Bella Blush Hair and Makeup Design - by Karis Staley

A good friend of mine recommended Karis saying that I would "just love her," and she was right! Karis is very down to earth, and wanted to know and hear about how I wanted to look (different from many other stylists who want to do their thing). During the trial, she was great about asking how I felt every step of the way, modifying as we went along. Then, she took a bunch of pictures so that she knew exactly what I liked. On the day of, she and her assistant had to do hair and makeup for me (the bride), two mothers, 5 bridesmaids, and the flower girl - clearly a lot of work - and she did so easily and with a smile. I decided I wanted a slightly different style from the trial - no problem, Karis asked what I wanted, and we played with it until it was just right! Things were super calm - she did a fantastic job at making sure we all stayed on schedule, looked beautiful, and most of all had fun! She skillfully made everyone - from ages 6 to 65 - look their absolute best..... a wonderful experience!

Karis was actually recommended to me by a friend who used her a few months earlier for her wedding hair and makeup. After seeing the pictures from her wedding, I knew I was in good hands, and by the time I actually met Karis, I was sold! She was SO nice. And better yet, she did exactly what I wanted with my hair. I normally have problems, as my hair is super-fine and thin...but Karis got my hair to do exactly what the picture did.

On the day of the wedding, Karis had already been to the HOSPITAL with an allergic reaction...but she showed up, right on time, ready to go. I couldn't believe it, but she showed so much dedication. I love her to death!! She did a wonderful job on me and a few of my bridesmaids, and I'm so glad I found her! Honestly one of my favorite vendors!!!

Karis is AMAZING!

She came and did a trial run with me at my home. I had a hair picture but nothing for the makeup. In fact, I originally intended to use her ideas for makeup and probably do my own.

When she finished with the trial, my hair looked exactly like the model's and my face was TRANSFORMED. I was shocked. I booked her on the spot to do my hair and makeup day of.

On the wedding day, she came bright and early and set up shop. She is fun to chat with and she just does amazing work. I am so thankful that I found her on here and I would totally recommend her to others.

Karis Staley was wonderful! One of my favorite vendors! She did hair and makeup for me and my four bridesmaids. I brought lots of hair pictures to my trial and she created a style that looked exactly like the photos! I didn't do a makeup trial but I was thrilled with how my wedding day makeup turned out. My bridesmaids looked beautiful too. She captured their individualism perfectly through the hair and makeup that she did for each of them. Plus she is super sweet and nice and has terrific prices. If you e-mail her she'll send you a pricing sheet and lots of photos of her work.

AMAZING!!!

I was referred to Karis by another stylist. I contacted her and loved her photos and the price was right so I decided to use her. And thank god I did!

She was a GREAT find! She listened to what I wanted and worked with me during the trial run and on the wedding day and it was PERFECT! It was better than perfect, it was amazing. She did my hair and make-up exactly how I asked and she also did all of my bridesmaids and my mother. Everyone looked amazing and the hair was so intricate and purely professional, without being over worked. There were up dos and down dos and they all looked just wonderful. Everyone at the wedding kept commenting not only my hair and make-up but all my bridesmaid's as well. And the best part, she was extremely reasonable when it came to cost. She lives in Huntington Beach but was more than willing to travel to Santa Monica and beyond for my wedding.

I HIGHLY recommend her.

If you want any photos of the hair/make-up from my wedding, I'd be happy to send them to you.

Karis was my make-up and hair person for my marriage blessing. I got married on 6/20/09. Karis is extremely professional but at the same time she gives you the feeling that she's been a long time friend. She made me feel comfortable and BEAUTIFUL. Karis had taken my wedding weekend off to prepare for an upcoming trip but she was kind enough to squeeze me in. She was on time and with all the necessary equipment to handle my party and me. Her work speaks for it self. I'm glad that I found Karis and will continue to use her. I HIGHLY recommend her.

WONDERFUL!!!!!!

I found Karis on project wedding! I was really nervous because I had never had my makeup professionally done but it turned out great! I had my trial and was sold on the fact that I would look beautiful on my wedding day! She was very helpful with making me feel at ease and listened to any suggestions or concerns that I had before hand! She did the hair for my bridesmaids and did my hair and makeup on my wedding day and everyone looked great! She is very professional but is fun at the same time!

I was extremely happy that I hired her! I recommend her to any bride that wants to look beautiful and natural on her day!

Thanks Karis!

