The Hair + Makeup Company

Best of Weddings (2x)

San Francisco, Greater Bay, Monterey Bay, Carmel

About this vendor

The Hair + Makeup Company, founded by hair stylist Melissa Marie and makeup artist Sarah Nicole, was created to provide on location services for large bridal parties. With over ten years experience in the hair and makeup industry, Melissa and Sarah founded the company to provide the utmost experienced artists to brides in Carmel Valley. Voted Bride’s number one choice for hair and makeup in Northern California, Sarah and Melissa are the go to hair and makeup team for brides!

Details

Beauty

Hair Stylists
Makeup
Airbrushed Makeup
Eyelash Extensions
Makeup Artists
On-Site Hair & Makeup

Awards and Affiliations

4.8

out of 5.0

37 reviews

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3/02/2020 • Sara Bear S

Melissa, Ashley, and their team were fantastic on our wedding day. We had 16 ladies getting hair & make up done for the day (so many!) but Melissa's crew was so accommodating. They were able to get everyone done so quickly and on time. All of the ladies looked so glamorous and our makeup and hair lasted ALL NIGHT. As the bride, I was given a touch up kit for my hair and make up and only had to reapply my lipstick ONCE and only after dinner. I stayed looking so beautiful the entire night. I received so many compliments and truly felt like a princess as much as I was told I looked like one! Ashley did a wonderful job with my makeup. She carefully and perfectly applied every piece that blended together so smoothly. My skin looked flawless, my eyes popped, and we found the perfect lip color together! Melissa also went above and beyond her duties in helping walk me to the chapel with my very heavy dress and veil, assisting me with carrying them, and the final fixing and preparation of my hair for my special walk down the aisle! We also hired Melissa to stay for after the ceremony to change my down hairdo into an updo. Since our priest was running late (about 30-45mins), our timeline got pushed way back and she had to stay so much later than expected. She handled everything so gracefully and was so reassuring throughout the entire day, ensuring that my hair looked absolutely perfect from start to finish.

12/08/2019 • Staci N

Melissa, Annika and team did hair and makeup for my wedding in November. I went back and forth on my hair and make up count and Melissa was extremely flexible with adjusting the schedule and size of her team to make the wedding day go as smooth as possible. All of my bridesmaids were happy with their hair and make up and I had never felt more beautiful. These ladies are so kind and more than willing to adjust the look to exactly what you need to make you feel confident! Thank you Melissa and Annika for making us feel so beautiful on my wedding day.

11/27/2019 • Christine H

My philosophy for my wedding was hire people who know what they are doing and let them do it well. Sarah and her team are professional and fun to work with. I met Sarah as a bridesmaid at a friend’s wedding and was very excited to work with her at my own wedding. I did two trials with Sarah because I couldn’t decide what I wanted, and she was very patient with me changing my mind and adding to her already busy schedule. Both trials turned out so well despite being done in far less time than the actual wedding day. On the day of the wedding The Hair + Makeup Company team arrived very early in the morning to start on my six bridesmaids, two mothers, and myself. Everything was well organized and smooth. There was a wall of photos showing everyone’s desired hair and makeup photos and we even ended a bit ahead of schedule. Thank you to Sarah and her team for making all my bridesmaids, my mother, mother-in-law, and of course me look beautiful and feel amazing for a day!

