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    Rare Bird Brides

    4.7 (63 reviews)
    Open Open 24 hours

    By appointment only

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    Services - Rare Bird Brides

    Bridal hair services

    Haircut

    Hair styling

    3 More Services

    Makeovers

    Makeup application

    Makeup consultation

    Rare Bird Brides Photos

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    Recommended Reviews - Rare Bird Brides

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    Don't waste your money here.
    Juji W.

    Waste of money for a trial and I'm glad I did not book for my wedding day. Very lazy way of putting on make up. Kristin makes a mess on your face with eyeshadow and wipes it away. The power in the airbrush was chalky and looked like a powder mess in pictures. I was recommend to Kristin by my wedding planner Rachel Le of Wynn Austin Events. Most of Rachel's recommendations sucked, photographer, wedding dress places and makeup choices. In 8 months I had an engagement party, a wedding photoshoot and 3 wedding ceremonies. So I did a total of 7 makeup sessions which included 2 makeup trials : 3 makeup artist from SD(Susan, Kristin, Savannah); 1 in OC (Travis Vu-great but very expensive); and 1 in San Jose (Yavivi-great India makeup- reasonable price). I found Susan Kim and she's is the only choice for SD makeup. She's professional, reasonable prices, quality skills and a perfectionist. Toast to Beauty-Savannah Allen was ok, she's very nice and prices are good, but her skill level is not as good as Susan Kim.

    Kristen is the BOMB! As the mother of the bride, she transformed me and made me look flawlessly gorgeous for my daughter's special day. She exceeded expectations that were already high after my daughter's hair and makeup trial. Seriously, Kristen is an artist.

    Hair and makeup by Rare Bird Brides
    Sophia G.

    I was impressed with Kristen's Yelp reviews when looking for a hairstylist and make-up artist for my wedding, but I got a lot more out of working with Kristen than I first expected. I am a hopeless mess when it comes to anything beauty related- I grew up on a ranch and my idea of putting on make-up is swiping mascara across my lashes and putting on colored chapstick. Not so glamorous... As soon as my make-up and hair trial finished I knew I was in good hands. Kristen was friendly and very professional- taking the time to really listen to what I wanted and hoped to get out of our meeting, though I had no idea what I was really talking about. Somehow she made a bride out of me! Moreover, I can tell you that Kristen is amazing with brides. The morning of my wedding I was a bit of a mess dealing with last minute questions, details, and relatives. Talking with Kristen really helped to calm me down, and she was even sweet enough to replace a lipstick I had lost with one from her own personal collection. She's like the bridal fairy godmother, but with much better hair and make-up. I would highly recommend her to any bride!

    Sara C.

    I have never realized how talented Kristen Martin was until I let another hair stylist do my hair. Boy, was that a mistake!! I am right back at Rare Bird Brides! Kristen always knew EXACTLY how to do my hair & I was always left very happy with healthy looking hair. She has always been able to replicate the results of any picture of any model that I have brought in & shown her. Kristen is communicative, classy, intuitive, informative & knows exactly what she is doing. I feel very safe in her hands. I have not yet used her services for make-up application but I have seen pictures & she is very talented in all arenas of beauty. I am excited to use her make-up services for future outings (especially excited to try out airbrush make up)! I recommend Kristen to everyone, male or female...my boyfriend loves her too & Kristen is the only hairstylist he has ever been able to trust with his hair. Hair is a delicate subject for a lot of people. You really need to find someone you trust, & Kristen is your girl for that! So happy we have found her.

    Kyla S.

    As wedding photographers we work with a lot of hair and makeup artists here at Spotlight Studios. We were extremely impressed with Kristen's professionalism as well as her calm, sweet demeanor on what was a very hectic day. She made our wedding client and her bridal party look absolutely stunning. Loved her!

    Kristen and her 2nd stylist also did the hair of my bridesmaids.
    Kristin H.

    Kristen did my hair and makeup for my October 17th wedding. From the very beginning working with her was amazing. She was super responsive, and I felt like she really listened and understood what I wanted to look like on my big day. The trial with Kristen was amazing. I just brought some photos on my phone and she nailed it on the 1st try. On my wedding day she made me feel extremely beautiful, and has a calming personality that is so wonderful when there's so much going on around you! The weather on the big day was a bit humid, so we debated doing it up instead of down - but ultimately she said she wanted me to be 100% happy with the look. I decided to keep it down, and though some curls came out, I was amazed how well it held up through the event and dancing! I would highly recommend Kristen to any brides-to-be looking for a hair and makeup artist. Her prices are competitive, she's extremely professional, and above all wildly talented.

    Alina K.

    Kristen and her assistant (I believe her name is Chelsea but I could be wrong) were absolutely amazing. I hired her to do my wedding makeup after doing a trial run with someone else and not getting the look I asked for. Kristen is a great listener and very easy to communicate with. She is definitely a pro. I felt and looked beautiful on my wedding day, as did all my bridesmaids and my mother. I've never had someone do my makeup and hair and wind up happy with the results. I can't tell you enough how happy I am I hired her. I absolutely recommend her!

    My half-up/half down 'do. Kristen also did the highlights.

