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The 17 Most Insane Bridal Beauty Treatments

Photo credit: BAZAAR.com
Photo credit: BAZAAR.com

From Harper's BAZAAR

Airbrush spray tans and teeth-whitening strips are classic wedding prep staples-but there are a host of new non-invasive cosmetic procedures and innovative new services to book before you even try on your first bridal gown. We're taking about a device that creates instant abs, a truly one-of-a-kind bespoke fragrance, and discreet liposuction you can get on your lunch break. Here's the latest in ways you can tighten, tone, plump, and glow in the months leading up to your wedding day.

Non-Invasive Liposuction

Service: Airsculpt liposuction.

Buzz: Liposuction has come a long way in the last decade, and the latest iteration is safer, faster, and far less invasive. Airsculpt liposuction is a minimally invasive procedure that first uses a laser to break-up fat cells, then a small cannula to suck them out, all while the patient is awake. You can get it done on your abdomen, armpits, hips-essentially anywhere you hold on to pinchable excess body fat.

Wedding countdown: This procedure is best done before your first dress fitting, and at a minimum six months before your wedding day.

Price tag: Up to $10,000 depending on the treatment area and amount of fat.

Instant Fat Blasting

Service: Sculpsure.

Buzz: It's not possible to spot-reduce fat through diet and exercise, so that's where science comes in. Sculpsure is a device that can be hooked up to any body area with stubborn fat (back of the arms, thighs, hips, you name it). It uses intense but short bursts of heat to kill off fat cells-permanently. Your body will slowly excrete the fat cells over a period of three months, revealing noticeable fat loss results that last forever. A treatment takes no more than 20 minutes tops, and you likely won't need more than two treatments total.

Wedding countdown: Allow at least three months for the fat-loss results to show, but longer is always better and allows time for additional treatment sessions if needed.

Price tag: The cost per treatment can vary, but expect to drop about $2,000 total.

Instant Abs

Service: Emsculpt.

Buzz: A device that can burn fat and build muscle at the same time sounds like the stuff of science fiction–but it's very, very real. One 20-minute session hooked up to the Emsculpt device is like doing 20,000 sit-ups. It uses electromagnetic energy to contract muscles in the way you would while working out, except you're doing nothing more than laying down. It can be used on the abdomen or the butt to carve out muscles and create toned muscles, but it will take at least three sessions before you see the final results.

Wedding countdown: Emsculpt sessions are a quick 20-minutes each, and can be spaced out over the course of a few weeks. We recommend booking your first appointment at least three months out from your wedding day.

Price tag: $3,000.

Cellulite Smoothing

Service: Cellfina.

Buzz: This one-time, 45-minute cellulite smoothing procedure allows your doctor to use a fine needle to release the connective bands that pull down under your skin causing the puckering on your thighs and bum. After a few days of soreness, the results are proven to last two years and counting.

Wedding countdown: Plan to visit your doctor at least six months before your wedding day.

Price tag: $4,000-$8,000 depending on the severity of cellulite.

Smile Brighter

Service: Veneers.

Buzz: For a flawless smile, hand-made porcelain veneers are still the gold standard. The process takes five appointments (consultation, mold design, fittings and adjustments) to ensure that shape, size, color, speech, and bite all look, sound, and feel natural.

Wedding countdown: For camera-ready pearly whites, schedule your last session four weeks before the big day.

Price tag: $2,800 - $3,800 per tooth.

Custom Fragrance

Service: By Kilian Made-To-Measure Bespoke Fragrance.

Buzz: Brides-in-the-know call upon luxury perfumer Kilian Hennessy to create their custom wedding-day scent. After meeting the master and critiquing over 50 essential oils, you'll be presented three juices to road-test before choosing your favorite and requesting any tweaks.

Wedding countdown: The final blend takes a minimum of three months.

Price tag: $35,000 for 1 liter of fragrance in a crystal carafe, an engraved flacon, six refill flacons, and two travel sprays. If your jaw just dropped to the floor, fear not: there's always Kilian's ready-to-buy creations, like the warm and spicy gourmand Princess (left).

Jawline Slimming

Service: Kybella.

Buzz: The new injectable is the secret to a slimmer jawline: it destroys the fat cells that accumulate below the chin in only two to four monthly appointments. It's effective, but there is downtime: expect to swell for several days after your appointment. Doctors have also been using it (off-label) on armpit and bra bulge, as well as the abdomen.

Wedding countdown: Target your last treatment at least one month before walking down the aisle to ensure all swelling has subsided.

Price tag: $1,500 per treatment.

Lunchtime Face-Lift

Service: Silhouette InstaLift.

Buzz: This lifting and tightening facial procedure requires no cutting-only threads that are placed under the skin with the help of a thin needle to fight the effects of gravity. If you can't stand the thought of anything going under your skin, we get it. An instant-lift mask like Roloxin Lift leaves a film on skin to temporarily tighten and lift skin, smoothing wrinkles in minutes. You wash it off at the end of the night, but it can give you an idea of what a thread lift might look like before taking the plunge.

