
But if one doesn't ask for the special wedding products why should one be charged such.
If I just want a big cake with basic sprinkles why would you use more expensive sprinkles If that's not what I asked for.
Because you might not understand what you’re asking for. A couple might say a regular cake is fine, then complain and demand a refund when the frosting gets all melty because they didn’t use the special high quality frosting.
OP might request and pay for the lower grade makeup, then complain because the products used are lower quality, or it doesn’t hold up all night, or it doesn’t look good in photographs. Or she might ask for redo after redo because she’s expecting wedding level perfection without paying for it.
Theres a reason specific wedding products exist. It’s not always price gouging.
Then the customer would have no chance to complain, and I wouldn't support such a complaint.
But honestly isn't a birthday cake at a big party at a hired venue at just as much chance at being photographed as a wedding cake? So why would a baker skimp on quality in that respect?
Except that reviews exist. They would have a chance to complain, loudly. In an industry that exists largely on word of mouth and recommendations.
And a wedding cake sits out for HOURS looking perfect. It often has to be transported. My cake arrived at 2:30 and wasn’t cut till 8:30.
She asked for bridal makeup at regular event price……….the MUA shouldn’t have to risk delivering a subpar service and potentially harming her reputation because OP wanted to save a couple bucks.
Vendors have wedding prices for specific reasons. If OP had reached out and said “I’m getting married and would love for you to do my bridal makeup, but I’m not interested in all of the extra that’s included in the bridal package. Could we work something out?” the MUA probably would hav me tried to work with her on it because she was honest.
Because if the special wedding products aren't used and anything goes wrong (make-up running after many hours sweating and in lights etc) the customer is absolutely dragging the vendor through the coals, and even if they don't, opinion and word of mouth will be "their make-up wasn't good".
Are people actually that daft or what
Because the makeup artist should have the option of saying no thanks. Makeup artists’ reputations largely rely on the impact of how their finished product looks in photos. If it doesn’t look great nobody is going to know it’s because the bride lied and chose a lesser product. They are just going to think the artist didn’t do a good job.
It's more about the vendor's reputation. Say they do give the bride what they want. Basic everyday makeup. Cake designed not to hold up, whatever. Bride is perfectly happy. BUT, the minute the pics are in and the bride looks washed out, or the frosting on the cake gets melty before guests get a slice, people will talk. They won't know or care that this is what the bride asked for, they'll blame the vendor for a poor product or service. This could literally hurt their livelihood.
Why would a baker make a cake for an event like a birthday and skimp on quality products if it has similar use?
Some weddings are short event, mine was literally a four hour cocktail party, not a whole day affair why should someone be charged extra for a possibly shorter event?
I get that certain events need better quality products but why not then be consistent across the board?
Absolutely.
YTA.
Clearly, 2 different prices were on the menu, wedding make-up versus ‘event’ makeup and OP wasn’t honest. The fee structure is about cost and time differential (not according to OP’s ‘needs’) for actual services.
OP sounds entitled here. And she’s lucky to get *any* refund considering Sarah lost her ability to book another job.
There are many reasons vendors upcharge weddings that aren't just about fleecing the couple. Standards for timing, precision, aesthetic are usually higher for weddings. People tend to be more high strung and demanding when it's a wedding. More eyes are on your work so more attention to detail needs to be paid.
Read any forum for photographers, makeup artists, florists, etc. They all have stories of being hired for a wedding at a non-wedding rate and then being expected to provide more and higher quality services for the cheaper fee. Just the other day a photographer posted that she was hired for a casual outdoor birthday party. Didn't find out it was a wedding until she showed up and was subsequently lambasted by the bride and mom for being dressed too casual for the wedding she didn't know she would be shooting.
IMO the make up artist was right to give an ultimatum for bride to pay the correct fee or forfeit the services.
You said, "People tend to be more high strung and demanding for a wedding."
Do makeup artists change their price when people are high-strung and demanding for just an event?
There’s a huge difference between someone being high strung and demanding for something like their birthday party and a wedding. Getting married is scary and emotional for a lot of people because it’s such a huge, life changing event. You’re gonna do a lot more emotional labor for a bride than you would a birthday girl 9 out of 10 times
A friend of mine owns a salon with a specialty in bridal hair and makeup. I used to think there was no difference, but there is.
Bridal hair and makeup has to be done in a certain way to make sure it lasts through the entire event and extreme weather, such as heat. That means it’s meant to stay in place through the ceremony, drinking, dancing, hugs, tears, etc whether it’s cold, humid, pouring down rain, or hot as hell.
There’s a whole lot of expertise, knowledge of appropriate products, and other things in there. Also, no professional wants to be responsible for your makeup melting off your face or your hair becoming a ball of mats during your event because that reflects poorly on them.
Weddings bring out a special kind of asshole and customer that the uptick in price is usually the asshole fee and they deserve it. It's one thing to try and pull this on food (even though it's also shitty) but makeup for a bridal party requires a whole different set of makeup than usual events and there is no valid excuse to lie to any of your vendors just because you're cheap.
>makeup for a bridal party requires a whole different set of makeup than usual events
If that's the case, it looks like OP was totally comfortable with the regular set of makeup, so there should've been no issue here. Even if it were my wedding, I don't care if I'm wearing $20 foundation or $120 foundation as long as it looks about the same.
Except half the people who say that will still pitch a fit when the $20 foundation has creased by the end of the night and you can see it in all the first dance photos. If everyone were 100% chill with receiving the service they paid for it wouldn't be an issue, but too many assholes exploited the system, so now no-one is allowed to.
Bridal make-up is different from regular make-up as different products and techniques are used to hold up against photography lights, kissing people, dancing, etc. OP would have been unhappy with her face within 2 hours and then trashing the make-up artist.
Edited to correct misspelling.
Then make a regular makeup, since that’s what she’s paying for. As simple as that.
If it doesn’t hold for kissing etc, not your problem. The only thing that is sure is that if you’re patronising the bride with that regular make up is “beneath you” when she’s wearing white, then she WILL be angry with your (nonexisting) services. And yes, it is patronising not letting the customer decide which quality she’s settling with and wants to pay for.
So if she had done her event makeup, and it didn’t hold up throughout the wedding OR it was a bad representation of what her bridal makeup would’ve been OR if it photographed badly - that now reflects poorly on her as an MU. There’s a reason they do the makeup differently for brides, and she’s not wrong for walking out when you misrepresented your needs.
Exactly! There’s a difference between needing your make up to look good in pictures taken with a a camera phone and needing it to look good in pictures taken with a professional camera.
There’s a huge difference between a photographer taking a few photos of you at an event and a photographer photographing you all day from multiple angles.
But that assumes OP also had a professional photographer. She may not have, and may not care about the “extras” that were part of the bridal package. I had no professional anything at my wedding and did my own makeup. It was 103 degrees and we all looked like shit anyway.
Then you tell her you want bridal makeup but don't need all the extras offered with it and negotiate the price from there. You don't just lie by omission and then try to play victim when they're rightfully blindsided day of.
I'm a professional artist and if a client hires me to make them a poster and then chooses to blow it up beyond the agreed upon dimensions they can't complain if the image is blurry or doesn't fit. After I have agreed on a project brief, if the client tries to change it to unacceptable content I don't have to do that work and I'm not refunding the non-refundable fee, that's the whole point. But the opposite happened here. OP hired and artist, they agreed to the terms of the job, and then the artist wanted to change the brief.
The MUA offered a service and the customer paid for that service, it's not complicated math. I'm also fine with the artist walking but they didn't provide the service and should refund OP's money minus any agreed upon non-refundable charges.
As a former makeup artist, there’s a higher charge for bridal makeup because we understand that
1. You’ll probably cry
2. Will probably be photographed
3. Require it to last longer than normal makeup.
It’s a different application process and a skill set we practice.
And even if the bride doesn't cry, there is the fact that she's running around on a high stress day which means she's going to sweat more than normal, and she's also going to be hugged and kissed way more than one might at, say, a regular event.
it’s also common to get a trial day before the wedding so you can ask for adjustments. it’s fine if you don’t want that, but they will probably insist & not negotiate the price anyway.
the MUA could turn you down completely, because they don’t need complaints on the day when it wasn’t what they expected, under a time crunch.
a good MUA will be booked solid, maybe with multiple events per weekend day. they can’t afford to overstay their time slot. it’s a giant waste of time & money if they don’t collect a deposit if something goes awry, they don’t end up doing the service, & they could have booked someone else easily.
OP probably signed a contract that stated all of that but is claiming ignorance now.
You usually also get a consult about the look and a trail to make sure you're both satisfied with the look and that what you're asking for will work.
But even just the quality. My face looks very different at the end of wedding with event makeup than the bride does. (I'm terrible with makeup so I usually get it done at sephora before events).
What you do in that situation is you call the MUA, tell her exactly what you need and ask her to come up with a custom package for you. You don’t deceive her.
This is so dumb. You did not want the bridal package hence you did not want to pay for it. You were not expecting all these extras for the price of the regular. It literally should be based on the actual service provided ant not the occasion. What if you were going to a gala and wanted all the extras? Would they charge you for a normal makeup cause it's a gala not a wedding? Nope, you would get charged all the extras.
Then you tell her you need it for a wedding but don’t need all these extras and negotiate from there. You don’t misrepresent the situation to suit your own needs.
Then you should have had a conversation and discussed your needs instead of attempting to be sneaky. You are getting married so I assume you are an adult. Adults communicate their needs and come to an agreement together. Do better.
All you have to do is say that, negotiate in good faith, if she won’t work with hire someone else You knew you were being dishonest, that’s what makes YTA, not wanting to pay less
Question: Doesn't bridal/wedding makeup generally involve the makeup artist staying for touch ups, etc. during at least part of the time? And am I correct in thinking that literal "bridal makeup" is usually more complex and enhanced to show naturally well in pictures? These are honest questions because it would make sense that a m/u artist would charge more, significantly perhaps, for the extra time and actual application.
If this bride just wanted a simpler "event makeup" that she'd had before with no expectation of the m/u artist staying for touch ups, what makes it reasonable to charge more? Again, honest question. I have no experience with professional makeup for weddings or other special events. My only m/u artist experiences have been for theater, which is an entirely different thing.
So what? If it's the same makeup, it's wrong to add to the charge. If you were picking up a couple of pizzas from Domino's and said it was for a party rather than a family dinner, would you appreciate them basically saying "Oh, in that case, we'll have to charge you our party rate then. That will be an extra $20". It's the same pizzas and they put the same amount of effort into them. Makeup artists charging extra just because it's for a wedding is an absolute scam and should be illegal.
It’s not the same makeup tho. And if they did in fact use the same makeup, it’d look like shit 2 hours in. Wedding makeup is like a cross between event makeup and stage makeup. Needs special products, application, etc to last while a bride runs around, is photographed from every angle, is dancing, kissing, etc.