Kelly

Karis was absolutely fabulous. She was the calm, professional, but upbeat make-up artist I needed on my wedding day. She was very patient with my endless minute changes to my hair and managed family and friend drama without missing a beat. I tried two other stylists and Karis was by far the best at capturing the natural look I wanted. I felt like I looked fabulous, effortless, and flawless. The fact that she came to the venue was huge, it saved me a lot of time and stress on the morning of the big day.

POST-WEDDING REVIEW:

This review is long overdue, but absolutely necessary simply because Karis was one of my most favorite vendors at my destination wedding in Mexico!

I had the pleasure of bringing Karis to my wedding in Akumal, Mexico in late June 2009. I know it’s a bit strange to bring a stylist with me thousands of miles away rather than just hiring a Mexican local – but because I’ve had lots of bad experiences with other makeup/hair artists in the past I did not want to take a chance on not looking my best on one of the most important days of my life! It actually also ended up being roughly the same costs in bringing her with me, but of course peace of mind was worth the difference.

It took some time to straighten out the details for travel and fees, but I can say without a doubt that Karis was by far the most reasonably-priced makeup/hair vendor out there and it made me happy that she was so excited to be making the trip. She was gracious enough to do two trials with me in Cali, and one with my daughter and mom before the big day. She insisted on making sure we have the hair/makeup down pat so there would be no worries come the wedding day. Karis was sweet enough to even purchase special makeup/products to ensure that my makeup stayed fresh and non-shiny despite the Cancun humidity – she was determined to make sure everyone looked their best!

Karis and her husband joined our huge party in Mexico a few days before the wedding. They are the sweetest, most fun and down-to-earth couple and blended in so well with our family and friends -- everyone really adored them! We could not have picked a better couple to be a part of all our festivities, they felt more like friends to us than anything.

The day before the wedding – at our Welcome Fiesta – she spent time straight-ironing my 14-year-old daughter’s hair to ensure that we have enough time the next day for my monstrous wedding party. It goes without saying that my daughter absolutely adores Karis and wishes she did her hair regularly :)

On the big day – we started about an hour late, but Karis plugged away first working on my daughter and a junior bridesmaid (who has super thick long hair). Both of them looked so beautiful and my junior bridesmaid who never likes her hair loved her hairstyle!! Then Karis worked on my six other bridesmaids – each girl had their own hairstyles in mind, one even had her put extensions in her hair. My bridal party consisted of Asian, Filipino, Black, White/Latino hair and skin tones/complexion and Karis knew exactly how to emphasize the beauty in each girl. My girls looked INCREDIBLE!!! Each girl had a different look and all looked amazingly beautiful.

I was next for both hair and makeup – everything was flawless. And when we had a hiccup with my lashes, Karis worked hard to make sure the problem was fixed. *Note for brides in tropical locations – use waterproof glue!!!! After I was done, she finished up with each of the bridesmaids’ makeup and then worked on my mom and some of my aunts. Again everyone looked great*

We ended up being about 90 minutes late for the wedding – this was our fault because we started late -- but luckily at my venue in Mexico, time isn’t a factor! Karis had a huge load to do that day and I felt so bad for putting so much work in her hands, but she handled it like a pro and everyone looked fantastic. I can’t tell you how many compliments I received from our guests about how wonderful all the girls looked. The hair and makeup was perfect and our pictures truly reflect that ~ I had the most beautiful wedding party ever!!!

After the wedding ceremony, I had tons of flower petals in my hair and Karis was right there to help me remove them before I had to take more pictures. She was always there to touch me up and make sure everything was in perfect place. We had initially planned to change my hairstyle for the reception, but it was just so hot and I was having so much fun dancing we canned the plan. But truly no worries, because my hair and makeup looked great throughout the festivities.

I cannot emphasize enough how important it is that you feel beautiful on your wedding day. But first you have make sure you’ve got a competent and skilled stylist who can ensure that you get the look and vision you want. Karis is an incredibly skilled hairstylist who can pretty much replicate anything picture. She also knows exactly how to highlight the best features in a woman’s face, and works carefully to make sure you’re happy with the look. She uses the best products, is always on time, and most importantly she really cares and wants you to look your best.

I have nothing but great things to say about Karis. Any bride would be lucky to have her as their stylist on their big day!!!


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BRIDAL TRIAL REVIEW:

I did my very first bridal trial with Karis and it was a wonderful experience. She is patient, very receptive to suggestions but most importantly she is ridiculously talented. In my line of work I have dealt with many makeup/hair stylist and unfortunately I have been disappointed most of the time. Like I told Karis, there has only been one stylist who made me feel beautiful and comfortable, but after working with her, I can happily say I now know two! She knows how to bring out the natural beauty in a woman's face and is a masterful talent when it comes to hair. I gave her a few inspiration pictures and before I knew she perfected the styles and even made them better!