10/27/2019 • Melissa G

DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY! Sarah promises a LOT and does NOT deliver on ANY of her promises!! There were quite a few lessons learned: NEVER pay for a service in advance, listen to your gut and most importantly, make sure your hair/makeup is EXACTLY what you want at your trial! If it isn’t what you want, go somewhere else because it will NOT get better on your wedding day, chances are (as was my case) it will be even worse!!! Following are just a few things that went wrong. First, she makes you pay for all of her services up front in order to book. Second, she cancelled my hair and makeup trial (the night before) and NEVER contacted me to reschedule. Lastly, she was running late on the day of the trail and I had to wait OVER and hour for her AFTER I had left work early in order to accommodate the time she said she was available. After all the frustrations I had experienced I was praying for a smooth trial. Sarah refused to re-work a headpiece and to use airbrush makeup. So what was the point of the trial? I was confused because I asked Sarah previously what happened if I wasn’t happy (since I had already prepaid for everything) and she assured me that she would work with me at the trial until everything was exactly how I wanted. This was obviously NOT the case! WEDDING DAY had finally arrived and I was beyond excited (obviously!) until it was 7:45am and Sarah still had not arrived. After an hour, Sarah showed and the chaos ensued. First, Sarah and her artists were discussing how hungover they were from the night before, talking about doing Adderall in order to do our hair/makeup and having SO many inappropriate discussions SO loud I couldn’t even talk to my bridesmaids! Second, each of my bridesmaids was asked what hair/makeup style they were looking for and asked to show pictures. What was the point in me spending HOURS putting together a slideshow for Sarah with this info? Third, the stylist doing my girls’ hair was completely incompetent, took twice the time allotted and in the end everything had to be redone! Fourth, not a SINGLE person (even the BRIDE) received airbrush makeup which was previously confirmed with Sarah multiple times! Lastly, since Sarah didn't stick to her schedule, we had only 15 minutes to get all of our pre-ceremony photos completed. Obviously, this was NOT enough time and a complete disappointment! The worst of it all was the fact that I booked Sarah with the understanding that SHE ALONE would be in charge of my hair/makeup on my wedding day (the whole point of a trial). Sarah told me that someone else would prep my makeup but Sarah would finish it. While doing my makeup, the artist said, “Wow, you’re a really chill bride for letting someone else do your makeup”. And it was at that point that I realized Sarah never had any intention of doing my makeup and blatantly LIED to me in order to get me to agree to what she wanted. On top of everything that went wrong, Sarah didn’t even deliver on her biggest promise to have HER devoted to completing MY hair and makeup on MY wedding day!!!!! And I NEVER received any apology!!!! I hope to help other brides avoid the same disaster with Sarah! Instead of Sarah putting me at ease and making the day start smoothly, it was a train wreck of confusion, incompetence and undelivered promises that started my day with complete chaos and put us so far behind schedule that there are many priceless moments I will never be able to recreate and capture.

9/08/2019 • Krista R

Melissa and Ashley did such an amazing job. Everyone wants to look perfect on their wedding day and I can honestly say it was the best I've ever looked. They listened to the vision I had of the look I was going for and executed it perfectly. My bridal party also looked great. I wish they lived closer to me, I would hire them to make me look pretty for any event I have to go to. They were on time, reasonably priced, and were also super accommodating, finding extra people last minute to makeup my family members. Overall it was a great experience and wish I could do it again.

5/22/2019 • Mia P

Sarah from The Hair & Makeup Company is hands down the best! She and her team did the hair and make up for my wedding (this includes myself, my 5 bridesmaids, mother, and mother of the groom) and we all looked like movie stars! Sarah was very responsive. Any question I had was responded to immediately. She nailed exactly what I wanted for my hair and make up and it turned out better than any of my inspiration photos! Sarah was also very helpful and provided advice for getting my hair and skin ready for my big day. She is so kind and talented! I could not have asked for a better hair and make up team. I have already recommend her to my friend who is getting married later this year (she has now booked Sarah for her wedding) and I cannot wait for her to do my hair and make up again (as a bridesmaid this time)!

6/25/2018 • Rebekah L

Melissa did my hair for my wedding and Ashely did my makeup. Both were an absolute joy to work with during my trial, wedding, and the months leading up to the wedding. My hair and makeup looked flawless well past the end of our reception and most importantly, they made me look and feel beautiful on my wedding day.

4/19/2016 •

We used Sarah Nicole for our oldest daughters wedding. Our second daughter is getting married in October in Carmel, California. She was told she had to give a $250 deposit in order to secure a trial, which she did. When asking for a time slot there were no times available that worked for us. No refund! We are now flying in a group from Dallas Texas. What ever happened to the Customer is Always Right?

12/24/2014 • Cara H

Loved everything about my hair and make up for our wedding! Also loved everything about the bridal party hair and makeup! Highly recommended for Sonoma or other CA weddings! She made us all feel and look absolutely beautiful!!!