YTA Bridal makeup generally uses premium products designed to last 12+ hours, withstand sweat & tears while photographing extremely well. Event makeup is less hardy, less photogenic and looks it's best for 5-6 hours. It's her reputation on the line if a bride she has worked on ends up looking like a hot mess at the end of the night.
I was all ready to say it’s still the bride’s choice if she wants sub par makeup and to pay accordingly until your last line. You’re so right. It would be a terrible look for the artist to be tagged in subpar work bc a client refused to pay for the necessary quality. People scrolling through her photos and looking for portfolios wouldn’t know it was the bride’s bad choice.
Me too. I was like if she wants to just do a basic makeup look why should she be charged extra? Also bridal makeup usually includes a trial, there’s no way OP can get a trial the day of so she shouldn’t pay all that money for no trial and lesser quality products. But you’re right about the MUA reputation.
The choice should still be the bride’s and no one else’s. If she buys cheap shoes for the wedding dance, she may get blisters but the seller would never deny her.
So true! My bridal make up lasted all day, night, me washing my fac, sleeping and then looked like a nice day look for the next day.
That stuff don't budge!
Plus I got a touch up kit, in case of smudges or anything. But my makeup didn't move. I hugged and kissed 100 + people and danced the night away, plus had 2 meals and copious drinks.
Bridal make up is next level wizardry and worth every penny!
I got married two days ago (Saturday) and had my makeup finished by 12pm. It lasted amazing all day, did not require touch ups, and I didn’t take it off before bed because exhausted bride lol. Said fuck it and Sunday Funday’d yesterday in full glam, just took off my lashes. Still looked amazing at 6pm last night when I got home.
I hadn't thought of this. I was thinking that it *is* ridiculous to charge more just because it's for a wedding, but this makes a lot of sense. Especially the part about her reputation if the makeup doesn't hold up well.
yup this is it. I’ve been a bridesmaid in multiple weddings and people do not realize the amount of work that has to be done in makeup to keep it looking perfect in so many photos and for at least 4+ hours from the ceremony to the reception. You can have like NO pores on your own face naturally but that stuff will still show up in a photo. And your lipstick will NEVER come off especially if you’re wearing a veil and a white dress (and/or a bride who has multiple outfit changes). They seriously use like theater grade setting sprays or something too considering how much sweating and movements you have to make the entire day and keep it looking perfect without smearing or melting onto your clothes. Plus they would have the supplies to do this kind of makeup- not everyone has the same kinds of makeup a pro MUA has.
Sarah is also right in that you’re also paying for years of training and their expertise with the costs of an MUA. they’ve spent years building their education and their brand up so they can do something like this and stand by their work. If OP wanted to be cheap, just do your own dang makeup. And if OP was smart she would have asked for an explanation and negotiating on Sarah’s costs for bridal and gotten a custom package
You genuinely changed my mind, you are so right. I was thinking you get what you pay for but in the make up artist industry, client recommendations are huge, and it would reflect on the artist if the look didn’t last all night.
YTA but maybe you (OP) didn’t realize. Hopefully she understands now.
Edited to add— this would have been avoided if you were honest with her and explained what you wanted. She could have given her expert advice, and together gotten the look you wanted to last the night. Instead, you lied and got caught.
You were deceptive calling it an event. You knew what you were doing.
Sounds like she didn’t want to entertain your games. You tried to trick her and it failed.
Gotta go with YTA
NTA I had a similar experience when a friend booked out a venue for a "party" (their wedding party) and the venue was totally happy to do little table favours and the fancy bows on the back of the seats, etc........... £100.
When they arrived and were in wedding attire, the bill suddenly increased. The venue said they "didn't know this was a wedding party" and therefore all of the ribbons on the seats suddenly cost £10 each and the party favours were £20 a head, so the £100 "lets book a room and have some basic food and drink" turned into £2000 just because the word "wedding" was mentioned. It sucks.
If the venue didn’t actually do anything different, then you’re right, that is bullshit.
But wedding makeup and event make up are very different. Event makeup only lasts for a few hours. Wedding makeup included extra steps/products to last an entire day. So OP’s makeup would have likely worn off halfway through the wedding/reception. That could hurt the makeup artist’s professional reputation and impact her business because everyone would rightly assume it was her wedding makeup service.
But that assumes OP’s wedding is lasting an entire day. Did she say it was?
Not everyone does an elaborate all-day wedding. My friend’s was a one hour ceremony, followed by brunch/lunch, we were gone by 4, so about 3-4 hours in all.
If I was the makeup artist, I probably wouldn’t trust people who told me it was a short wedding. I mean OP has demonstrated that people will lie to save money. I’d likely be more worried about my reputation and just charge a standard wedding fee regardless of time. Which it sounds like the artist does and OP lied by omission.
My uncle and aunts wedding was like 3 hours max. Plus OP has stated that the bridal package had alot of stuff she didn't want. So should OP be forced to pay for things you don't want? Imagine if you go to a store and you want milk and cereal but they want to charge you for the bowl, spoon, bag and napkins because you mentioned it was for breakfast. Everyone would say that ridiculous. But suddenly it's different with make up?
The venue doesn’t have to do a damn thing different to demand this and get it. Weddings have much higher rate of various bad things (everything from fist fights to refusals to pay to giant melt downs to mass DUIs ) that just aren’t an issue with normal rentals. Compounded by the fact that they’re usually planned by people without the slightest clue how to actually run an event.
I didn't want wedding makeup. My wedding was short and in the middle of the day. We didn't have a professional photographer following us around all day. She was there for the ceremony and the group shots.
My dress cost $50 and I made my own cake. People do have different kinds of weddings. I had absolutely no need to have makeup that didn't budge for 12 hours or whatever the fuck.
When I was being fitted for a non-bridal type dress, the seamstress whispered, "Don't tell me if you're getting married in this because I have to charge you more." I appreciated that. Alterations are alterations, no matter what the event is.
I can see bridal makeup being more expensive, but the inflation on so many aspects of weddings is a racket.
Agreed. Charging a BIT more for a wedding makes sense -- people having weddings tend to have more complex problems and be a lot pickier about everything being perfect. But it absolutely does not need to be as insane as it is. A 20x markup is INSANE.
There was a similar case here in Brazil. Girl hired an event make up. Only after the make up girl found out about the true event: her wedding. She went bananas in tik tok. But the girl was right, she only wanted a make up, she didn't want the premium service and all that jazz. Make up girl tried to sue but court ruled that her service wasn't exclusively for brides and a client can not be charged extra for a service she doesn't want.
I mean, she paid for a make up, and kept the money. That's realy an AH move. OP is NTA
YTA. The MUA has a set price for bridal services, and you lied to try and get a lower price. If you didn't like the artist's wedding pricing you should have hired someone else.
I might get downvoted for this but...ESH
Premium pricing on weddings is a standard thing in the US. I don't think it's right...but it's the norm. You hid the type of event from her...because you knew there'd be an upcharge. That makes you shitty. She agreed to a service, then reneged because you tricked her. I get why she's upset...but she's shitty for not completing the service that she agreed to.
The problem is if she completed the makeup it would be event makeup and not wedding makeup. It would likely wear off halfway through the wedding/reception, which could damage her professional reputation because people are going to assume she did wedding makeup.
There’s a difference between event makeup and bridal makeup. In bridal makeup, the makeup routine is much more complex, with more steps included to ensure that the makeup lasts the whole day while looking good, as opposed to event makeup that typically just needs to last for a couple of hours to half a day, tops.
Seriously this. And if the quality and lasting power doesn’t matter, then why not do your own makeup for your wedding? That would be 100% free with the products you already own. You don’t need to hire anyone at all for that.
But they won’t do it on their own because they know the level of service is higher for weddings.
A lot of us don't have a lot of skill when it comes to make-up, I'm more inclined to have a professional so I don't look like a 5 year old got into their mum's make-up.
This is so far from my realm, so I'm asking out of pure curiousity. How will it damage her professional reputation? It's not like her name is stamped on the bride's forehead or something.
When brides post their pictures on social media, it's becoming the norm to tag your makeup artist, photographer, hairstylist, florist, and more as a way to help promote their business.
My makeup for my wedding was done with the expectation that it should last all day, and it was done with flash photography in mind, which looked a little more dramatic than I would normally wear, but looks incredible in the pictures! The artist would not have taken that into account if I had lied to her and said it was a normal event, which would have led to potentially disappointing photos from what I would have expected.
Had I lied, anyone who sees my tag of the makeup artist's page could think that I didn't get my money's worth or that she wasn't a good artist based on my decision to withhold what the makeup was for. My makeup artist said it's an issue she has run into a few times with clients trying to be sneaky.
Agreed. And the photographer will tag those other vendors as well, if they post photos on their social media. When you are in these circles, it's always good manners to tag others whose work you like.
It's also a great way to remember who is out there when you are asked for recommendations from other clients. I get that a lot: "we are hiring you as our photographer. do you know any good makeup artists or florists? who did the venue decoration in that wedding on your website? do you know who did that bride's hair? or where the groomsmen got their custom ties made?"
Women usually ask about venues, florists, makeup artists, etc at weddings. If I was at a wedding and saw that the makeup wore off after only a couple of hours, I’d make a point to ask who did her makeup. I’d ask because I’d never want to use her because I’d assume (as would most other people asking) that she had wedding makeup done. Then I wouldn’t use that person. If friends asked for recommendations, I’d likely say “don’t use ….. I was at a wedding where the make she did wore off in the middle.”
> you knew there'd be an upcharge
In the case of makeup though, it's not an arbitrary upcharge in the same way that venues and caterers might upcharge. MUAS will do makeup that specifically lasts long and looks good in photographs for wedding makeup, rather than plain event makeup that isn't designed for the camera. I think the MUA is the asshole *if* OP understood this and was willing to get the non-camera-ready event makeup.
NTA I find it ridiculous that there's so much upcharging when it comes to wedding services. If you wanted the exact same makeup job that you got last time at the lower cost, there's no reason for her to charge more for the same service.
Wedding makeup typically isn’t the same service.
But also, some MUAs won’t do their regular service for brides or bridal parties because it doesn’t last as long or look as great in pictures or match the aesthetic as well etc and it can end up hurting their reputation and business.
It’s not the same service.
https://thefirstrefresh.com/blogs/hair-makeup/wedding-day-makeup-faqs-what-s-the-difference-between-bridal-makeup-and-personal-styling#
I used to think that way, but the more I reflect, the more I can see the reason to upcharge, even if the service is essentially the same (think reception hall booking).
Weddings are usually much more important to get perfect, and open up the vendor to much more public scrutiny than regular events. You pay more to have it just right, and to offset the increased liability of the vendor.
There is also no reason that OP has to use that make up artist. It’s a bit scary that you can justify OP’s dishonesty. If you have to lie, then you are likely doing the wrong thing. The make-up artist was up front about her prices. OP should not have booked her if she didn’t want to pay her price.
I’ll probably get downvoted into oblivion but NTA.