    Having a great hairstyle and not overly done makeup on my big day was important to me. Also, I wanted one person; I didn't want a team. I found this in Kristen of Rare Bird Brides. Kristen was very easy to work with, and I liked that she really enjoys her job, which I don't think many people can say. She tried multiple hairstyles during my trial, and with each style, it got better and better. Kristen has some patience because I was very difficult to please. I was afraid she'd tell me to go and never come back! On the day of my wedding, Kristen showed up early, and even stood outside my room for a while so as not to bother me. I thought that was so considerate of her, even though I was in my room pacing. LOL! She transformed me into someone I didn't recognize: so pretty and elegant! My hair turned out even prettier than during my trial. The makeup was nice too. I didn't feel like I looked like a beauty pageant contestant. Kristen made me look naturally beautiful. Kristen also did the hair and makeup for my maid of honor, and styled the hair for my two flower girls. She did this all herself and finished everyone with plenty of time to spare. She had assured me she could do it, and she completely exceeded expectations. The only bad thing -- Having to wash my face and hair. [(Cue Debbie Downer music] If I could, I'd want to look like this every day! Thanks Kristen for making me feel so wonderful on my wedding day. Looking forward to continue working with you in the future!

    All ready to walk down the aisle!
    Pauli H.

    I. Love. Kristen! She made me feel beyond gorgeous on the most magical day of my life, which is enough to give any review 5+ stars. From the hair and makeup trial to the actual day, every step along the way with Kristen was wonderful. I went in not knowing what I wanted for makeup (daily makeup for me is mascara and a possible eyebrow brushing), and I let Kristen work her magic. I asked her a bazillion times about my lashes falling off, makeup sweating off, etc., etc., and she reassured me a bazillion-and-one times that I would be just fine. And, you know what? She was right :) I sweat, balled my eyes out, and looked just as beautiful as when she left me before my ceremony. I didn't expect to cry so much (I started hysterically crying as soon as my dad and I linked arms to walk down the aisle), and didn't stop for quite some time. The *only* thing that happened was that my right fake lash started to lift off, but: a) it went completely unnoticed by anyone but me; and b) it was fixed with a drop of lash glue before my post-ceremony pictures. I was sweating beyond belief during my first dance, and my makeup and hair stayed perfectly in place. For my hair, I went back and forth and found a style online, and it looked awesome on my perfect day. Kristen also set my birdcage veil and feather headpiece, and taught my bridesmaids how to take off the veil between ceremony and reception. Kristen also beautified my bridesmaids and mother-in-law, all of whom looked amazing on such a perfect day. I am LA-based, but had a Carlsbad wedding, and I picked Kristen solely based off of yelp reviews. She is professional, punctual, thorough, an artist, and a genuinely sweet person. One of my favorite moments with Kristen was when she was doing my makeup on the day of my wedding, and she noticed I was breathing heavily. She stopped, asked me if I was okay, asked me if I needed a drink, and poured me an alcoholic beverage. Kristen, you sure do know the way to my heart :) Whether you are down south or up north, Kristen will make you feel like a blushing bride on your special day. Really, what more could you ask for?

    100+ Degrees in Palm Springs and Kristen's Hair & Makeup job held up perfectly!
    Valerie F.

    Kristen was a blast to work with and such a professional - She oozes confidence and I am so happy with my experience. Kristen did my engagement and wedding hair/makeup and I LOVED it. I gave her very little direction and it's like she read my mind! Most importantly - her makeup looks natural and held up perfectly during some miserably hot conditions during my engagement shoot. I highly recommend her airbrush makeup. On the day of my wedding, she was a champ and handled all of the bridesmaids' and mothers' requests - she even took on additional last-minute appointments from friends. She made me, my bridesmaids and my mom feel so pretty on my wedding day!

    Rare Bird Brides did an amazing job on our hair & makeup!!

    Kristen was the best decision I made regarding the wedding! She is very knowledgeable about hair and makeup and her work for both are an absolute dream. I wanted a natural look for my makeup and she was able to make sure that I had the look I wanted and that it would last all night long and look fabulous in pictures!! Initially, I thought that I wanted my hair to be down but after my hair trial, Kristen helped me to realize that having my hair up might be the better option because of my type of hair. She was nice enough to do ANOTHER hair trial and try my hair up and I am so happy that we did because it was a game changer. I had a bad experience with an updo and was nervous but Kristen's work is very elegant and creative. She hit it out of the park for both my hair and my makeup! She also did my makeup for my boudoir photo shoot that I did. She has the ability to do any look that you want and make you feel comfortable throughout the entire process. Her work is versatile and I really think that she can do whatever a bride wants with no hesitation. The other thing that I was really worried about was my mom's makeup. She is VERY natural and almost never wears any makeup. She was super nervous about wearing any makeup but Kristen's assistant Chelsea made her feel comfortable immedietly. My mom looked so beautiful and I know that she felt beautiful as well. It was very important to me that my mom had a good experience and liked her makeup and that was easily accomplished by the Rare Bird Brides team. You will not regret hiring Kristen and her amazing talent! Thank you Rare Bird Brides!!

    Cristi W. wedding makeup

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    Page 1 of 2

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    Review Highlights - Rare Bird Brides

    Kristen and her assistant Mo did an incredible job with hair and makeup for me and 5 ladies in my family for my June wedding.

    Mentioned in 59 reviews

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