If everything falls into place, I am hoping to bring Karis with me to my destination wedding in Akumal, Mexico to take care of my humongous wedding party and myself of course. Yep, your eyes do not deceive you, I'd love to bring her thousands of miles to my wedding ~ she is just that good!!!!

Karis made me feel beautiful on my wedding day. My hair and make-up were perfect. Many of my friends complimented on how natural my make-up looked, and how natural my lash extensions were. I looked great in my pictures even after I had cried through the ceremony and toasts.

Karis was very open to what kind of look I was seeking to achieve and paid careful attention as I described the type of dress I was going to wear, the setting and venue. It helped that I showed her some pictures of my dress and hair styles/make-up that I liked before the trial session. She created a truly fitting and appropriate look for me that matched my vision of how I wanted to look for the day.

I really enjoyed my trial session and day-of, and I'd definitely recommend her to any one of my friends who is getting married. She's really nice, has excellent experience, is prompt and finished on-time.

Karis came highly reccomended by another hair and make-up artist who was booked for my date. I read her reviews and had to book her. Went for my trial with one of my Bridesmaids. I was really nervous because I wasnt sure exactly what I wanted my hair and make up to look like. I had a few photos of hair styles I liked and she worked her magic. She was very friendly, easy going and made everything so comfortable. Got married on July 25th. Karis was right on time and got right to work. Everyone in the bridal party looked absolutly fabulous and I could not have been more pleased. Everyone looked natural and beautiful. Everyone loved her!!! I would highly recommend her to anyone and everyone. She was great!!!

Karis Staley was great!! She did a wonderful job on my hair and makeup. I was very happy with the results. Because I was not sure how it would turn out I did do a trial before the wedding of both hair and makeup. I showed her some pictures of how I wanted my hair and she did a wonderful job. At the wedding she did my maid of honor's hair which turned out wonderful and my hair and makeup.
She is also very prompt and on time.

I wanted to thank you for doing my sisters hair and my hair and make up. I was so happy with my hair and make up on the day! I love it and I recieved so many compliments! It was natural not not overdone. My friends and family asked who did our hair and make up and i will definitly be giving them your information!

Thank you so much for the incredible hair and makeup jobs you did for our wedding. Everyone turned out perfect & absolutely loved how they looked!

I just wanted to thank you for the fantastic job. My hair and makeup was fantastic. My bridesmaids and mom's looked great. You are very talented and I will be recommending you to all my friends. thank you for making me look great on my wedding day.

Thank you again sooooo much for everything, I couldn't have asked for a better person, both hairstyling and makeup and personality! You'll get great reviews from me! And hopefully we'll be heading out that way in a year permanently!
Thanks again so much!

Taken from "Yelp.com"

"Karis is the very sweet woman who did my hair and makeup on my wedding. When I scheduled her for a trial, she came to my home and did hair and makeup trials. I felt it was well worth the money because she spent time to try different looks on me.

She also came to me, my Mom and my Maid of Honor on the day of the wedding to do our hair and makeup. I thought it looked good and photographed well. Part of the challenge with wedding makeup is how it reacts to photography. When I did my own makeup for my Engagement session, you could only see the lipstick and my eyebrows looked faint. And I thought I was so good at makeup application, haha. Our Best Man showed me a pic he took of me at my wedding, you can see the makeup Karis did yet it doesn't look overly made up or artificial....I was happy with the experience."

It was such a huge blessing to have Karis as my hair and makeup artist. She's really easy going and did a great job for me and my girls. All 5 of them! I really enjoyed her company and the work that she did. I was really happy with the results. Karis is professional, friendly, and competent. But most importantly she loves what she does. She has passion, and that's priceless.

Karis's professionalism and style is beyond any I have seen. The makeup she used and the choice of colors was a perfect blend and looked beautiful in pictures. She has a talent for makeup and hair that would make any bride proud!

Thank you so much for working with me and the wedding party, you were amazing and I will definitely give you a recommendation if you ever need one. Hope your all moved in and settled into your new house! Please let me know if you ever need anything!

Sincerely,
Celina

P.S. My photographer LOVED your work and requested your name and number so she could recommend you to other brides. I just wanted to make sure that was okay to give her before I passed your number out. Please just let me know. THANKS AGAIN!