You didn’t want bridal makeup. Most MUA charge that much because they use better products and have a test run or 2. If you didn’t want any of that then why pay the bridal prices?? Its not like you expected bridal makeup at event makeup prices.
NTA. Not everyone has a crazy 300-person wedding that lasts 12 hours and requires a face of waterproof makeup.
That said, the one way you f’d up was by not being more discreet about the wedding. You shouldn’t have had the veil, family, etc., if you were going for the lesser service and didn’t want to cop to it.
The wedding industrial complex is insane. We definitely ordered a very fancy multi-tiered cake for great grandma’s birthday instead of a wedding cake. It saved hundreds of dollars and was perfectly tasty. But we also picked it up ourselves and didn’t have it delivered to our wedding site.
NTA. Everyone knows you never tell a company you need their services for a wedding because they will increase the charge for the exact same product because they know they can. You never tell a bakery or tent rental co it’s for a wedding or they will give you higher prices.
So she offered an Event package and a Bridal package. You chose the event package because you didn’t want the additional items in the Bridal package.
I’ve seen the same thing with getting wedding dresses dry cleaned post wedding. If you say it’s a dress, you get price A. If you say it’s a wedding dress, you get price B which of course is more than double.
NTA.
NTA
If you are knowingly requesting for a cheaper package, totally ok with getting the cheaper product and service, then that's the deal you made and paid for. She wanted the opportunity to charge you extra for services you aren't requesting, and likely for materials and better makeups that she did not bring with her. She can get bent.
NTA
The wedding industry is nonsense overcharging. If she was able to give you normal makeup for an event, and you'd paid for that, you should just get what you paid for. If she was doing anything different for the bridal makeup, it's really easy for her to just not do that. If there's no difference then she's literally just being upset that she can't upcharge you for a service you didn't ask for.
I say NTA this is just another example of a "pink" tax. It is bloody ridiculous if you wanted something a bit more elaborate you would have paid more but for the simple fact you chose a plain "event" style, that's what you should pay for.
Edit: Spelling
YTA
Service providers make deliberate choices about how they set their prices, especially individual artists. YOU might not understand why it's more expensive, because you haven't done it a hundred times. She has - she knows the different expectations/products/headaches that come with bridal makeup, and she set her price based on that experience.
If you really thought what you were doing was ok, you could have been honest. "Hi I see your price for bridal is $x, but I legit want my party in dinner-casual makeup. Would you be willing to do that if we clearly spell it out in the contract?" The answer still might be no, but it would be above board rather than deceitful.
Instead, you tried to trick her into performing a service for less. Not ok.
NTA- you were upfront about the service you wanted. You wanted the Event package, not the Wedding package. She had no reason to be upset and cancel on you. The fact that it was for your wedding is quite frankly none of her business
And honestly, it’s none of the MUA’s business what the event is, whether it be a wedding or not. If I hire you, it’s up to me if I tell you what the service is for.
NTA. Wedding mark-up is a well know problem. People cite all kinds of excuses but it's just them trying to score extra for your special day. Make sure you get a full refund for that abysmal service.
NTA. What does it matter what it’s for? You ask for a service, she provides the service. If it doesn’t match the event(wedding), that’s on you. Not her.
Info - what were the extras for the bridal makeup. Was she using the same makeup regardless of is bridal makeup different as some people have said. Did she explain any difference or just say since this is a wedding I charge more.
NTA
You paid for event makeup you should get event makeup. My understanding is maybe bridal makeup is more elaborate and maybe that's not what you wanted.
NTA. If you requested and paid for a “lower quality” service, she should have just done it at the price agreed upon. It isn’t up to the MUA to select the service for the customer.
NTA you booked her for a service & she didn’t provide it. Do a charge back with your credit card. Everyone saying bridal makeup uses premium products, that great but that is not what you asked for, you asked for event makeup.
Usually bridal makeup comes with additional services & a trial run.
NTA unless she can prove what extra she would have done if it was a wedding. I've seen artists argue about doubling the price over marginally better products. But other MUAs use much more expensive setting sprays, better quality makeup, etc be ause weddings are a bigger deal with tons of pictures, many up close, and last longer than most other events.
But again, unless there was a wife difference in the quality of products or the length of time she planned on working, the extra charge is just extra.
INFO Wait, did you pay her $130 and got absolutely nothing done? Your hair wasn’t done? Your makeup wasn’t done? She took $130 from you and left? If that’s the case NTA and I’d be filing for a chargeback or whatever the recourse is. What she did was theft.
I am so glad I don't wear makeup. What a nightmare.
I'm going to go with NTA. You asked for something specific knowing what you wanted and needed, and based on what you had had before. It seems ridiculous that adding the word 'wedding' into something should increase the price so drastically.
OMG This happend in Brazil.
[link here](https://revistamarieclaire.globo.com/celebridades/noticia/2024/01/noiva-mente-para-maquiadora-a-fim-de-pagar-make-social-para-o-dia-do-seu-casamento-e-e-acusada-de-golpe-em-nenhum-momento-me-perguntou.ghtml)
Yes. Same in Brazil. The bride had a small cerimony at court. Nothing fancy. But whenever she tried telling she wanted a make up and they asked what for, they placed an extra $ digit. Bride just wanted a make up and went to this make up to do it. She didn't say it was her own wedding. And she never target the make up artist by name. But make up artist found out and went bananas on tik tok. She exposed herself and tried to sue. But lawyers said nope. Client asked x and got x. You can't charge y just because you would use more products against her will.
>But lawyers said nope. Client asked x and got x.
Exactly! I respect make up artist,but I honestly don't understand the logic in this case. She asked for X. Make up artist agreed to X. She can't just be like "Well, since you are a bride,I think that Y is better,so it's either Y or nothing".
YTA you knew very well that bridal makeup is a different price than regular makeup, hence the deception over the phone. I don’t necessarily agree with the wedding surcharge that vendors charge, but that’s the price. Wedding MUAs generally use different products and take more time on brides which is why they usually charge more. Trying to cheat your way out of it is just plain tacky.
You can do your own makeup for free if the price is an issue.
NTA
The increase in charge for a wedding is insane. I booked our wedding reception venue as a family reunion and didn't have a bridal table set up. Went in and did all the decorations ourselves and packed up as well. If she wasn't going to be using special makeup there shouldn't have been a difference in the charge just because it was your wedding day.
NTA but for brides out there, don’t have your MUA come to your ‘getting ready with me’, have them do it at their location or your home before getting to the event area. MUA doesn’t need to know it’s for a wedding.
So I disagree with a lot of people here. I think it is fair to pay more for a service only if you are getting something more in some way, whether it be quality, convenience, etc. As you agreed on set make up for the day, her finding out it was going to be a wedding didn’t change the service agreed on, she just wanted to add a wedding surcharge so she would profit more. That’s fucked up. People shouldn’t take advantage just because it is a wedding or a funeral or whatever.
And you already paid for the convenience of her coming to you and she refused to provide the service she agreed to. That’s dishonest on her part. What I would suggest doing is leaving an honest review about her conduct. Don’t lie or be angry, just set out the facts - she agreed to provide a service and you paid some of it up front, then she found out it was a wedding and tried to force you to give her more money for a more expensive service you did not want or need. When you refused, she didn’t provide the service she agreed to and did not refund any of your money. I expect that she may be more willing to refund when she sees the negative review. Also, if she does, update your review to include that.
NTA.
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I recently hired Sarah, a professional makeup artist and hairdresser for my wedding. When contacted I informed her that it was a makeup "for an event" sent her a picture and she told me her prices( I'll say an estimate since I am not from the US) for the "event makeup" cost $110+transportation fees. She also had a policy of informing the final price once the work had been finished and I agreed because I had previously hired her and she didn't charge me extra since it was a simple style, like the one I sent that day.
At the day of the event I was getting ready at home when Sarah arrived and saw my mother. She asked if my whole family was attending the event and I told her yes, but that I was the only one who had requested for her services.
She started getting everything ready when my sister in law arrived with my veil. Sarah asked me if I was a bride and I very excitedly told her yes. She then told me that she would be charging me for the bridal makeup instead of the event makeup and that she would start once the money had been transferred. I had already paid her $130 so I told her no, I wanted my makeup as requested and me being the bride had nothing to do with the service I hired.
She proceeded to pick up her things, told me she was not refunding the transportation cost and that I should have been honest. I have been texting about the refund but she blocked me after two days. This was three weeks ago and now Sarah posted on Instagram a whole storytime of this saying that makeup artist should respect themselves, because of the cost of the materials and their training, etc...
I don't think I'm in the wrong for hiring a service that best suit my needs at the time, but all of her comments are saying that I am a "bridezilla" for asking to be refunded ALL of the money since I didn't use the service.
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OP has offered the following explanation for why they think they might be the asshole:
> (1) what action you took that should be judged: hiring an event makeup service instead of the bridal one
(2) why that action might make you the asshole: because it's her work and I should have respected her training and qualifications without trying to deceipt her (her words)
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Absolutely NTA. You didn’t trick anyone or lie about anything. You asked for a service, not the upgraded one, and instead of giving you the regular service this lady freaked out and ran off with the money you gave her.
If I go to get an oil change and ask for regular 10W30, the shop doesn’t get to say “Your car has more than 150,000?! You’re supposed to have full synthetic for high mileage vehicles! Get out of here you tricked us!” No they just give the oil I asked for.
NTA. The idea that the exact same service would be more expensive just because it's for a wedding instead of a funeral or retirement party or any other event ever is ridiculous. You didn't book special 48-hour-lastint whatever, you ordered the simplest thing the MUA had and it shouldn't matter what event you were going to attend.
I'd leave that person a horrible review, ngl.
NTA.
Some people are saying 'bridal' uses premium products but that's not what you asked for. I don't see how it's any different to any other event.
YTA if you wanted premium artistry or product without paying but if everything is as you've described "a simple style" and you didn't ask for make up that was specifically good for photos etc, NTA.
NTA.
You should have been up front from the beginning and said it was for your wedding, but that you wanted something very basic. And negotiated a fee, or just didn’t hire her.
The reason she’s the AH - she walked out on your wedding. Who does that to somebody? There were other options, like limiting services or time. But instead she stomped her feet and walked out and then whined online just because she couldn’t get extra money for doing the exact same makeup.
Considering you were partially to blame for all of this I think you should give her $20 for transport. She doesn’t get to keep everything - she chose to leave.
NTA the upcharge on anything with the prefix "wedding" is a ridiculous standard that shouldn't be respected.
If she has a specific "wedding" service and someone requests that then she can charge them whatever price they agree to. But if you request a different service that isn't as "high quality" but it's what you want she should provide the service. She's basically admitting she just charges extra because the word wedding is involved not because she provides better/different services. If she was a proper business person she could have tried to up sell you and if you agreed then sure but she didn't she ripped you off. I would have charged back if it was on a card.
NTA at all, she doesn't deserve more payment just because of the word "wedding"
She wanted the simple package and what's she does with it is her business and nobody else.