10/17/2013 • Jennifer M

I hadn't been able to meet Sarah Nicole in person until the day of my wedding as I live in Manhattan and was married in Carmel Valley, CA. However, she came highly recommended by our wedding planner, Heidi of Coastside Couture, and Sarah and I spoke several times leading up to the big day. She reviewed and discussed my pinterest board ideas and inspiration photos, as well as published photos of her own work, so that I felt very comfortable she understood my style and desired look for the wedding. On the day of, even though there was road construction, I and my bridal party were unshowered from yoga and I had accidentally not counted one bridal party member who needed her service, she was lovely, professional, calm and kept the schedule flowing perfectly, so that I and all the other girls (and my mom) were beautifully done and ready in very good time with out feeling at all rushed. When I was unsure about the look of the eyeliner, she listened, discussed and worked with me to actually change it slightly, with out undoing any of the rest of the look or disrupting the schedule/flow. She helped me to feel calm and beautiful, knowing that in my own head I needed the slight change, even though it was probably unnoticeable to anyone else. She was a fun, calming and at the same time enthusiastic presence, did a beautiful job, and I highly recommend her to anyone looking to achieve a flawless, beautiful look - whether dramatic, edgy or like what I wanted which I would call "enhanced natural." I had never had nor seen airbrush make-up done before, and I was delighted that it just made my skin look flawless and not "made up" - I was so happy the day-of and incredibly happy with the way I look in our wedding photos. Thank you Sarah!

10/04/2013 • Desiree W

Sarah did my bridal hair and makeup on-location, and was highly recommended through a makeup artist that I had previously worked with. She brought an assistant who did hair and makeup for my Maid of Honor, Mom, Grandmother, and Aunt. Sarah and her assistant arrived with everything they would need, and quickly set everything up seamlessly. I love how Sarah was so on top of everything, constantly checking the time and making sure that we were on schedule. As you can imagine, during the day of your wedding everyone is so excited, as well as a little scattered, and I so appreciated Sarah’s professionalism in making sure we didn’t fall behind schedule. She was very focused, but yet calm mannered and made the “getting ready” portion of the day non-stressful and fun (emphasis on non-stressful as this is very important on the day of your wedding. Not only was this part of the day enjoyable, but my hair and makeup stayed put well past the end of the wedding reception and through the after party (4am!). I couldn’t have asked for more! She did such an amazing job on my hair/ makeup and her assistant was amazing too! It was such a pleasure working with Sarah, and I would recommend her to anyone looking for makeup/ hair services for their wedding, or any event! She is the BEST!!

10/03/2013 • Amber B

Sarah and Melissa came to my wedding venue to do hair and make up for me, my 5 bridesmaids, 2 flower girls and my Mother. They did an amazing job!! They arrived right on time, were extremely professional and put me immediately at ease. They did an amazing job, I've never felt more beautiful and glamorous in my life and all of my bridesmaids and my Mother looked AMAZING! I am definitely going to use them again and can't say enough how pleased I am with their service!!

10/03/2013 • Kami C

If I could I would hire Sarah and her team everyday. I have never felt so great about myself. Not only was my makeup beautiful and flawless but she is very professional and nice. She goes out of her way to make sure you are comfortable and happy. She pays attention to every little detail and meets all of your expectations. Her and her team were on time and fit in with the bridal party perfectly. I am very picky about my makeup and Sarah met all of my expectations. Thank you for making me feel so wonderful. Can't wait to hire you again:)

10/01/2013 • Canadce G

Melissa is out of this world talented. She's been a friend of mine since our early elementary school days, and it was pure joy to have her apart of our day. Her hands work magic seamlessly.. from a girl who doesn't wear much makeup or do much with my hair, she took my natural style, added a little twist and wahlah; made me feel beautiful, natural and completely myself. I received numerous compliments throughout the evening - I will sing her praises forever. She is timely, organized, detailed, efficient and the happiest hair/makeup artist you'll ever come across. Our wedding day was perfect in every way and thanks to Melissa, it got started on the right foot! Trust me, you won't be disappointed in being in the hands of Melissa Marie.

10/01/2013 • Kalina M

Melissa has done my hair on numerous special occasions and I'm always thrilled with the outcome! She's prompt and professional. She has great suggestions when you're unsure of what style to do. I'm a fan- you should be too! Book with Melissa!

9/30/2013 • Sarah C

Melissa did my hair, as well as both the MOB and MOG and 3 bridesmaids for our wedding last summer. Everyone's hair looked natural and elegant. She is professional, talented, reasonably priced and fun! I highly recommend Melissa for any bride!

9/29/2013 • Tara D

Melissa Marie was amazing! I felt like she was there for me every step of the way. I really appreciated her professionalism, she showed up on time prepared to work and went above and beyond to appease us all. Would highly recommend her! I felt like we had a couple challenging styles, but for her it was no problem.

