Mrs. Sundae, Chicago/Lake Geneva, WI
Age and Occupation: 28, Knowledge Manager
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Investment Advisor
Engagement Date: July 20, 2007
Wedding Date: September 2008
Blogging Since: February 5, 2008
Venue: The Abbey Resort
About Me: It’s hard to believe that by the time Mr. Sundae and I get married we will have been together for almost ten years. When we first met in college we split dollar pitchers and now we share the mortgage payments. Despite our love for the city we are looking forward to tying the knot in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.
Strike Two
June 18th, 2008 @ 10:54 am by Mrs. Sundae
So…I had another hair trial on Saturday. ((Pause for disgusted eye roll)). I won’t tell you where it took place because I don’t want any angry mobs hunting me down after I write this, but it was not good folks. Not good at all. Since the last disaster I was convinced that it can’t be that hard, so I did a quick little mock-up myself:
This is just a random Tuesday after work. No product - just me, a comb, and some bobby pins. It took me a whopping 5 minutes to get it up there, but it’s kind of challenging to hide bobby pins in the back of your own head. (Note: I am WORTHLESS at styling hair. It’s a small miracle that I got it up there in the first place). So, armed with pictures of my own hair the way I want it (there was a front one too but I can’t seem to find it now) I went for my second trial.
When I walked in, the woman who turned out to be my stylist was sitting in a pedicure chair eating a bag of chips. She stood up, wiped her hands on her apron, and got up to shake my hand. At this point my feet actually turned involuntarily towards the direction of the door, ready to run. But I thought to myself, “Don’t be judgmental, she is probably great at what she does. So good, in fact, that she has to eat right here because she’s so busy all day. What if the poor woman didn’t get lunch? You should give this a try.” Don’t get me wrong, I love chips and one is allowed to eat them wherever they might like, but there was an air of professionalism that was missing. Note to self: always go with your gut.
After 45 minutes in the chair, I was left with this:
Please note that there is a whopping total of two bobby pins holding up the ’do. Two. It was sliding down my head as I took this. And another shot to demonstrate my favorite part, the slope:
Left side? Good. Right side? Not so much. I didn’t take a picture of the front because I had already pulled it out…it was literally shellacked to my forehead. Sigh. At this point there is one last salon in Lake Geneva that I can try, and then I am left to my own devices.
I can’t help but think that maybe I should just let it go and wear it all down like I normally do everyday. With some professional makeup and the big white dress, maybe the hair isn’t that big of a deal? What do you all think, anyone decided to either do their hair themselves or just forgo any form of updo and wear it down? A few bees (most recently Mrs. Lovebug and Mrs. Penguin) have gone that route and I think it turned out lovely!
39 Responses to “Strike Two”
Whaaaaaaaaaaaaat!? It took her that long to do that!? I am completely clueless when it comes to hair as well, but I think I know enough to know that she should’ve created a mini-masterpiece with that amount of time and product. I’m just rocking a headband, but I still don’t trust myself to do that right so I have hired a hair stylist for the day of haha. If it’s left up to me, I will be wearing pigtails because that’s all I’m capable of doing without making it look like total poopers.
Anywho, I think your hair would be lovely down!
Save yourself the expense, and just wear it down. The hair really isn’t a big deal.
From the looks of the first photo you could totally do your own hair. See if you can have one of you maids or your mom help you out with the pins in the back. Certainly don’t give any more of your money to that same hair dresser…
i had a terrible hair trial last night too. Shellacked is the ideal way to describe how the front of my hair looked.
Have you asked the coordinator at your reception location for help? She/He might know the names of the different stylists in the area. Have you tried your local knot board?
GL - i’m sure it will all work out!
I’m with you about wearing the hair down, the more I contemplate what to do on our wedding day, the more I’m saying, just go natural.
I plan on doing my hair myself partially because of my tiny budget and partially because i’m an admitted control freak. I always wear mine up and sometime quite elaborately, so I’ve had a lot of practice. The style I’m planning is a little different from my normal ones, so I’m just making myself practice it several times before the wedding to make sure I’ve got it down. And then I’ll ask my Mom to double check that all of my pins are hidden:)
puahahahahaa… I’m sorry I’m not laughing at you! But your commentary and your final result was just… hilarious!! I really hope she washed her hands before handling your hair, eeks! And did you PAY for that?? Goodness…
I honestly prefer when brides wear their hair down. I think for the most part women are prettier with their hair down. However, it seems that 90% of brides wear their hair up. Any idea why?
I can’t believe she charged you to do that. You did such a wonderful job yourself– I think it looks much prettier when you did it!
Your version was lovely…I agree with having someone help with the pins, but otherwise, keep practicing and save yourself some stress and money!
I am not-so-shamelessly stealing Mrs. Lovebug’s hairstyle (because it was stunning) and my cousin is going to help with the curling and the pinning. I just like the natural look and feel of it down and then will have my cousin there to help put it up into my signature ponytail. Good luck!
Oh dear. Call my stylist, pronto! Her name is Dalia and she works at Salon U in Chicago. She’s gotten rave reviews all over the knot from brides, and my makeup artist literally refused to recommend anyone else. She will travel for wedding hair and her rates are very reasonable.
wow. i have no words.
i like the one you did yourself, and i like the idea of having your mom or maids help you.
oh my it is bad. very very cheap looking the way she did it.
Don’t give up!! You can get the hair you want. You have a picture of it! Don’t stop until you find “the one”..! May take a few tries just like the dress. 
I think you should still wear it half-up, but do it yourself. Have another DIY trial with a BM before the day so you have someone to help you. And, you made me laugh out loud with your commentary.
lol… we’ve all had those moments where our feet turn involuntarily, and somehow looking back, our feet were almost always right.
i think the way you did your own hair is just lovely!
