Written by Mimi Nikolova, a professional makeup artist and beauty educator based in Buffalo, NY.
"How much do you charge?" is usually the first question a bride asks me, and it's also the one question almost no makeup artist's website in Buffalo actually answers. I get why: pricing depends on the day, the party, and what you need. But brides deserve a real number before they pick up the phone, so here's my actual current pricing, what changes it, and how to get an exact quote for your day.
These are my published rates as of today, straight from my current menu:
Menus change over time, so treat this post as a snapshot. The menu on my services page is always the current, official version.
If I'm coming to your venue, hotel, or getting-ready location instead of you coming to me, travel is billed at $45 per 30 miles, plus a 20% gratuity on the total service. If you're getting ready somewhere outside the immediate Buffalo area, it's worth asking for the exact travel number early so it's never a surprise on invoice day.
A trial runs $175 and is booked separately from the wedding-day application. It's not an upsell. It's the only way to know your makeup will actually hold up under stage lights, tears, and twelve hours of photos. I go into exactly why in my guide to making wedding makeup last all day and night, and cover the appointment itself in what to expect at your makeup trial.
Bringing your mom, your bridesmaids, or the flower girl into the mix adds $175 per person to the total, since each additional face means more product and more time blocked out on the morning schedule. Once a bridal party grows past four people, I bring in an assistant artist ($150) so everyone stays on schedule without rushing anyone's face. For the full rundown on booking makeup for your whole crew, see my bridesmaid and bridal party makeup guide.
Lash application isn't automatically bundled into the base rate. Ardell lash application is a $25 add-on that includes the lashes themselves. A later-in-the-night touch-up visit is billed separately at $50. Both are worth asking about upfront so your quote reflects exactly what you want included.
I understand the instinct to skip the trial and save the $175. But the trial is where we figure out what actually survives your specific day: your skin type, your venue's lighting, whether you'll be crying during vows, dancing for six hours, or all three. Skipping it means finding out on the day itself, which is the one day you can't redo. If you want the full case for why this matters, it's worth reading how long-lasting wedding makeup actually works before you decide.
A tight wedding-morning schedule with a bridal party over four people means bringing in an assistant artist to keep everyone on time, which is where that $150 fee comes from. Before you lock in a headcount, it's worth mapping out your actual morning-of schedule. I've laid out exactly how I plan those hours in the ultimate Buffalo wedding-day makeup timeline, which makes it much easier to figure out how many people you actually need done, and by when.
The rates above cover the base services, but your exact total depends on your date, your venue's distance from me, your bridal party size, and any add-ons you want. I offer bridal makeup services throughout Buffalo and the surrounding area, and you can see my full, current menu on my services page. Check common questions on the FAQ page, or just reach out directly with your wedding date and party size and I'll get you an exact total.
Pricing mentioned above reflects rates at the time of publishing and is provided for general reference only. It can change. For current, up-to-date pricing, please visit the menu on my services page.