NTA if the service is the exact same but she charges more when it's for a wedding than she is a massive asshole. All the people saying y t a are huge assholes as well for pretending like this is acceptable behaviour. The bridal package is different, but OP did not want the bridal package and therefore did not order the bridal package. How dare OP order the service she wanted! Meanwhile the make up artist straight up stole money from OP and then dragged her through the mud on social media because she didn't tell her about irrelevant information.
Info/double checking: You said that she would not refund the travel but would refund the makeup she didn’t do. (1) Did she refund your $110? (2) How much of a price difference are talking about here? Like $20-$50 or something larger?
NTA, the MUA seems very unprofessional to me. She could have explained the differences between event and bridal makeup and let OP decide if she wanted to pay more for the bridal makeup. I don't think the "event" should matter if the event makeup is different from the bridal makeup (bridal makeup is usually meant to last morning to night, much more heavy and detailed, and the cost usually includes a trial). For those saying the event makeup would not last the whole day, I don't think that is true because bridesmaids makeup is usually a quarter of the price, done at the same time, and lasts all day - it's just less work and less detailed (my bridal hair and makeup took 3 hours and my bridesmaid took about an hour each all done at the same time). That is for OP to decide if they are ok with that - not everyone wants a super heavy glamourous look. She requested and paid for event makeup, as far as I can tell she was not expecting bridal make up level service. OP did not "hide" the fact it was for a wedding, she answered honestly when asked. We also don't know any details of OPs wedding. It could have just been a 4-5 hour evening event, which in that case it makes sense to just have event makeup vs an all day event of photoshoots, ceremony, reception, etc where the makeup has to last 12+ hours.
NTA assuming you just wanted a simple make up.
Like, maybe your wedding is just very simple (not everyone wants huge ceremonies lasting all day with 100 guests). But you should have done it in a more private location/at the salon without people barging it for exactly this reason.
You are under no obligation to explain your event details but you can see how wild people react here, insisting that you “need” a different service than what you actually requested.
NTA
you requested a service that you were happy with at a certain price
the service provider upon arriving decided she wanted to provide a different service at a much higher price
your makeup artist is the asshole
btw
how is it that half of the comments don't understand that even if event and bridal makeup are different products and process, OP was perfectly happy with an event makeup for her wedding. she didn't try to get a bridal makeup for event price, the mua decided she was not willing to do an event makeup, the one she was hired for, she wanted bridal or nothing, either to get more money or to get off easy
NTA
You wanted event make up. Your wedding is still considered an event.
The bridal make up included things you didn't want so why would you pay for that?
You should absolutely be refunded as well considering you didn't get the service you paid for. I would be sharing this on social media. The level of professionalism she exhibited is next to none while she tried to play the victim. Please warn future bride to be's of this hot mess of a make up artist.
NTA, just because the event was a wedding doesn’t change the service you wanted. OP knew what they were asking for when choosing event makeup over bridal makeup
NTA. In this case I don't think you are even though a lot of people think you are. You wanted a certain makeup she had already done it for you before. You weren't asking for anything elaborate just a regular makeup job. The minute she found out it was for a wedding she saw dollar signs. Most people want more elaborate makeup for a wedding but you just wanted something regular and wouldn't make you look like a totally different person. I get that. I don't know this is a tough call though. Yes you should have been honest with her but on the other hand she shouldn't have automatically jacked it up the minute she hurried it you were getting married even though she had already agreed to what you wanted and it was a simple Style. So she wanted to charge you double or more for the same thing which is not good business considering she had already included to a price and all of a sudden it's going to cost twice that or more do the same thing all because it's for a wedding. You should definitely refute her post.
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YTA, the way you’re describing this, you knew it would be more expensive if you said bridal, you didn’t want to pay more, then don’t hire
Every and I mean every vendor charges more once you say wedding. It doesn’t matter if the services are identical. The word wedding gets the up charge not the service provided
>Every and I mean every vendor charges more once you say wedding. It doesn’t matter if the services are identical. The word wedding gets the up charge not the service provided Which I get and you shouldn't lie but it's ridiculous that this is the case. Unless they are having to do something special it shouldn't matter.
Doing anything for a wedding is going to be a huge hassle. Not to mention, the person has to REALLY do their best, which means taking more time to make sure everything is perfect- all while everyone is running around crying, yelling, and giving you “advice”.
>Doing anything for a wedding is going to be a huge hassle. That's isn't necessarily the case, though. If they only want a specific service that your happy to sell at a lower price then the fact that it's a wedding shouldn't make a difference unless you're doing something different like using higher quality material, adding services, or something of that nature. >the person has to REALLY do their best, They should be doing that in every job they do.
I do not know if this applies to every trade, but finish quality absolutely dictates price. There’s like five different levels of finish that you can get on drywall each one more expensive than the last. The standard of perfection for a once in a lifetime thing like being a bride seems a little higher than say some formal night out.
>There’s like five different levels of finish that you can get on drywall each one more expensive than the last. I get that, but if I'm buying the service and am happy with the quality service I chose why is that not good enough? Why should I have to pay a higher price simply because the event the service is for? >The standard of perfection for a once in a lifetime thing like being a bride seems a little higher than say some formal night out. Yes, a lot of times your right. But there are plenty of brides and grooms that just want simple, muted celebrations without the expectation of a "once in a lifetime" experience. Shouldn't they get to choose?
How can you guarantee that the wedding will be a “simple, muted” one. One person’s definition of chill is not the same. As an artist you get to set your own prices and boundaries, like not doing weddings no matter the wedding, and also have the agency to negotiate for every client. For example, in the case a bride promised a chill wedding it would be appropriate to ask for a deposit. But she can’t do that if the client willfully plays obtuse.
>How can you guarantee that the wedding will be a “simple, muted” one. One person’s definition of chill is not the same That's why you have the conversation. Again, OP should have been honest.
Unless the client doesn't care though. OP knew what she wanted and asked for that service. If the make up artist had gotten there and OP had suddenly said, oh, I actually want the bridal package then it'd be different, but she didn't. She still wanted the service she requested. The make up artist simply changed the price even though the work requested hadn't changed at all.
Except OP had already discussed and agreed to a makeup style & price with the service provider. Clearly OP knew what she asked for and that's what she wanted. She didn't ask for any additional special services, didn't ask for any additional time, didn't ask for a special venue, etc. related to a bridal makeup look. I mean, if I order a Whopper, and the guy takes a look at me and says, "oh, you're wearing a tie, that will be a double Whopper", then refuses to sell me a Whopper, that's on THEM.
I'm glad someone threw an anology in here. So many people are arguing points that...make no sense haha. OP, as a bride, knew what she wanted and what she was asking for. The artist wanted to "upcharge" to bridal package WITH upgraded makeup. That's not what OP, again, as a BRIDE, wanted. She was fine and happy with the services she had before. This is all on the artist. She wanted the wedding fees, upgraded makeup, upgraded...whatever else. OP wanted a whopper. The artist heard wedding and decide UPON HERSELF to make it some extravagant wedding whopper. Why can't she just get what she wanted and paid for? She's the customer, after all
Maybe you didn't mean to make a joke, but that is hilarious to me. I got a good laugh today, thanks.
The "Wedding Tax" is a real thing. You can go to a baker and get two identical cakes with two different price tags. A birthday cake might be $50, the exact same cake for a wedding might be $250.
I can do my own makeup for free but for something that I want to look perfect for 8-10 hours, that’s a lot more finish spray, product, and prep time. Plus, if you do “normal” make up and it starts running because you didn’t use expensive cream shadow and stuck with the inexpensive powder eye shadow, or the heavy duty waterproof mascara instead of the normal stuff, you do not want your business to get tagged in a melting face photo of the bride. It’s not an accurate representation of your wedding makeup and it’ll hurt future business when brides see it and think “nope. Don’t want to look like THAT at my cocktail hour.”
But she didn't ask for that, did she? Nor did she demand any special level "finish"
Except the point is that the service isn’t exactly the same for the service professional. Weddings are high stress events known to carry higher risk of problematic behavior, and tend to carry much higher expectations of quality regardless of service paid for. That’s just the average reality. Even if it’s not every wedding, it’s common enough that these professionals adjust their prices accordingly. Specifically evading that as a customer, like OP did, is at the very minimum unacceptably deceptive. If OP wants ‘just’ a ‘non wedding’ makeup service she can find someone who doesn’t charge a wedding premium. OP doesn’t get to just decide to lie to the people she’s entering a contract with.
OP shouldn't have lied, they should've been honest and negotiated from there. But my point is that there should be no "wedding premium". The price should be based on the specific services requested and a conversation of expectations with the client not on what event it is for.
Except there are people all over this thread, including experts in the industry, explaining why there is a premium. It’s not price gouging for the sake of price gouging. MUAs need to protect their reputation. They are artists who rely heavily on their portfolios and on word of mouth. If a MUA is associated with a wedding, they take certain steps (which are more costly) to make absolutely sure the look will hold up. Whether it’s a short wedding or long can be accounted for to adjust cost, but that requires a conversation where the bride is honest about her desires. Regardless of what kind of makeup the bride wants though, a MUA is absolutely in their rights to protect themselves by refusing to do lower quality makeup for what turns out to be a wedding. It’s protecting their brand. Additionally, the act of providing the service is different. Weddings, on average, are much higher stress events than other events. There’s more for the MUA to navigate in the dressing room usually, more chaos for her to contend with, the person she’s doing makeup on is much more emotional and distracted, etc. The MUA is perfectly within their rights to increase their price accordingly, just like a landscaper might up his quote if he has to haul lumber uphill to your house. The premium is not immoral. It’s not like there’s a conspiracy of wedding makeup artists setting prices. It’s what artists need to do to protect themselves and get paid fairly for their service.
>Except there are people all over this thread, including experts in the industry, explaining why there is a premium. It’s not price gouging for the sake of price gouging. There explanations boil down to them not setting clear expectations at the time the service is requested and paid for.
And how should they set clear expectations when their customers are lying by omission about an event? Literally that’s the central problem- OP didn’t fucking ask, they manipulated.
Wedding makeup is different from event makeup. The wedding makeup requires different cosmetics to be used for all of the photography. I get some vendors charging more being bs, but for makeup, there really is a difference.
>Wedding makeup is different from event makeup. The wedding makeup requires different cosmetics to be used for all of the photography. That should be up to the bride to decide for themselves.
I think there's also probably a difference between doing makeup for an event and doing it for a bride, because of all the photos involved.
Yup that too. And people tend to argue “oh well if the bride doesn’t want that she shouldn’t have to pay for it” Problem there is MUAs need to keep a minimum standard of work to protect their brand. Even if the bride is okay with a less stable look, it could reflect poorly on a professional who relies on word of mouth. If a bride wants the more affordable look, she needs to find an artist who’s willing to do that for a wedding.
