I'm getting married on July 6th and I want to get my hair put up.  My wedding day make-up and hair stylist and I have chosen a style, but it will involve (like most bridal up-dos) blowdrying, hot rollers, back combing and lots of bobby pins.  I know these things are damaging to my hair.  I really want the hair style I have chosen.  Wearing my hair down just won't work with my dress, veil and tiara.  My question is, how damaging is it?  It my hair going to be in significantly bad condition after the wedding?  I don't want to sacrifice my healthy hair for just one day.  On the other hand, it IS my wedding and I want to look how I want.  What are your opinions?  Is it worth it?  Will I regret it, do you think?

Hey Amanda,

First of all, congrats on your upcoming wedding. I know how busy you must be putting all of the little details together. haha I remember it all too well.  ::)

As for the updo, well, I'm afraid that if you're going with a professional stylist and a professional style, there will be some inevitable professional damage.
   The reason that stylists backcomb, spray and fry your hair into "perfection" is because that is how they are trained to create a style. They take this to extreme levels if you have fine hair. This is because stylists don't care so much about the health of your hair as they do about the overall æsthetic.

Try talking things over with your stylist and express to her your concerns about damaging your healthy hair. She may be a little kinder to your hair or at least console you in some way.

Like you, I also did the tiara/veil/updo thing for my wedding. Shelled out $75 for an elaborate weave with the gratuitous little curly tendrils and enough hairpins to set off a metal detector. It was a lovely style, but it all ended up getting covered by my veil anyway. There was tons of backcombing, spraying, curling, drying, etc. involved, so naturally there was probably some damage to go along with it...though I didn't really pay attention to such things at the time.  :P

So my answer for whether all of that is worth it for just one day is...probably not. That is to say...I definitely wouldn't repeat the experience. But I also have the benefit of hindsight, which can change your perspective quite a bit.

What I can say is...go with your gut. Your choices have already been made, so if you truly want them, go for them and don't look back no matter how much damage results. Besides, if your hair is already healthy, then it should hold up to the stylist's torture fairly well. But definitely express your concerns to your stylist and see if there are any compromises or alternatives that can be made for the best interest of your hair.  ;)

You might be able to get away without the back combing if you can get a hair pad.  Ask your stylist about them-they give bulk to your style without the rough treatment.

The backcombing is the most damaging and non-reversable part of the typical updos.  If you can use a hair pad or "rat" to minimize the need for the backcombing, I am sure you can survive just about anything else as long as you are careful in combing out the "do" after all the festivities are over.

thanks, that helps.  I'm going to talk to my hair stylist and see if she can avoid back combing.