MVP Hair and Makeup was strongly recommended by my wedding planner, who has probably seen the hair and makeup work of almost every stylist under the Riviera Maya sun.  Nevertheless, crazy researcher bride that I was, I mulled over the decision as I continued to scour the BDW message boards for some time before ultimately going with my planner's suggestion.  By the time I booked Melissa, she was only available to do my wedding party's make-up, so had to book another stylist for our hair (waaah.  lesson learned.).

Right from the start, it was clear Melissa & her team operated with a level of professionalism far beyond anyone else I'd encountered during the destination wedding planning process.  She or her business manager responded to my questions within a day, if not immediately, and corresponded in a very thoughtful, concise and efficient manner.  MVP managed the process entirely and didn't leave me wondering what to do next and when like almost every other vendor had.  For example, the hairstylist I hired never contacted me once prior to my arrival in Playa del Carmen and never scheduled a trial session(!). 

From the moment I met Melissa for our trial make-up session, I absolutely knew I could trust her to make me look even more beautiful than I had imagined.  She requested photos of specific makeup looks we liked, and NAILED it ALL, making the looks work with our skin tones and face shapes.  The woman is seriously a genius at what she does.  She was so good, I pretty much begged her to do my hair.  She shifted her schedule around to accomodate me at 7AM in the morning before her other client.  I wanted her so much that I was willing to eat the full cost of the original hairstylist I booked just so I could have her. 

As a side note--I was worried about finding a stylist that could work well with asian and african american hair and skin.  Everyone in my party had had awful experiences with stylists who weren't accustomed to working with our skin tones and hair types.  If this is a concern of yours at all, look no further!!  I'll say it again.  The woman and her team are geniuses.

Additionally, if you or someone you know is good at hair and/or makeup and you're wondering if you can justify this expense, consider whether your own work will hold up in the hot sun and/or after running around and dancing for hours.  Melissa has decades of experience and knows what to do to make it all stay put in the heat.  At the end of the day, I looked exactly like I did at the beginning (well, just before we all jumped in the pool ;).  And I didn't look like a grease monkey in any of the photos--even the ones taken on the beach.

All along, I had dreamt of a magical wedding prep morning, where my girls and I would sit back and sip champagne, not even slightly worried or stressed about how we'd look at the end of it all.  MVP made every second of that morning exactly what I had dreamt of.  We all felt more beautiful than we had hoped for.  I have no doubt she will make you and your wedding party feel that way too.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, MVP!!