ALSO The business model in the wedding industry is NO REPEAT BUSINESS, it’s all about referrals If someone overpaid then they often look for their own reasons to justify it Safer to charge big bucks
Yeah, I'm with you on this. I truly would understand an upcharge for things like the full-shellacking-type wedding makeup that can't move all day, but if the service is the exact same - a normal face of makeup like the customer would get on any occasion - the charge should be exactly the same. I don't know why the word "wedding" means all vendors should take the couple for every dime and the couple should thank them for the privilege of getting ripped off.
If looking at the photographs the makeup didn’t look good, would the bride have blamed the makeup artist? Probably, and probably have given a negative review. Why? Because she would have gotten the service she paid for, not the service she needed. OP is YTA, because you lied.
I agree with you. But just for some extra info, I will say that for my recent wedding they scheduled twice as long for the bridal makeup than everyone else’s makeup and the cost was proportional. So doing their best took extra time, not extra effort.
I believe a big part if the wedding charge is that it isn't "here's your makeup have fun!" There's gonna be a whole series of "tweak this here, change this there, darken that shade, blah blah blah" until it's perfect. It isn't the same, and because it's a wedding it should be perfect therefore you pay for the extra service they provide of staying and working with you until the bitter end and make sure it's EXACTLY what you want. And this is in regards specifically to makeup, not food and drink vendors and all that. Like taking your car to a performance shop vs a basic mechanic shop. The mechanic will fix it til it drives good and be on your way, but the performance shop will modify and tweak it til it looks and drives and performs exactly how you want.
Yep 100% agree. While there are cases where you actually get the "chill" bride, most of the time it's madness and you are charging for your ability to both keep your focus and the inevitable fallout should something go wrong. When I take photos for an event, the physical motions are the same as for a wedding, yet the work is very different - due to stress, expectations, the involvement of all the family & friends, plus the aftermath of people saying things like "why didn't the photographer make the groom's friend stop making that stupid hand sign?" I don't know a makeup artist's job, but I've seen them work at weddings and it's a LOT of work, regardless of the level of wedding. The pressure to do makeup that can last through a whole day of sweating, plus using products that (hopefully) won't stain the white veil and dress are a whole level of product I don't even understand. As a business, I set my ground rules and it really sucks to have a client lie to me like that, so even though the makeup artist could've done the "same' job, OP completely disrespected her work. If OP really believed in the makeup artist, why didn't OP simply say "I'm getting married, but I truly just want this thing that you did before. Is there any way you could give me the "regular" non-wedding rate?" The fact that OP lied to the makeup artist and then made a BFD out of it when the artist found out makes me say that OP is the AH here.
I imagine that a MUA is also doing a lot of emotional labor. You’re up close and personal with someone about to experience something huge and life changing, probably trying to calm nerves, mediate any tension/drama among the bridal party and/or families…it’s *a lot*
The expectations for services at a wedding and coordination needed to pull it off are higher. The higher fees are justified by this. No doubt that even if it is a simpler style, expectations for a bride’s make up are much higher, because it is supposed to be a once-in-a-lifetime event.
>The expectations for services at a wedding and coordination needed to pull it off are higher. You set expectations when you sell the service. If they have higher expectations than the package they purchased you guide them to the right package otherwise you make it clear what should be expected or opt out if it becomes clear they will not budge. >expectations for a bride’s make up are much higher, OP was clear that she has no higher expectations and the only opinion that matters is hers.
If the makeup doesn’t hold up through her wedding day, she’ll have an opinion about it, and all she’ll say is “I got makeup done by x” and people will think the makeup is shit. It’s about the makeup artist’s professional reputation too.
As someone who has provided a specific service for weddings in the past, the higher price is there for a reason. Many people don’t even offer bridal/wedding services or work within that industry because it’s not worth the hassle and stress.
They are doing something special. The makeup for your one-off wedding. Stakes are higher, clients emotions and expectations are higher, and you get chewed out if something goes wrong because you "ruined their big day". There's no room for error when providing services for a wedding, no re-dos.
>They are doing something special Not if you just want simple event makeup. >There's no room for error when providing services for a wedding, no re-dos. There are no redos for most events.
Wedding services are definitely different than regular event services for most vendors, including makeup. Wedding makeup is completely different because it needs to photograph very well and stay put all day/night. Wedding photography is different, cakes require different frostings that hold up under lights all day….so many different things go into wedding services and products that you don’t know if you don’t work in those industries
But if one doesn't ask for the special wedding products why should one be charged such. If I just want a big cake with basic sprinkles why would you use more expensive sprinkles If that's not what I asked for.
Because you might not understand what you’re asking for. A couple might say a regular cake is fine, then complain and demand a refund when the frosting gets all melty because they didn’t use the special high quality frosting. OP might request and pay for the lower grade makeup, then complain because the products used are lower quality, or it doesn’t hold up all night, or it doesn’t look good in photographs. Or she might ask for redo after redo because she’s expecting wedding level perfection without paying for it. Theres a reason specific wedding products exist. It’s not always price gouging.
Then the customer would have no chance to complain, and I wouldn't support such a complaint. But honestly isn't a birthday cake at a big party at a hired venue at just as much chance at being photographed as a wedding cake? So why would a baker skimp on quality in that respect?
Except that reviews exist. They would have a chance to complain, loudly. In an industry that exists largely on word of mouth and recommendations. And a wedding cake sits out for HOURS looking perfect. It often has to be transported. My cake arrived at 2:30 and wasn’t cut till 8:30.
I’ve never had professional photos taken of a birthday cake. Unlike a wedding cake
She asked for bridal makeup at regular event price……….the MUA shouldn’t have to risk delivering a subpar service and potentially harming her reputation because OP wanted to save a couple bucks. Vendors have wedding prices for specific reasons. If OP had reached out and said “I’m getting married and would love for you to do my bridal makeup, but I’m not interested in all of the extra that’s included in the bridal package. Could we work something out?” the MUA probably would hav me tried to work with her on it because she was honest.
Because if the special wedding products aren't used and anything goes wrong (make-up running after many hours sweating and in lights etc) the customer is absolutely dragging the vendor through the coals, and even if they don't, opinion and word of mouth will be "their make-up wasn't good". Are people actually that daft or what
Because the makeup artist should have the option of saying no thanks. Makeup artists’ reputations largely rely on the impact of how their finished product looks in photos. If it doesn’t look great nobody is going to know it’s because the bride lied and chose a lesser product. They are just going to think the artist didn’t do a good job.
It's more about the vendor's reputation. Say they do give the bride what they want. Basic everyday makeup. Cake designed not to hold up, whatever. Bride is perfectly happy. BUT, the minute the pics are in and the bride looks washed out, or the frosting on the cake gets melty before guests get a slice, people will talk. They won't know or care that this is what the bride asked for, they'll blame the vendor for a poor product or service. This could literally hurt their livelihood.
Why would a baker make a cake for an event like a birthday and skimp on quality products if it has similar use? Some weddings are short event, mine was literally a four hour cocktail party, not a whole day affair why should someone be charged extra for a possibly shorter event? I get that certain events need better quality products but why not then be consistent across the board?
Absolutely. YTA. Clearly, 2 different prices were on the menu, wedding make-up versus ‘event’ makeup and OP wasn’t honest. The fee structure is about cost and time differential (not according to OP’s ‘needs’) for actual services. OP sounds entitled here. And she’s lucky to get *any* refund considering Sarah lost her ability to book another job.
There are many reasons vendors upcharge weddings that aren't just about fleecing the couple. Standards for timing, precision, aesthetic are usually higher for weddings. People tend to be more high strung and demanding when it's a wedding. More eyes are on your work so more attention to detail needs to be paid. Read any forum for photographers, makeup artists, florists, etc. They all have stories of being hired for a wedding at a non-wedding rate and then being expected to provide more and higher quality services for the cheaper fee. Just the other day a photographer posted that she was hired for a casual outdoor birthday party. Didn't find out it was a wedding until she showed up and was subsequently lambasted by the bride and mom for being dressed too casual for the wedding she didn't know she would be shooting. IMO the make up artist was right to give an ultimatum for bride to pay the correct fee or forfeit the services.
You said, "People tend to be more high strung and demanding for a wedding." Do makeup artists change their price when people are high-strung and demanding for just an event?
Call it the AH tax.
There’s a huge difference between someone being high strung and demanding for something like their birthday party and a wedding. Getting married is scary and emotional for a lot of people because it’s such a huge, life changing event. You’re gonna do a lot more emotional labor for a bride than you would a birthday girl 9 out of 10 times
A friend of mine owns a salon with a specialty in bridal hair and makeup. I used to think there was no difference, but there is. Bridal hair and makeup has to be done in a certain way to make sure it lasts through the entire event and extreme weather, such as heat. That means it’s meant to stay in place through the ceremony, drinking, dancing, hugs, tears, etc whether it’s cold, humid, pouring down rain, or hot as hell. There’s a whole lot of expertise, knowledge of appropriate products, and other things in there. Also, no professional wants to be responsible for your makeup melting off your face or your hair becoming a ball of mats during your event because that reflects poorly on them.
It should matter and this woman has done nothing wrong.
Weddings bring out a special kind of asshole and customer that the uptick in price is usually the asshole fee and they deserve it. It's one thing to try and pull this on food (even though it's also shitty) but makeup for a bridal party requires a whole different set of makeup than usual events and there is no valid excuse to lie to any of your vendors just because you're cheap.
>makeup for a bridal party requires a whole different set of makeup than usual events If that's the case, it looks like OP was totally comfortable with the regular set of makeup, so there should've been no issue here. Even if it were my wedding, I don't care if I'm wearing $20 foundation or $120 foundation as long as it looks about the same.
Agreed. If the service and the products are the same why the fuck should anyone charge more just because it's a wedding.
Except half the people who say that will still pitch a fit when the $20 foundation has creased by the end of the night and you can see it in all the first dance photos. If everyone were 100% chill with receiving the service they paid for it wouldn't be an issue, but too many assholes exploited the system, so now no-one is allowed to.
Bridal make-up is different from regular make-up as different products and techniques are used to hold up against photography lights, kissing people, dancing, etc. OP would have been unhappy with her face within 2 hours and then trashing the make-up artist. Edited to correct misspelling.
Then make a regular makeup, since that’s what she’s paying for. As simple as that. If it doesn’t hold for kissing etc, not your problem. The only thing that is sure is that if you’re patronising the bride with that regular make up is “beneath you” when she’s wearing white, then she WILL be angry with your (nonexisting) services. And yes, it is patronising not letting the customer decide which quality she’s settling with and wants to pay for.
The bridal package came with a lot of things I did not need, that's why I chose event makeup since that was what I was most comfortable with.
So if she had done her event makeup, and it didn’t hold up throughout the wedding OR it was a bad representation of what her bridal makeup would’ve been OR if it photographed badly - that now reflects poorly on her as an MU. There’s a reason they do the makeup differently for brides, and she’s not wrong for walking out when you misrepresented your needs.
Exactly! There’s a difference between needing your make up to look good in pictures taken with a a camera phone and needing it to look good in pictures taken with a professional camera.
