Bridal Trials and Deposits

I sometimes have brides-to-be ask to schedule a bridal trial without making a deposit for their wedding date, and I want to explain why I don’t normally do that. The problem is that you probably want to do a bridal trial after all the details of your gown, jewelry, decor, etc are set in stone, but I generally book prime wedding dates nine months to a year in advance, and my calendar starts filling up pretty solid by about 90 days out. Without a deposit, I can not reserve the 6-8 hours required for your wedding. While I do understand the desire to shop around, the amount of business I could potentially lose by holding dates with no deposit would quickly put me out of business. If I turn down another wedding because I’m holding your date, and then you decide to go with another artist, I end up with a wasted day and several hundred dollars in lost revenue. I simply can’t afford to do that. Plus, if I have to hire additional hair and makeup professionals to accomodate your wedding party, they also book at least 90 days in advance, and if you cancel on me I still have to pay them. So I not only lose revenue, you've now cost me a couple hundred bucks.

Your satisfaction with your wedding look is, of course, my first concern. I give you a discount on your bridal trial (around 50%, depending on what all we do) when you put down your deposit, and if you are not happy with your look after the trial, your deposit is fully refundable, minus the price of the trial. If you absolutely don’t feel comfortable putting down a deposit without doing a trial first, I will do it, but at my full normal wedding look rate, which is $100-150. Which could then all go to waste if you come to place your deposit and I’ve already taken one from someone else for the same date. So it is really in both of our best interest that I strongly suggest making your deposit as as early as possible to ensure your special day is perfect!