I did my own hair with a little help from my mother. It was down and curled and my veil was on a headband so it was easy to manage.
Sometimes you will have better luck asking around to find a friend that is good with hair and not a professional hairdresser. Maybe one of your bridesmaid’s mothers or a cousin has a hidden talent for hair
The style that you want it so simple, that like others I highly recommend you see if a friend or family member could help.
Haha, the “slope”. So perfect, when you said it, I knew exactly what you were referring to! I vote for either calling Shannon’s stylist, or doing it yourself. It looked perfect when you did it, and getting any one of your bridesmaids or your mom to help out with the pins will make it painless.
45 minutes, she should be ashamed of herself!
oh wow…this chick really doesnt know whats she’s doing does she? seriously. you’re hair is pulled up partially and pinned. why is this difficult.
i am feeling you at this point…u could do this style yourself. practice. practice. practice.
i like your hairpins. pretty!
Unbelievable. How hard is it to pull back the front part of your hair and attach it with a bobby pin or clip? Did she even style or volumize or ANYTHING? What a waste! You should twist your hair up a bit when it’s damp, dry it like that, and that will give it a bit of volume without being curly (which I assume you don’t want?). Then just do your dang pins yourself, since clearly you’re better at it than a professional stylist!
Miss Sundae, you did an absolutely *GORGEOUS* job in your diy trial!! I agree with the others that with a little more practice (to boost your self-confidence, mainly), you should go with what you created. It seems to me that you don’t want to be too overdone, so if you still don’t feel comfortable with your own updo, you should go with wearing it down. Good luck! I’m sure I’m not the only one who can’t wait to see what you decide!
I’m planning on doing something similar to the look you put together. I have a chubby face and would look terrible in an updo, so I’m going for a slightly dressed up version of my every day look.
Wow, I think you should just do your own hair. That first pictures is beautiful. I cannot believe it took the lady all that time to do that! I’m sorry it didn’t work out better.
Wow. I can’t believe a “professional” did this! I hope you didn’t have to pay her!! I agree to try Dalia from Chicago - if she’s available. I personally think it would be stressful to do my hair on the day of - especially if i’m not confident in my skills. So, if Dalia can’t do it - i think i’d wear my hair down - put some hot rollers in to give it some nice movement and bounce - find a good light hairspray - so its not sticky and still has movement and just leave it natural.
Now, I am not, in any way shape or form, saying that this hair dresser could not have done a better job, but my mom is a cosmotologist, and I do know that fancy down do’s are a little harder to complete than the other. Obviously, the hairdresser you met was not professional at all, and it’s horrible that it looked like this. However, you may find that if you want a down do to have a family member or friend do your hair. It’s a little easier when they know your hair better, and they know how much hairspray, what type of hairspray, and how your hair holds curls when it comes to your hair.
You should wear your hair the way you want it on your day. It might be easier to do a halfup halfdown do, so you can put a veil in if you’re using one. However, you need to feel comfortable and natural in your skin (and hair!) that day.
If you decide to get someone that you know to do your hair down, I have some great hairspray that works that you might want to try, and it will hold curl much better.
@Miss Pineapple & @Miss Watermelon: Ditto! or just wear it down and have someone give it a soft curl.
Wow.. just wow.. and not in a good way. You can totally do it yourself, you did an awesome job.
I agree with the others — get a friend or family member to help you with the tricky parts, but I think your DIY ‘do looked great, way better than the “professional” version. My MOH wore her hair very similar to the way you’re wearing yours for her wedding — she did it with a helping hand from her bridesmaids, and it looked amazing.
Wait - she CHARGED you for that crap!?
Uhm, honey - you could totally replace her with your mad half-updo skills. You did a good job. Would you consider doing your own hair on your wedding day?
Did you know that YouTube has lots of hair/makeup-related how-to videos? I just recently discovered this myself b/c I want to learn how to put on my own individual false eyelashes for an upcoming wedding.
Anyway, a quick search for half up-half down resulted in MANY options:
http://youtube.com/results?search_query=half+up+half+down&search_type=&aq=f
Maybe you can pick up some techniques for “staying power” from the vids and have your mom or maids help you on the big day?
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YouTube has more than cute things falling asleep and guys getting whacked in the berries, who knew? 
I agree that your DIY hair looked great, but also wanted to say that I wore my hair all down for my wedding, and I was so happy with it. I love the shout-outs to Dalia at Salon U - she did my wedding hair, and my mom’s, and she was great! (And I’m the kind of girl who always goes to SuperCuts, but it was totally worth the extra $$ to go to a real salon for my wedding hair.) We only scheduled our appts a month or two in advance, so I wouldn’t be surprised if she still has availability around your wedding. Good luck!
I almost looks like she left a chip in your hair in the first trial photo.
Thanks for the support! Sadly, I just heard back from Dalia and she’s booked on our date. This is like the curse of the wedding hair or something.
And even worse…yes, I did pay for that crap.
Emerald - she did NOT wash her hands before “styling” my hair. Maybe that’s part of the reason it was so greasy
beanchar - awesome suggestion!
no thanks - uh, I am not afraid to show my face? You can see my smilin’ mug whenever you hover over my icon. And if you want to see me in drag, check out the “Holy Makeup, Batman” post.
Depending on the heat factor, I love the idea of going hair down. If you’re going to be indoors mostly, then you won’t be as likely to sweat and get all gnarly. I would wear my hair completely down if it weren’t for the possible sweat-induced fro-like disaster.
Your mock-up looked perfect! I say do it yourself or let it down. You’ll look gorgeous either way!
I think you have the skills to do it yourself.
I agree with everyone else- it is such a simple look, you could definitely do it yourself! You did a great job- sans greasy potato chip hands.
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