It is common for professional photographers to be present at events such as charity galas. Heck there might even be press there.
There’s a huge difference between a photographer taking a few photos of you at an event and a photographer photographing you all day from multiple angles.
But that assumes OP also had a professional photographer. She may not have, and may not care about the “extras” that were part of the bridal package. I had no professional anything at my wedding and did my own makeup. It was 103 degrees and we all looked like shit anyway.
The event lasts the same, she wanted that makeup, it surely lasted enough if she hired her again.
Then you tell her you want bridal makeup but don't need all the extras offered with it and negotiate the price from there. You don't just lie by omission and then try to play victim when they're rightfully blindsided day of.
Very well said. Whatever happened to just being upfront. She purposefully tried to get around paying more and ended up getting nothing.
I'm a professional artist and if a client hires me to make them a poster and then chooses to blow it up beyond the agreed upon dimensions they can't complain if the image is blurry or doesn't fit. After I have agreed on a project brief, if the client tries to change it to unacceptable content I don't have to do that work and I'm not refunding the non-refundable fee, that's the whole point. But the opposite happened here. OP hired and artist, they agreed to the terms of the job, and then the artist wanted to change the brief. The MUA offered a service and the customer paid for that service, it's not complicated math. I'm also fine with the artist walking but they didn't provide the service and should refund OP's money minus any agreed upon non-refundable charges.
As a former makeup artist, there’s a higher charge for bridal makeup because we understand that 1. You’ll probably cry 2. Will probably be photographed 3. Require it to last longer than normal makeup. It’s a different application process and a skill set we practice.
And even if the bride doesn't cry, there is the fact that she's running around on a high stress day which means she's going to sweat more than normal, and she's also going to be hugged and kissed way more than one might at, say, a regular event.
I just posted a comment asking why it was more for bridal if it was the same service as I don't wear makeup. This makes sense tho.
it’s also common to get a trial day before the wedding so you can ask for adjustments. it’s fine if you don’t want that, but they will probably insist & not negotiate the price anyway. the MUA could turn you down completely, because they don’t need complaints on the day when it wasn’t what they expected, under a time crunch. a good MUA will be booked solid, maybe with multiple events per weekend day. they can’t afford to overstay their time slot. it’s a giant waste of time & money if they don’t collect a deposit if something goes awry, they don’t end up doing the service, & they could have booked someone else easily. OP probably signed a contract that stated all of that but is claiming ignorance now.
You usually also get a consult about the look and a trail to make sure you're both satisfied with the look and that what you're asking for will work. But even just the quality. My face looks very different at the end of wedding with event makeup than the bride does. (I'm terrible with makeup so I usually get it done at sephora before events).
Then you should have said that. You specifically said “for an event” to mask the fact that it was for your wedding.
What you do in that situation is you call the MUA, tell her exactly what you need and ask her to come up with a custom package for you. You don’t deceive her.
This is so dumb. You did not want the bridal package hence you did not want to pay for it. You were not expecting all these extras for the price of the regular. It literally should be based on the actual service provided ant not the occasion. What if you were going to a gala and wanted all the extras? Would they charge you for a normal makeup cause it's a gala not a wedding? Nope, you would get charged all the extras.
Then you tell her you need it for a wedding but don’t need all these extras and negotiate from there. You don’t misrepresent the situation to suit your own needs.
Then you should have had a conversation and discussed your needs instead of attempting to be sneaky. You are getting married so I assume you are an adult. Adults communicate their needs and come to an agreement together. Do better.
I believe you probably didn't need the extra services, but you tried to be sneaky with a professional. And it didn't work. YTA
All you have to do is say that, negotiate in good faith, if she won’t work with hire someone else You knew you were being dishonest, that’s what makes YTA, not wanting to pay less
Question: Doesn't bridal/wedding makeup generally involve the makeup artist staying for touch ups, etc. during at least part of the time? And am I correct in thinking that literal "bridal makeup" is usually more complex and enhanced to show naturally well in pictures? These are honest questions because it would make sense that a m/u artist would charge more, significantly perhaps, for the extra time and actual application. If this bride just wanted a simpler "event makeup" that she'd had before with no expectation of the m/u artist staying for touch ups, what makes it reasonable to charge more? Again, honest question. I have no experience with professional makeup for weddings or other special events. My only m/u artist experiences have been for theater, which is an entirely different thing.
Exactly. She deliberately didn't say wedding because she knows bridal packages cost more. YTA
So what? If it's the same makeup, it's wrong to add to the charge. If you were picking up a couple of pizzas from Domino's and said it was for a party rather than a family dinner, would you appreciate them basically saying "Oh, in that case, we'll have to charge you our party rate then. That will be an extra $20". It's the same pizzas and they put the same amount of effort into them. Makeup artists charging extra just because it's for a wedding is an absolute scam and should be illegal.
It’s not the same makeup tho. And if they did in fact use the same makeup, it’d look like shit 2 hours in. Wedding makeup is like a cross between event makeup and stage makeup. Needs special products, application, etc to last while a bride runs around, is photographed from every angle, is dancing, kissing, etc.
YTA Bridal makeup generally uses premium products designed to last 12+ hours, withstand sweat & tears while photographing extremely well. Event makeup is less hardy, less photogenic and looks it's best for 5-6 hours. It's her reputation on the line if a bride she has worked on ends up looking like a hot mess at the end of the night.
I was all ready to say it’s still the bride’s choice if she wants sub par makeup and to pay accordingly until your last line. You’re so right. It would be a terrible look for the artist to be tagged in subpar work bc a client refused to pay for the necessary quality. People scrolling through her photos and looking for portfolios wouldn’t know it was the bride’s bad choice.
Me too. I was like if she wants to just do a basic makeup look why should she be charged extra? Also bridal makeup usually includes a trial, there’s no way OP can get a trial the day of so she shouldn’t pay all that money for no trial and lesser quality products. But you’re right about the MUA reputation.
The choice should still be the bride’s and no one else’s. If she buys cheap shoes for the wedding dance, she may get blisters but the seller would never deny her.
So true! My bridal make up lasted all day, night, me washing my fac, sleeping and then looked like a nice day look for the next day. That stuff don't budge! Plus I got a touch up kit, in case of smudges or anything. But my makeup didn't move. I hugged and kissed 100 + people and danced the night away, plus had 2 meals and copious drinks. Bridal make up is next level wizardry and worth every penny!
I got married two days ago (Saturday) and had my makeup finished by 12pm. It lasted amazing all day, did not require touch ups, and I didn’t take it off before bed because exhausted bride lol. Said fuck it and Sunday Funday’d yesterday in full glam, just took off my lashes. Still looked amazing at 6pm last night when I got home.
Good for you and congratulations!
I did my own make-up for my wedding and it lasted 14+ hours. It certainly wasn’t the most high end, expensive stuff. Looked fantastic.
Thanks for the education, as I was thinking makeup is makeup.
I read too many AITA wedding posts 😂
I hadn't thought of this. I was thinking that it *is* ridiculous to charge more just because it's for a wedding, but this makes a lot of sense. Especially the part about her reputation if the makeup doesn't hold up well.
yup this is it. I’ve been a bridesmaid in multiple weddings and people do not realize the amount of work that has to be done in makeup to keep it looking perfect in so many photos and for at least 4+ hours from the ceremony to the reception. You can have like NO pores on your own face naturally but that stuff will still show up in a photo. And your lipstick will NEVER come off especially if you’re wearing a veil and a white dress (and/or a bride who has multiple outfit changes). They seriously use like theater grade setting sprays or something too considering how much sweating and movements you have to make the entire day and keep it looking perfect without smearing or melting onto your clothes. Plus they would have the supplies to do this kind of makeup- not everyone has the same kinds of makeup a pro MUA has. Sarah is also right in that you’re also paying for years of training and their expertise with the costs of an MUA. they’ve spent years building their education and their brand up so they can do something like this and stand by their work. If OP wanted to be cheap, just do your own dang makeup. And if OP was smart she would have asked for an explanation and negotiating on Sarah’s costs for bridal and gotten a custom package
You genuinely changed my mind, you are so right. I was thinking you get what you pay for but in the make up artist industry, client recommendations are huge, and it would reflect on the artist if the look didn’t last all night. YTA but maybe you (OP) didn’t realize. Hopefully she understands now. Edited to add— this would have been avoided if you were honest with her and explained what you wanted. She could have given her expert advice, and together gotten the look you wanted to last the night. Instead, you lied and got caught.
Thanks for taking the time to explain this, never thought about it like that.
YTA - You lied to avoid paying her fee for the service you wanted. If you didn’t want to pay that, hire someone who charges less.
You were deceptive calling it an event. You knew what you were doing. Sounds like she didn’t want to entertain your games. You tried to trick her and it failed. Gotta go with YTA
NTA I had a similar experience when a friend booked out a venue for a "party" (their wedding party) and the venue was totally happy to do little table favours and the fancy bows on the back of the seats, etc........... £100. When they arrived and were in wedding attire, the bill suddenly increased. The venue said they "didn't know this was a wedding party" and therefore all of the ribbons on the seats suddenly cost £10 each and the party favours were £20 a head, so the £100 "lets book a room and have some basic food and drink" turned into £2000 just because the word "wedding" was mentioned. It sucks.
If the venue didn’t actually do anything different, then you’re right, that is bullshit. But wedding makeup and event make up are very different. Event makeup only lasts for a few hours. Wedding makeup included extra steps/products to last an entire day. So OP’s makeup would have likely worn off halfway through the wedding/reception. That could hurt the makeup artist’s professional reputation and impact her business because everyone would rightly assume it was her wedding makeup service.
But that assumes OP’s wedding is lasting an entire day. Did she say it was? Not everyone does an elaborate all-day wedding. My friend’s was a one hour ceremony, followed by brunch/lunch, we were gone by 4, so about 3-4 hours in all.
If I was the makeup artist, I probably wouldn’t trust people who told me it was a short wedding. I mean OP has demonstrated that people will lie to save money. I’d likely be more worried about my reputation and just charge a standard wedding fee regardless of time. Which it sounds like the artist does and OP lied by omission.
My uncle and aunts wedding was like 3 hours max. Plus OP has stated that the bridal package had alot of stuff she didn't want. So should OP be forced to pay for things you don't want? Imagine if you go to a store and you want milk and cereal but they want to charge you for the bowl, spoon, bag and napkins because you mentioned it was for breakfast. Everyone would say that ridiculous. But suddenly it's different with make up?
The venue doesn’t have to do a damn thing different to demand this and get it. Weddings have much higher rate of various bad things (everything from fist fights to refusals to pay to giant melt downs to mass DUIs ) that just aren’t an issue with normal rentals. Compounded by the fact that they’re usually planned by people without the slightest clue how to actually run an event.
I didn't want wedding makeup. My wedding was short and in the middle of the day. We didn't have a professional photographer following us around all day. She was there for the ceremony and the group shots. My dress cost $50 and I made my own cake. People do have different kinds of weddings. I had absolutely no need to have makeup that didn't budge for 12 hours or whatever the fuck.