9/28/2013 • Vanessa W

I had the pleasure of meeting Melissa at a bridal fair and fell in love with not only her personality but her beautiful work. I booked a trial with her and really left it up to her to decide what would look good with my dress and my hair piece. I knew I was in great hands leaving this responsibility up to her. When she was done she showed me my hair and I was in tears because it was even more beautiful than I could gave imagined. My dress was all lace and had a very beautiful open back to it, so she diced to curl it and pin it up in a low bun off to the side. It was very soft and romantic looking which was exactly what I had hoped for. So obviously I hired her for the big day!!! Hair lasted all day and even in to the next, it was perfect! She was very professional, punctual, and was worth every penny!!! I loved Melissa and my hair for my wedding so much that 3 years later I hired her to do my hair for my "breakfast at Tiffany's" themed baby shower. I looked and felt just like Holly Golitely!! Thanks Melissa for being in all these big moments in my life!!

9/27/2013 • Rachael M

After reading the great reviews, I chose Melissa to do my hair for my wedding. I was not disappointed! She is so sweet, professional and friendly. Going into my trial appointment, I was anxious about getting the look I wanted, but Melissa totally understood my vision and put me at ease. I had a great time working with her and would definitely recommend her to anyone else! She is so talented and I will continue to get my hair done with her in the future!

9/20/2013 • Alejandra C

I highly recommend Sarah!!! She knows what she's doing!!

9/18/2013 • Cathryn M

I was very nervous finding a hair stylist and make up artist through the internet for my wedding. I'm new to San Francisco and there are almost too many choices to decide who to go with. A girl friend referred me to Melissa Marie. She was very prompt with getting back to me and was very professional through our emails. I booked a trial and was very please at how she was able to create my vision and make me feel like a beautiful bride to be. On my special day I felt at ease knowing I was in good hands. Melissa really has a great eye for style and every detail. I felt like a princess that day! I got SO many compliments on my hair and make up and my photos turned perfectly! I highly recommend Melissa Marie for your wedding day. She is so nice to work with will make you feel amazing.

9/16/2013 • Tamara (Tami) C

I have had the honor of serving as a bridesmaid in 7 different weddings. I have experienced a wide range of hairstylists and make-up artists and I can say without a doubt that Melissa is the best hairstylist I have had the pleasure of working with. My sister first hired her and one other woman to style her entire wedding party seven years ago. Unfortunately, the first attempt at my hair was by the other woman hired that day and it didn't go well. Lucky for me, Melissa was there to fix it! She is really great at tuning in to your personality and the look you want to achieve. If you're open to it, she will also offer suggestions that she, in her infinite wisdom and experience, knows will work well with your hair. Since that first wedding seven years ago, I have been going to Melissa for my hair on a regular basis. She has also done hair for the bride and entire wedding party at my brother and sister-in-law's wedding more recently. She did a phenomenal job at making the bride and all of the wedding party look incredible. I have never seen my sister-in-law look more glamorous and beautiful and she also gave me my all-time favorite hair style that day. I wish I could afford to hire her as my personal hair stylist! Melissa really knows what she is doing. She has her finger on the pulse of the fashion trends and has mastered modern and contemporary looks as well as very glamorous, vintage, retro and traditional looks. I highly recommend her as a very reliable and talented stylist.

9/11/2013 • melissa j

Love, Love, Love Sarah! I had an earlier afternoon wedding, so I kept my makeup soft and natural, then added a bright colored lip, extra liner, and lashes for the reception. She was very quick with the changes, so I wasn't away from my guest for too long. It was actually really nice and I used it to spend some time with my new husband. I felt like a celebrity having Sarah and her team there with me all day. I highly recommend Sarah and her team!

9/02/2013 • sarah m

Melissa is so sweet and professional. She is one of the most talented hair stylist I have met and was more then accommodating to me and my large bridal party the day of my wedding. She put in the most gorgeous extensions in my hair and you could not tell the extensions from my real hair. I felt amazing on my wedding day and I have been going to her ever since. I highly highly recommend Melissa for hair.

8/28/2013 • Vanessa S

Melissa is an amazing, professional stylist!! She has been doing my hair for 10+ years and never have I been disappointed! She knows every style and delivers what you want perfectly. I have THICK, CURLY hair and she knows exactly what to do with it EVERY time I see her. She recently just did my hair for my wedding and I could not have been more happier with the results. We all know that what you look like on your big day is the most important thing and I knew I would be in excellent hands with Melissa. Not only did she do my hair but also airbrushed my makeup and it was FLAWLESS! I was the happiest bride all thanks to Melissa Marie Hair!! I would recommend her to anyone for any event!! :)

7/17/2013 • Brittney S

Melissa did an amazing job on my bridesmaids and myself (bride). She was very professional but fun to be around. She definitely helped make my wedding day a special day. I highly recommend her. You will love her!

