The Bridal Party Timeline: Calculating 'Chair Time' per Person
The getting-ready timeline is the first schedule of the wedding day, and it is the one most likely to run over. When it does, the delay propagates through every subsequent event: the departure for the ceremony, the ceremony start time, the portrait window, and cocktail hour. Protecting the getting-ready schedule means protecting the rest of the day.
The key to an accurate getting-ready schedule is understanding chair time: the actual amount of time each person requires in the hair and makeup chair, multiplied across the full wedding party, plus setup and buffer time.
How to Calculate Chair Time
Start by asking your hair and makeup team directly: How long does each service take per person? Get this number from the professional, not from an estimate. Typical ranges are 45 to 75 minutes for hair and 45 to 60 minutes for makeup, depending on the stylist, the look, and the person.
List every person receiving services. Include the couple, each wedding party member, mothers of the couple, and any other family members who are booked for services on the day.
Multiply the number of people by the per-person time for each service. If four people are getting both hair and makeup from a single-artist team, and each service takes 60 minutes, that is 8 hours of chair time for those four people alone. Two artists working simultaneously cuts that to four hours.
Add the setup time required for the stylist team to arrive and prepare their equipment. This is typically 20 to 30 minutes and is frequently overlooked in schedule calculations.
Add buffer time of 30 to 45 minutes to the total. This accounts for late starts, extended services, and transitions between people.
The result is your total required getting-ready window. Work backward from your ceremony departure time to find the earliest start time, and confirm with your stylist that this start time is available.
Sequencing the Schedule
The order in which people sit in the chair matters. The most common approach is to schedule the couple's services last, ending immediately before departure. This ensures the couple looks freshest for the ceremony and photographs, and allows flexibility for other party members to finish slightly over or under their time without affecting the final outcome.
Schedule the people with the most complex or time-consuming services early, not late. A wedding party member with thick, long hair who requires 90 minutes for an updo should be in the chair first, not last. If they run long, the schedule absorbs it. If they are scheduled last and run long, the couple is delayed.
The Space Requirements
Hair and makeup for a wedding party requires physical space that is frequently underestimated. Two stylists need two work areas, adequate lighting at each, access to power for multiple tools simultaneously, and enough room to move around each chair freely. A hotel room that accommodates this for two people may become crowded for six.
Confirm with your stylist team how many people they can service simultaneously given the space available, and plan accordingly. If the getting-ready suite is small, discuss whether a salon appointment for some party members the morning of the wedding is a better option than attempting to fit everyone into one space.
Communication Is the Most Important Variable
Share the full getting-ready schedule with every person receiving services at least one week before the wedding. Include start time, approximate chair time, and expected finish time. Guests who arrive late to a scheduled chair time delay everyone behind them.
Designate someone, not the couple, to manage the getting-ready timeline on the day. Their role is to keep track of who is next, ensure the schedule is running on time, and flag any emerging delays early enough to adjust.
Use the Wedding Day Timeline in The Planned Wedding to build and share your getting-ready schedule with your full team. Open the app.