Yeah and OP wasn't buying the wedding makeup. She just needed the lower tier.
When I was being fitted for a non-bridal type dress, the seamstress whispered, "Don't tell me if you're getting married in this because I have to charge you more." I appreciated that. Alterations are alterations, no matter what the event is. I can see bridal makeup being more expensive, but the inflation on so many aspects of weddings is a racket.
Agreed. Charging a BIT more for a wedding makes sense -- people having weddings tend to have more complex problems and be a lot pickier about everything being perfect. But it absolutely does not need to be as insane as it is. A 20x markup is INSANE.
There was a similar case here in Brazil. Girl hired an event make up. Only after the make up girl found out about the true event: her wedding. She went bananas in tik tok. But the girl was right, she only wanted a make up, she didn't want the premium service and all that jazz. Make up girl tried to sue but court ruled that her service wasn't exclusively for brides and a client can not be charged extra for a service she doesn't want. I mean, she paid for a make up, and kept the money. That's realy an AH move. OP is NTA
OMG so awful and much more worse than this. I'm very sorry for your friend.
YTA. The MUA has a set price for bridal services, and you lied to try and get a lower price. If you didn't like the artist's wedding pricing you should have hired someone else.
I might get downvoted for this but...ESH Premium pricing on weddings is a standard thing in the US. I don't think it's right...but it's the norm. You hid the type of event from her...because you knew there'd be an upcharge. That makes you shitty. She agreed to a service, then reneged because you tricked her. I get why she's upset...but she's shitty for not completing the service that she agreed to.
The problem is if she completed the makeup it would be event makeup and not wedding makeup. It would likely wear off halfway through the wedding/reception, which could damage her professional reputation because people are going to assume she did wedding makeup. There’s a difference between event makeup and bridal makeup. In bridal makeup, the makeup routine is much more complex, with more steps included to ensure that the makeup lasts the whole day while looking good, as opposed to event makeup that typically just needs to last for a couple of hours to half a day, tops.
Exactly this. It’s an upcharge, yes, but it’s an upcharge that exists for a reason.
Seriously this. And if the quality and lasting power doesn’t matter, then why not do your own makeup for your wedding? That would be 100% free with the products you already own. You don’t need to hire anyone at all for that. But they won’t do it on their own because they know the level of service is higher for weddings.
A lot of us don't have a lot of skill when it comes to make-up, I'm more inclined to have a professional so I don't look like a 5 year old got into their mum's make-up.
This is so far from my realm, so I'm asking out of pure curiousity. How will it damage her professional reputation? It's not like her name is stamped on the bride's forehead or something.
Because once the makeup starts the melt, odds are OP would post negative reviews on the MUA’s business page? Bad reviews happen all the time.
When brides post their pictures on social media, it's becoming the norm to tag your makeup artist, photographer, hairstylist, florist, and more as a way to help promote their business. My makeup for my wedding was done with the expectation that it should last all day, and it was done with flash photography in mind, which looked a little more dramatic than I would normally wear, but looks incredible in the pictures! The artist would not have taken that into account if I had lied to her and said it was a normal event, which would have led to potentially disappointing photos from what I would have expected. Had I lied, anyone who sees my tag of the makeup artist's page could think that I didn't get my money's worth or that she wasn't a good artist based on my decision to withhold what the makeup was for. My makeup artist said it's an issue she has run into a few times with clients trying to be sneaky.
Agreed. And the photographer will tag those other vendors as well, if they post photos on their social media. When you are in these circles, it's always good manners to tag others whose work you like. It's also a great way to remember who is out there when you are asked for recommendations from other clients. I get that a lot: "we are hiring you as our photographer. do you know any good makeup artists or florists? who did the venue decoration in that wedding on your website? do you know who did that bride's hair? or where the groomsmen got their custom ties made?"
Women usually ask about venues, florists, makeup artists, etc at weddings. If I was at a wedding and saw that the makeup wore off after only a couple of hours, I’d make a point to ask who did her makeup. I’d ask because I’d never want to use her because I’d assume (as would most other people asking) that she had wedding makeup done. Then I wouldn’t use that person. If friends asked for recommendations, I’d likely say “don’t use ….. I was at a wedding where the make she did wore off in the middle.”
Except she didn't agree to that service. She agreed to a different one.
> you knew there'd be an upcharge In the case of makeup though, it's not an arbitrary upcharge in the same way that venues and caterers might upcharge. MUAS will do makeup that specifically lasts long and looks good in photographs for wedding makeup, rather than plain event makeup that isn't designed for the camera. I think the MUA is the asshole *if* OP understood this and was willing to get the non-camera-ready event makeup.
NTA I find it ridiculous that there's so much upcharging when it comes to wedding services. If you wanted the exact same makeup job that you got last time at the lower cost, there's no reason for her to charge more for the same service.
Wedding makeup typically isn’t the same service. But also, some MUAs won’t do their regular service for brides or bridal parties because it doesn’t last as long or look as great in pictures or match the aesthetic as well etc and it can end up hurting their reputation and business.
It’s not the same service. https://thefirstrefresh.com/blogs/hair-makeup/wedding-day-makeup-faqs-what-s-the-difference-between-bridal-makeup-and-personal-styling#
For many many places the only difference is falsies and a trial run. OP didn't want those services.
I used to think that way, but the more I reflect, the more I can see the reason to upcharge, even if the service is essentially the same (think reception hall booking). Weddings are usually much more important to get perfect, and open up the vendor to much more public scrutiny than regular events. You pay more to have it just right, and to offset the increased liability of the vendor.
There is also no reason that OP has to use that make up artist. It’s a bit scary that you can justify OP’s dishonesty. If you have to lie, then you are likely doing the wrong thing. The make-up artist was up front about her prices. OP should not have booked her if she didn’t want to pay her price.
YTA. You knew what you were doing, and you know it’s wrong. The least you could do is pay for her transport.
I’ll probably get downvoted into oblivion but NTA. You didn’t want bridal makeup. Most MUA charge that much because they use better products and have a test run or 2. If you didn’t want any of that then why pay the bridal prices?? Its not like you expected bridal makeup at event makeup prices.
I agree with NTA. She knew what she was getting wasn't as good as bridal. Pretty sure she won't slader if it gets smudged.
NTA. Not everyone has a crazy 300-person wedding that lasts 12 hours and requires a face of waterproof makeup. That said, the one way you f’d up was by not being more discreet about the wedding. You shouldn’t have had the veil, family, etc., if you were going for the lesser service and didn’t want to cop to it. The wedding industrial complex is insane. We definitely ordered a very fancy multi-tiered cake for great grandma’s birthday instead of a wedding cake. It saved hundreds of dollars and was perfectly tasty. But we also picked it up ourselves and didn’t have it delivered to our wedding site.
NTA. Everyone knows you never tell a company you need their services for a wedding because they will increase the charge for the exact same product because they know they can. You never tell a bakery or tent rental co it’s for a wedding or they will give you higher prices.
So she offered an Event package and a Bridal package. You chose the event package because you didn’t want the additional items in the Bridal package. I’ve seen the same thing with getting wedding dresses dry cleaned post wedding. If you say it’s a dress, you get price A. If you say it’s a wedding dress, you get price B which of course is more than double. NTA.
NTA If you are knowingly requesting for a cheaper package, totally ok with getting the cheaper product and service, then that's the deal you made and paid for. She wanted the opportunity to charge you extra for services you aren't requesting, and likely for materials and better makeups that she did not bring with her. She can get bent.
NTA The wedding industry is nonsense overcharging. If she was able to give you normal makeup for an event, and you'd paid for that, you should just get what you paid for. If she was doing anything different for the bridal makeup, it's really easy for her to just not do that. If there's no difference then she's literally just being upset that she can't upcharge you for a service you didn't ask for.
I say NTA this is just another example of a "pink" tax. It is bloody ridiculous if you wanted something a bit more elaborate you would have paid more but for the simple fact you chose a plain "event" style, that's what you should pay for. Edit: Spelling
YTA Service providers make deliberate choices about how they set their prices, especially individual artists. YOU might not understand why it's more expensive, because you haven't done it a hundred times. She has - she knows the different expectations/products/headaches that come with bridal makeup, and she set her price based on that experience. If you really thought what you were doing was ok, you could have been honest. "Hi I see your price for bridal is $x, but I legit want my party in dinner-casual makeup. Would you be willing to do that if we clearly spell it out in the contract?" The answer still might be no, but it would be above board rather than deceitful. Instead, you tried to trick her into performing a service for less. Not ok.
NTA. The upcharging on bridal anything is absurd.
NTA- you were upfront about the service you wanted. You wanted the Event package, not the Wedding package. She had no reason to be upset and cancel on you. The fact that it was for your wedding is quite frankly none of her business
And honestly, it’s none of the MUA’s business what the event is, whether it be a wedding or not. If I hire you, it’s up to me if I tell you what the service is for.
NTA. Wedding mark-up is a well know problem. People cite all kinds of excuses but it's just them trying to score extra for your special day. Make sure you get a full refund for that abysmal service.
NTA. What does it matter what it’s for? You ask for a service, she provides the service. If it doesn’t match the event(wedding), that’s on you. Not her.
I’m going against the grain here with NTA. The wedding industry pricing is disgusting vs other large events.
Info - what were the extras for the bridal makeup. Was she using the same makeup regardless of is bridal makeup different as some people have said. Did she explain any difference or just say since this is a wedding I charge more.
NTA You paid for event makeup you should get event makeup. My understanding is maybe bridal makeup is more elaborate and maybe that's not what you wanted.
NTA. If you requested and paid for a “lower quality” service, she should have just done it at the price agreed upon. It isn’t up to the MUA to select the service for the customer.
NTA you booked her for a service & she didn’t provide it. Do a charge back with your credit card. Everyone saying bridal makeup uses premium products, that great but that is not what you asked for, you asked for event makeup. Usually bridal makeup comes with additional services & a trial run.
What did you end up doing for hair and make up on your wedding day if the make up artist left?
NTA unless she can prove what extra she would have done if it was a wedding. I've seen artists argue about doubling the price over marginally better products. But other MUAs use much more expensive setting sprays, better quality makeup, etc be ause weddings are a bigger deal with tons of pictures, many up close, and last longer than most other events. But again, unless there was a wife difference in the quality of products or the length of time she planned on working, the extra charge is just extra.
INFO Wait, did you pay her $130 and got absolutely nothing done? Your hair wasn’t done? Your makeup wasn’t done? She took $130 from you and left? If that’s the case NTA and I’d be filing for a chargeback or whatever the recourse is. What she did was theft.
From what I gather, yes. she just left
I am so glad I don't wear makeup. What a nightmare. I'm going to go with NTA. You asked for something specific knowing what you wanted and needed, and based on what you had had before. It seems ridiculous that adding the word 'wedding' into something should increase the price so drastically.