Wedding countdown: You'll want to give the procedure at least six months to show results, which last up to a year and a half.

Price tag: $2,000 and up.

Filler Nose Job

Service: Temporary hyaluronic filler to correct nasal imbalances.

Buzz: Just a few years ago, if you wanted a new nose-smaller, straighter, smoother-you could either a.) have a rhinoplasty or b.) that's it. You had no other options. But with the rise of injectable fillers came an off-label use for them capable of transforming your entire profile in under 15 minutes: the non-surgical nose job. Working with the same hyaluronic acid gels used for lips and cheeks, a doctor can correct curves, bumps, and lumps, making your nose appear smaller (even though it's technically getting bigger).

Wedding countdown: All hyaluronic acid fillers begin to slowly dissolve after about a year, but some people metabolize them as soon as three to four months. With all fillers, schedule your appointment between a month to three months in advance, and don't get any touch-ups within two weeks of the big day.

Price tag: The average cost of a rhinoplasty in the United States is $5,046. For a temporary non-surgical nose job using Voluma, you'll end up spending about $2,500 a year. And if you eventually choose to go permanent with a filler like Bellafill, you'll spend $1,500 a session for three sessions, totaling $4,500.

Never Sweat Again

Service: MiraDry.

Buzz: A single, one-hour session with this energy-driven device is all it takes to zap the sweat glands under your arms (and any subsequent odor)-for good.

Wedding countdown: You'll want to give swelling about three weeks to dissipate-especially if you're wearing strapless.

Price tag: $2,500.

Chest Makeover

Service: Décolletage rejuvenation.

Buzz: With the help of Botox and fractionated lasers, doctors can erase lines and wrinkles on the chest and even sharpen the appearance of cleavage.

Wedding countdown: Ten sessions are recommended (although you'll see results after five) so plan to start at least two months before getting in your gown.

Price tag: $1,500 and up per treatment.

Picture-Perfect Brows

Service: Microblading.

Buzz: During the two-hour brow-boosting treatment your specialist creates individual feather-like strokes with a tiny pen-like blade that delivers semi-permanent pigments under your skin. The result: perfectly shaped, face-framing arches for one year.

Wedding countdown: Touch-ups are required about a month after the initial visit, so schedule it two-to-three months before the First Look.

Price tag: $900, with additional touch-ups every year.

A Workout...For Your Face

Service: FaceGym workouts.

Buzz: Any good facial will leave your skin looking ultra-plump and glowy. But when's the last time you had a facial that made you look like you just had the best Botox ever...and 20 hours of sleep? FaceGym is a new spa concept from the UK that landed in NYC this year. You book a "workout" with a "trainer," who proceeds to lift, sculpt, and tone your face just like a PT would for any other muscle on your body. Expect a combination of intense massage with radiofrequency toning and layers of skincare concoctions. Just one session will leave your face looking slim and chiseled, but repeated sessions will guarantee your best skin ever on the big day.

Wedding countdown: Booking a regular facial is always a good idea, but getting at least one a month leading up to the wedding will leave your skin looking firmer and brighter.

Price tag: A 75-minute session with a radiofrequency device tones, tightens, and lifts skin instantly and over time, all for $275 a pop.

Tattoo Eraser

Service: PicoWay Laser.

Buzz: This innovative new technology easily wipes out tattoo pigments previously difficult to treat-and in half the time.

Wedding countdown: To make certain scabbing is healed, begin laser treatments (you'll need four to eight every one-to-two months depending on tattoo size) at least one year in advance, or as soon as possible for shorter engagements.

Price tag: $500 and up per session.

Instant Neck Lift


Service: TempSure.

Buzz: TempSure is the latest device that emits radio frequency waves deep into your dermis to tighten and lift skin by stimulating collagen production. It allows the doctor to use a much higher temperature than similar devices in the past, so results come faster and with less pain. The 20-minute treatment can be used on the neck or any other body area that needs a little lift.

Wedding countdown: Though you'll notice your skin looks more taut right away, you'll need four treatments total, spaced out about three weeks apart. The final results will be visible about six weeks after your last treatment. To prolong the results, you'll need a touch-up session about twice a year.

Price tag: Expect to pay anywhere from $2,000 to $4,000 for four treatments.

Baby Skin

Service: Salicylic Acid Peel.

Buzz: A quick application of a 30 percent beta hydroxy acid peel combats those pesky blackheads and whiteheads stuck under the skin for a clearer complexion in as little as one day.

Wedding countdown: Try to schedule this a few weeks in advance to allow irritation to fade. Results are quick.

Price tag: $250 per treatment.

Frizz Tamer

Service: Magic Sleek Hair Smoother.

Buzz: What's unique about this formaldehyde-free frizz treatment is that your stylist can tailor it to the areas that need de-poufing: your bangs, hairline, or all over, if necessary. Silkiness lasts six months.

Wedding countdown: If you're tying the knot in a tropical climate (or in the summer), consider scheduling this as close to the day as possible, especially since shampooing and coloring are allowed immediately.

Price tag: $250 and up.

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