7/17/2013 • Robin E

Sarah is just straight up GREAT at what she does. We were nervous to try and find someone in a small town (vs LA or SF) who would get exactly the look I was going for - it was a bit untraditional (I wore a red dress) so I wanted my hair and makeup to be super specific. She's a total pro. Kept us running totally on time and I felt so pretty! She's amazing and I would recommend her to ANYONE. Truly. Thanks Sarah!

6/17/2013 • Beth K

Sarah does an amazing job making a girl feel her most beautiful! She did my wedding make up and most of my wedding party, we all felt and looked fabulous. She's easy going and professional. I'd hire her again in an instant! Thanks, Sarah!

5/12/2013 • Susan P

You couldn't get a nicer team to work with than Sarah Nicole & Melissa Johnson. They were timely, easy, funny and oh so good at making me look like a goddess on my wedding day! And I'm in my 50's so it was especially important to find the right people. I looked at others, even did another trial run with someone else, but when I did a trial with them I knew I had found my team! They are also very reasonably priced. In my search it seemed when you put "wedding" in front of anything and the price skyrockets. They were easy on the overstretched wedding budget. Plus they went over and above to make me look my best. Use them!!!

1/25/2013 • Jennifer R

I found Sarah through an online search and she initially impressed me by responding to my inquiry within minutes of my sending it. We didn't meet in person until the day of the *Event* and I told her that I simply wanted her to do what she thought was the best look for me. She made me look beautiful and glamourous, but I still looked like myself and I photographed well. She was very personable, professional and reliable. I would highly recommend her for any Special Event.

12/17/2012 • Vanessa O

I was looking for THE perfect make-up artist for my wedding, and after looking at my friend's wedding pictures, I knew Sarah would be the one to make me look my best. She is very talented, sweet, extremely organized and communicates fantastically. She simply does an amazing job. Not only did the pictures turn out perfectly beautiful, all the make up was very light and looked completely natural - bringing out my best features. The same goes for all the ladies in my bridal party. Everyone was so happy and impressed and I will certainly be using her for any future events. I would recommend her to anyone!

11/27/2012 • Sara S

Sarah was a pleasure to work with and did a beautiful job on my Bridal make-up and my mom's make-up and hair! I couldn't be more grateful for the experience I had with Reflection Artistry especially after the major runaround I had been dealing with from other vendors of different sorts. My make-up looked beautiful all day and was exactly what I asked for! Thank you, Reflection Artistry!

11/01/2012 • Vanessa B

My sister found Reflection Artistry through a friend. It was great. Reflection Artistry did makeup for the whole wedding party (five of us). They were very professional, on-time, and easy to talk to. The makeup they did was beautiful and lasted all day. My mother who hasn't worn makeup since her wedding day looked beautiful and natural. I recommend this team to do anyone's makeup on their special day.

10/10/2012 • Aimee S

I had a sunset beach wedding at Seascape Resort in Aptos,CA last Sept 8th and Sarah did my hair and makeup. She's professional, super comfortable to work with and she was able to accommodate me on such short notice. Most importantly, she did a tremendous job in both my hair and make-up, I received lots of compliments on my wedding day telling me how gorgeous/beautiful I looked! I give her A+ for artistry and creativity! Sarah is truly amazing at what she does and I highly recommend her.

9/26/2012 • Beth R

I booked this amazing woman about a month prior to my wedding. I was getting married in Santa Cruz and was looking for a local artist. I cannot believe how lucky I got. She was great with me during my trial. She listened to what I wanted and worked with me to create the look I was going for. Day of she was the best. She did 6 women's make up (including the bride) and she did not miss a beat. She was so fun to have with us while we were getting ready. My make up was flawless. My ladies make up was flawless and I could not have wanted anything more. I got so many compliments. I want to have Sarah do my make-up everyday! Hire her and you will not regret it.

9/19/2012 • sandy t

After booking Sarah a week before my wedding (due to other make-up artist backing out) she truly saved the day! From the moment she showed up she helped keep myself and the other women in the room calm and laughing. She fit right into the flow of the day and did flawless work with my makeup. I got several complements on my makeup and it held up for the entire night. I was a little nervous booking someone without a trial, but lucky Sarah is extremely talented!

8/20/2012 • Rikki L

I had the artists do 6 women, and every single one of us looked stunning. The artists were also very friendly and fun to get ready with. They were a tiny bit late, but still got everyone ready in plenty of time.