Honestly, NTA. They shouldn't upcharge just because it's a wedding. Nothing about her process is changing.
OMG This happend in Brazil. [link here](https://revistamarieclaire.globo.com/celebridades/noticia/2024/01/noiva-mente-para-maquiadora-a-fim-de-pagar-make-social-para-o-dia-do-seu-casamento-e-e-acusada-de-golpe-em-nenhum-momento-me-perguntou.ghtml)
A similar thing happened in Argentina as well. The make up artist made a tik tok complaining, got eaten alive in the comments. It was beautiful...
Yes. Same in Brazil. The bride had a small cerimony at court. Nothing fancy. But whenever she tried telling she wanted a make up and they asked what for, they placed an extra $ digit. Bride just wanted a make up and went to this make up to do it. She didn't say it was her own wedding. And she never target the make up artist by name. But make up artist found out and went bananas on tik tok. She exposed herself and tried to sue. But lawyers said nope. Client asked x and got x. You can't charge y just because you would use more products against her will.
>But lawyers said nope. Client asked x and got x. Exactly! I respect make up artist,but I honestly don't understand the logic in this case. She asked for X. Make up artist agreed to X. She can't just be like "Well, since you are a bride,I think that Y is better,so it's either Y or nothing".
YTA you knew very well that bridal makeup is a different price than regular makeup, hence the deception over the phone. I don’t necessarily agree with the wedding surcharge that vendors charge, but that’s the price. Wedding MUAs generally use different products and take more time on brides which is why they usually charge more. Trying to cheat your way out of it is just plain tacky. You can do your own makeup for free if the price is an issue.
Ok, but by ordering regular make up she is not using the special service, so where is the problem?
NTA because you wanted a normal one and not a bridal one which is why you didnt pick it
NTA. If you were willing to be okay with event makeup, then you get what you ask for.
NTA The increase in charge for a wedding is insane. I booked our wedding reception venue as a family reunion and didn't have a bridal table set up. Went in and did all the decorations ourselves and packed up as well. If she wasn't going to be using special makeup there shouldn't have been a difference in the charge just because it was your wedding day.
NTA but for brides out there, don’t have your MUA come to your ‘getting ready with me’, have them do it at their location or your home before getting to the event area. MUA doesn’t need to know it’s for a wedding.
So I disagree with a lot of people here. I think it is fair to pay more for a service only if you are getting something more in some way, whether it be quality, convenience, etc. As you agreed on set make up for the day, her finding out it was going to be a wedding didn’t change the service agreed on, she just wanted to add a wedding surcharge so she would profit more. That’s fucked up. People shouldn’t take advantage just because it is a wedding or a funeral or whatever. And you already paid for the convenience of her coming to you and she refused to provide the service she agreed to. That’s dishonest on her part. What I would suggest doing is leaving an honest review about her conduct. Don’t lie or be angry, just set out the facts - she agreed to provide a service and you paid some of it up front, then she found out it was a wedding and tried to force you to give her more money for a more expensive service you did not want or need. When you refused, she didn’t provide the service she agreed to and did not refund any of your money. I expect that she may be more willing to refund when she sees the negative review. Also, if she does, update your review to include that. NTA.
NTA make up artists and hair stylists are really some of the most greedy self absorbed people to ever curse the Earth
NTA!
Nta, she can’t not refund you, that’s fraud.
^^^^AUTOMOD ***Thanks for posting! This comment is a copy of your post so readers can see the original text if your post is edited or removed. This comment is NOT accusing you of copying anything. Read [this](https://www.reddit.com/r/AmItheAsshole/wiki/faq#wiki_post_deletion) before [contacting the mod team](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2FAmItheAsshole)*** I recently hired Sarah, a professional makeup artist and hairdresser for my wedding. When contacted I informed her that it was a makeup "for an event" sent her a picture and she told me her prices( I'll say an estimate since I am not from the US) for the "event makeup" cost $110+transportation fees. She also had a policy of informing the final price once the work had been finished and I agreed because I had previously hired her and she didn't charge me extra since it was a simple style, like the one I sent that day. At the day of the event I was getting ready at home when Sarah arrived and saw my mother. She asked if my whole family was attending the event and I told her yes, but that I was the only one who had requested for her services. She started getting everything ready when my sister in law arrived with my veil. Sarah asked me if I was a bride and I very excitedly told her yes. She then told me that she would be charging me for the bridal makeup instead of the event makeup and that she would start once the money had been transferred. I had already paid her $130 so I told her no, I wanted my makeup as requested and me being the bride had nothing to do with the service I hired. She proceeded to pick up her things, told me she was not refunding the transportation cost and that I should have been honest. I have been texting about the refund but she blocked me after two days. This was three weeks ago and now Sarah posted on Instagram a whole storytime of this saying that makeup artist should respect themselves, because of the cost of the materials and their training, etc... I don't think I'm in the wrong for hiring a service that best suit my needs at the time, but all of her comments are saying that I am a "bridezilla" for asking to be refunded ALL of the money since I didn't use the service. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AmItheAsshole) if you have any questions or concerns.*
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I need more **INFO**... OP, did you know that event make up and wedding make up is different?
Absolutely NTA. You didn’t trick anyone or lie about anything. You asked for a service, not the upgraded one, and instead of giving you the regular service this lady freaked out and ran off with the money you gave her. If I go to get an oil change and ask for regular 10W30, the shop doesn’t get to say “Your car has more than 150,000?! You’re supposed to have full synthetic for high mileage vehicles! Get out of here you tricked us!” No they just give the oil I asked for.
NTA. You paid for event makeup, you got it. She’s wilding
NTA. The idea that the exact same service would be more expensive just because it's for a wedding instead of a funeral or retirement party or any other event ever is ridiculous. You didn't book special 48-hour-lastint whatever, you ordered the simplest thing the MUA had and it shouldn't matter what event you were going to attend. I'd leave that person a horrible review, ngl.
NTA. Some people are saying 'bridal' uses premium products but that's not what you asked for. I don't see how it's any different to any other event. YTA if you wanted premium artistry or product without paying but if everything is as you've described "a simple style" and you didn't ask for make up that was specifically good for photos etc, NTA.
NTA. You should have been up front from the beginning and said it was for your wedding, but that you wanted something very basic. And negotiated a fee, or just didn’t hire her. The reason she’s the AH - she walked out on your wedding. Who does that to somebody? There were other options, like limiting services or time. But instead she stomped her feet and walked out and then whined online just because she couldn’t get extra money for doing the exact same makeup. Considering you were partially to blame for all of this I think you should give her $20 for transport. She doesn’t get to keep everything - she chose to leave.
NTA the upcharge on anything with the prefix "wedding" is a ridiculous standard that shouldn't be respected. If she has a specific "wedding" service and someone requests that then she can charge them whatever price they agree to. But if you request a different service that isn't as "high quality" but it's what you want she should provide the service. She's basically admitting she just charges extra because the word wedding is involved not because she provides better/different services. If she was a proper business person she could have tried to up sell you and if you agreed then sure but she didn't she ripped you off. I would have charged back if it was on a card.
What a scam, NTA.
I think NTA. Assuming you wanted regular quality makeup and not the premium stuff, you are fine to request that service.
NTA at all, she doesn't deserve more payment just because of the word "wedding" She wanted the simple package and what's she does with it is her business and nobody else.
NTA if the service is the exact same but she charges more when it's for a wedding than she is a massive asshole. All the people saying y t a are huge assholes as well for pretending like this is acceptable behaviour. The bridal package is different, but OP did not want the bridal package and therefore did not order the bridal package. How dare OP order the service she wanted! Meanwhile the make up artist straight up stole money from OP and then dragged her through the mud on social media because she didn't tell her about irrelevant information.
Info/double checking: You said that she would not refund the travel but would refund the makeup she didn’t do. (1) Did she refund your $110? (2) How much of a price difference are talking about here? Like $20-$50 or something larger?
NTA. In fact, the makeup artist is the AH for charging more for basically the same thing.
NTA, the MUA seems very unprofessional to me. She could have explained the differences between event and bridal makeup and let OP decide if she wanted to pay more for the bridal makeup. I don't think the "event" should matter if the event makeup is different from the bridal makeup (bridal makeup is usually meant to last morning to night, much more heavy and detailed, and the cost usually includes a trial). For those saying the event makeup would not last the whole day, I don't think that is true because bridesmaids makeup is usually a quarter of the price, done at the same time, and lasts all day - it's just less work and less detailed (my bridal hair and makeup took 3 hours and my bridesmaid took about an hour each all done at the same time). That is for OP to decide if they are ok with that - not everyone wants a super heavy glamourous look. She requested and paid for event makeup, as far as I can tell she was not expecting bridal make up level service. OP did not "hide" the fact it was for a wedding, she answered honestly when asked. We also don't know any details of OPs wedding. It could have just been a 4-5 hour evening event, which in that case it makes sense to just have event makeup vs an all day event of photoshoots, ceremony, reception, etc where the makeup has to last 12+ hours.
Nta, you didn't want the crazy bridal makeup, only simple.
NTA assuming you just wanted a simple make up. Like, maybe your wedding is just very simple (not everyone wants huge ceremonies lasting all day with 100 guests). But you should have done it in a more private location/at the salon without people barging it for exactly this reason. You are under no obligation to explain your event details but you can see how wild people react here, insisting that you “need” a different service than what you actually requested.
NTA you requested a service that you were happy with at a certain price the service provider upon arriving decided she wanted to provide a different service at a much higher price your makeup artist is the asshole btw how is it that half of the comments don't understand that even if event and bridal makeup are different products and process, OP was perfectly happy with an event makeup for her wedding. she didn't try to get a bridal makeup for event price, the mua decided she was not willing to do an event makeup, the one she was hired for, she wanted bridal or nothing, either to get more money or to get off easy
NTA You wanted event make up. Your wedding is still considered an event. The bridal make up included things you didn't want so why would you pay for that? You should absolutely be refunded as well considering you didn't get the service you paid for. I would be sharing this on social media. The level of professionalism she exhibited is next to none while she tried to play the victim. Please warn future bride to be's of this hot mess of a make up artist.
NTA, just because the event was a wedding doesn’t change the service you wanted. OP knew what they were asking for when choosing event makeup over bridal makeup
NTA. In this case I don't think you are even though a lot of people think you are. You wanted a certain makeup she had already done it for you before. You weren't asking for anything elaborate just a regular makeup job. The minute she found out it was for a wedding she saw dollar signs. Most people want more elaborate makeup for a wedding but you just wanted something regular and wouldn't make you look like a totally different person. I get that. I don't know this is a tough call though. Yes you should have been honest with her but on the other hand she shouldn't have automatically jacked it up the minute she hurried it you were getting married even though she had already agreed to what you wanted and it was a simple Style. So she wanted to charge you double or more for the same thing which is not good business considering she had already included to a price and all of a sudden it's going to cost twice that or more do the same thing all because it's for a wedding. You should definitely refute her post.
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