What is a reasonable amount to ask your bridesmaids to pay for hair and makeup?

I believe if you can and want to do your own hair and make up, you should not be forced to pay for it. I am with you, less than $80 seems reasonable, but anything over that should be left to the BM to decide if they want it or not.

As a bride myself that reguarly gets her hair done professionaly . I would not want any of my bridesmaids doing their own hair and makeup. I made that known to my bridal party upfront. And no, I won't pay for it. That's just my preference. If you don't want to pay for it you should talk to the bride about your concerns. Maybe she would be willing to put in some cash for you. I'm sure it's very important to her that everyone have the same overall look

In general, the rule is that if the bride insists on your using specific hair and make-up people, the bride should pay for it.

I agree with 2d Bride. I don't think it's appropriate to REQUIRE the BP to pay ANYTHING for hair and make-up. I had my hair professionally done and it was only about $70/BM, so I paid for my BMs and asked if they minded paying the tip (about $50 total for the whole BP, split among three BMs). They didn't mind doing that, but I made sure it was okay with them before I booked.

That is a lot of money and I would ask her if u could look into getting ur hair/makeup done somewhere else as that is not in ur budget. I wouldn't ever think of asking my girls to pay that much. That to me is ridiculous...

I agree with 2d Bride and bert's girl!

Heck no!

Can you get it done somewhere else?

If not, then maybe take it out of her shower and wedding present fund. Sounds harsh. But that is a lot of money, in addition to the dress and shower/bachelorette host expenses.

It should be optional or one or the other.....Around $100 or so would be max budget right now.

Yeah that's really pricey. an updo should be around 50 at a salon, and make-up at most should be 50 to get done (i've seen it as cheap as $15). most services should provide some sort of group rate too. wayyy too much. if she is adamant about professional hair and make-up, i would tell her that you can't afford those prices but are willing to go to someone else

If you have no choice in a matter, then the bride should be paying. If it's optional for you, then you pay. But spending $200 when you have no say in the matter is her expecting her BMs to foot the bill for the wedding she wants.

Wow! That is demanding. Every BM expects to pay for her dress, but hair and makeup should be optional unless she is footing the entire bill

Um. I say if the bride requirs you to wear professional makeup SHE PAYS.

That amount is excessive, though it is the norm around here. I will easily pay $250 for my hair and makeup. However, I don't feel that it is ok to expect all BMs to have that kind of money. Being so controlling is how one is quickly labeled a bridezilla (and in my opinion, rightly so). If I *had* to have my BMs all looking the same, I'd be paying for it.

That is a lot of money to ask a bm to pay for just hair/makeup. If she has such expensive taste, she should pay. Just be honest and tell her you can not afford it, she can't argue with that.

The bp can do their own makeup for a lot less than that. Go to a MAC, urban decay, etc counter, ask for a makeover for the wedding day and have the artist explain to you what they are doing. Then buy the minimum purchase required of whatever you are missing. Do your own makeup day of and maybe practice it beforehand. The hair is another story though. I cant offer advise since I get that for free. Mom and her sisters are hair stylists.

Another idea, tell the bride you can't afford that much. Suggest you meet up that day, with your hair and make up done, it would be nice to ask the bride if she would prefer updos, or has certain requests. Alternatively locate salons close to the ceremony, compare costs, and ask the bride to consider a salon.

I cant' imagine ever asking my BP to pay such an outrageous amount for hair and makeup for one day... having to pay for the outfit is more than enough however I also will not require that they all look the same either... my friends are all different and I'm friends with them for different reasons none of which have anything to do with the way they look.. they are all beautiful in their own way and I'd like them to look like the wonderful individuals that they are ... I don't think making them look like mannequins is going to make the pictures any better.

Well, I'm paying for all my bridesmaids dresses, hair and makeup. I'm guessing around $250.00 per person. Which is a lot of money. But in my circle, it's the norm for the bride to pay for these and I personally have been a bridesmaid 5 times and 3 out of 5 times, it was paid by the bride.

But if it's not the norm for your circle, meet up with the bridesmaid and figure out what everyone's comfortable with.

I spent 175 for my cousins wedding.

The last time I was a bridesamaid I had to pay $200 for hair and make up. I think this is way too much. We all bought our own dresses and I flew from CA to NY (2 tickets) plus the hotel. Many of the BM were from out of state. It ended up costing me well over a $1000 to be a BM for that wedding. Plus, we were a little upset since the make-up artists and hair stylists showed up 2 hours late and all they did was curl our hair. They still did a nice up-do for the bride and the MOH but we were left with nothing but simple curls (that we could do ourselves) for $100.

I'd go with Ruby V.'s great idea and suggest that they go to MAC or something the day of the wedding. That way they get great make up for ~$50 AND get to take it home with them.

In another case, my friend covered our hair and make-up for us and even covered our hotel. It really depends on the bride! I'm going to let my BM do their own makeup and if I decide on an up-do for them I'll cover it.

Well ... when my day rolls around ... I am so giving my girls the option ... It just seems cruel to MAKE them get their hair done or makeup done ... I can't afford to pay for them to all get their hair done ... As long as they look nice, I will be happy