Wedding Hair in Queenstown for the Bridal Party and Guests

Queenstown is one of New Zealand's favourite places to get married, which means a lot of mornings where five or six people need their hair done before a car arrives. This guide is for that side of the day: bridesmaids, mums, flower girls, groomsmen and guests. If you're the bride and want the full plan for your own hair, from the trial to the weather, read our complete Queenstown wedding hair guide.

How do you book hair for a whole bridal party?

Pick one person to organise it, usually the bride or the maid of honour, and get in touch with the full list before anyone books separately. We need three things:

• How many people, and roughly what each wants (up, half-up, down, braid, just a blow-dry).
• The time everyone needs to be finished and dressed.
• Whether anyone has extensions, very long or very thick hair, which takes longer.

Weekends in the warmer months fill quickly, often months ahead, so book the morning as soon as your date is set. You can add or drop a person later. It's much harder to find extra chairs on a Saturday in February than it is to give one back.

How long does bridal party hair take?

Allow roughly 45 to 60 minutes per person for a styled look. A blow-dry or simple braid is quicker. Long, thick hair and detailed updos take longer. We plan the bride last, or close to last, so her style is freshest for the ceremony and photos.

Here's what a running sheet might look like for a 2pm ceremony with four people. Your real one will depend on how many stylists are working and what each person wants.

Build in a buffer. Someone will always be running ten minutes late, and it's better to be sitting around with a coffee than rushing into the car.

What should everyone bring on the morning?

• Clean, dry hair, washed the night before unless we've told you otherwise.
• A button-up or zip-front top so you can change without pulling anything over your head.
• Any clips, flowers, combs or accessories you're wearing.
• A photo of the style you want on your phone.
• Breakfast before you arrive, and a water bottle. It's a long morning.

Leave heavy oils and dry shampoo off the night before. They make hair slippery and harder to pin.

Do bridesmaids need a hair trial?

Usually not. The bride's trial is where we work out the overall look, and we can talk through each bridesmaid's style there with photos. If a bridesmaid has a specific updo in mind, very fine hair, or wants to test extensions, a separate booking before the day is worth it. Book them as special occasion hair.

Hair for mums, family and guests

You don't need to be in the wedding party to get your hair done for it. Plenty of mothers of the bride and groom, grandmothers and guests book in the morning or the day before.

A smooth blow-dry suits most people and lasts well. Special occasion hair is the one to book for an updo, a half-up style or set curls. If you just want curls through a blow-dry, add a tong or curl after the blow-dry for $26.

For groomsmen and dads, a men's blow-dry and styling is $50. If anyone needs a cut, book it about a week before so it doesn't look freshly clipped in photos. Our men's team can sort that.

What does it cost?

Current salon prices for the party and guests:

For anything not on this list, including travel to a venue, ask us and we'll price it for your group. See our bridal packages and wedding hair pages for more.

Keeping everyone's hair looking good until the evening

Hand the most organised bridesmaid a small kit: spare pins, a comb, and a travel hairspray like L'Oréal Professionnel Tecni.Art Fix Design ($36.96). A few Kérastase Gloss Absolu Glaze Drops ($26.95) smooth fly-aways if the wind picks up during photos.

To book the bridal party, book online or call us on 03 441 8555. We're upstairs at Level 1, 22 The Mall in central Queenstown.