Hawaii Babies
expatjen
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not a baby-related question for those married in HI...
expatjen
member
Hi Ladies, What hairstylist/make-up artist did you use for your wedding in Hawaii. My sister is getting married in September at our family church in Kalihi and I'm hoping to locate a good make-up artist/hairstylist for her. There would be a total of 6 of us needing to be "made up" that day. Do you have any recommendations? Good/bad experiences with certain vendors? Thanks in advance 
-jen
-jen **a girl from Hawaii, living and driving in South India**
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Re: not a baby-related question for those married in HI...
Hi!
I would use Jessica Waite. email: Makeup@maui.net website https://www.makeupmaui.com/ .
My experience with her was awesome. She did a makeup trial for me at her studio and she did an incredible job. It was exactly what I was looking for and if I was getting married that day, it would have been flawless. Unfortunately, I didnt use her for my wedding day because I had an allergic reaction to my skin (which happens to me all the time, had nothing to do with her or her makeup, we think it might have been a Mango). Here is the thing though, not only did she refund my money, which I didnt even ask for, but she also sent me a little gift through my wedding planner on my wedding day. She was really professional and uses only the best products. I would highly recommend her.
Lindsey
i used Dorys Foltin, and thought she did an *amazing* job. i absolutely loved my makeup. I normally don't wear any makeup, and often feel "made up" and uncomfortable when i get my makeup done, but Dorys just made me look like a better version of myself
and it stayed put all day, etc. loved it.
only caution is that i had heard she started sending her team out to do smaller bridal parties, and would only do the larger ones herself (plus another stylist). we had 6 also, and Dorys did mine, so <shrug> - just make sure she herself will be there!
eta: i didn't love my hair, but it was fine...she did what i asked for, and I don't know what she should have done differently, but i wonder if someone else could have done something i loved? who knows.
I love Hawaii!
Tara & Ian . 4/24/2008 . The Kahala Planning . Married
Malia & Dave & Alexa
Happily married since 2-17-08! Three since 9-9-09!
Baby Blog
I used Dorys, and...she was OK. Hang on, I'll just copy and paste the review from my married bio (it's a bit long, sorry):
"Dorys Foltin is probably the most highly recommended makeup artist in Oahu, so I feel a little bad giving her a partially negative review. First, the good: my makeup was perfect, and I loved it ? it was exactly what I wanted and I looked like the best possible version of myself. However, I was less than thrilled with my hair.
"I want to be clear that there was nothing actually wrong with the style; however, it was nothing like what I had in mind. I wanted a very simple low-do featuring my natural curl and showed Dorys some inspiration photos; instead, I got something that was oddly straightened in some places and frizzy in others, with few actual curls. It was a windy day, and when Dorys finished I was concerned that the top part might not be secure ? she repeatedly assured me that it was ?rock solid and not going anywhere," but it came apart even before I left the hotel room, and I spent the entire ceremony shoving big frizzy chunks out of my face (check out this photo - it's supremely unflattering, but I want you to be able see what I'm talking about so you know I'm not exaggerating).
"I was also vaguely annoyed that she was out of mascara and asked to use mine - obviously not the biggest drama in the world, but I felt mildly aggravated that she hadn't checked her supplies. Dorys seemed a bit rushed and would have forgotten to do some extra things we agreed upon (and I paid extra for) if I hadn't reminded her when she started packing up. She gets so many rave reviews, maybe she was just having an off day, but I left feeling a little disgruntled; I know I wasn't her biggest client, but it still wasn't cheap by any means, and I am sorry to say that I didn't really feel I got my money's worth.
"Dorys is talented ? there?s no question about that. However, I would HIGHLY recommend getting a trial done to work out any potential problems or misunderstandings ahead of time. Due to a tight budget and schedule, I didn't have one ? if I had, we probably could have tweaked the hairstyle to better reflect what I wanted. As it was, since Dorys finished less than an hour before the ceremony, I just had to go with what she did."
I went with Christine Gardner. She did my hair so perfectly, exactly how I wanted it, and was so rock solid that I couldn't take it out to have a more relaxed look when we hung out with our friends after the reception was over! I LOVED it!
My make-up was pretty good but it didn't blew me away like the hair. In her defense, it was her assistant who did my make-up (why would they have the assistant do the bride's make-up, I don't know), so I don't know how well she would've done it...but it looked really good in the pictures--but I thought the eyeshadow was too dark in person but that was just my feelings about it.
Sorry, no real recommendations, but I wanted to add to the reviews:
I know Dorys is really popular, but I was a BM in a wedding she did and I thought she and her assistant were just OK, especially considering their fees. We had a separate hair person so they just did our make-up. They were clearly rushed that day (we were the 2nd wedding) and Dorys was pretty non-chatty and made most of the decisions about what our make-up would look like. We had the spray make-up done, and my look was very, very natural -- meaning, if I were paying for it, I definitely would've just done it myself. I did love the lash extensions she put on, though. Overall, the service was decent, but again, I was expecting a lot more for the price and reputation.
I too used Christine Gardner and Flaunt. She did both my hair and makeup (which I looooooooooooooooved) and had 2 assistants do my MOHs' h+m, mom's h+m, aunt's h+m and they even squished in my brother's gf last minute because she decided she wanted it done that day.
Everyone seemed to really like both - everyone said nothing but good things.
BUT, it was tough getting in touch with them and confirming things up until a few days before. I tried and tried and finally gave up and made my coordinator do it and threaten them. Then they responded. Unclear why... But I loved their work!
I also agree with this!! I actually got this suggestion from Amy when I was getting married. I had a HUGE falling out with Dorys at the last minute, major disappointment in the way she does business. Amy helped me out and suggested Beverly and I was amazed!! Her pricing is excellent as well!
I?m surprised I?m the first person to mention Leslie fair. She did my hair +makeup as well as some extras (lashes and airbrush) and I LOVED it. Her prices are pretty reasonable (although she is the only one I know of now that charges a travel fee for Honolulu/Waikiki) I know a lot of other brides who used her but the only thing is that she is kind of hard to get a hold of sometimes so just keep trying. Good luck!