Julie Samuels and Joe Hillyer had planned a simple town hall wedding with just witnesses, followed by an intimate dinner at home. However, they had a lot more festivities planned later on. That was long before the pandemic reached its way to the US. Luckily, their wedding day was a perfect example of how a community comes together in the name of love.

Online Dating

Ms. Samuels, 53, and Mr. Hillyer, 58, first met in 2007, on the eHarmony dating site. After a deep background check, Samuels finally met Mr. Hillyer for a drink at a bar. The date was so perfect, she shared: “I thought, ‘Gosh, my mom was right — when you meet the right person, you just know.’”

Meeting The Family

A month into dating, Samuels met Hillyer’s extended family. That was the perfect timing for Samuels to forget about her fears and doubts. She was shocked when one of Hillyer’s sisters said “I love you”, to which he replied when she told him: “I love you, so she loves you.” Samuels was amazed by the family’s generous spirit.

The Proposal

Mr.Hillyer was a bit reluctant to move in with Samuels, but in 2017 they finally did. By then, Ms.Samuels had worked as a lawyer for big corporations. But, in 2019, she resigned and Hillyer said he’ll support her: “He was the first one who said, ‘If you do it, we’ll get married,’” Samuels said. “He didn’t ask me if I wanted a ring, nor did I want him to. I just wanted to marry him.” She continued.

Planning A Wedding

The ceremony was supposed to take place on March 27. They had set up three nights of festivities, with all of their friends and family. Then, the pandemic hit the world to its core. The wedding had become a concern, so they took Facebook on March 16, to find someone local with qualifications to marry them. Within minutes they received an answer and were thrilled. On March 21st, weddings and other gatherings were banned which complicated things for the couple, but they had a few more hours before than ban started.

A Wedding Day Against All Odds

On that day, Roger Sederat who was Samuels and Hillyer’s marriage officiant, turned the front of their house into a festive scene. Their next-door neighbors, who agreed to be witnesses via text message also used a freshly disinfected phone to broadcast the wedding to their family and friends via Zoom. Once everyone took their places Sederat said: “We’re all aware these are exceptional times,” he said. “But this wedding has started to remind me that life goes on. This is about putting love at the center of everything.” It’s true what they say, love does conquer it all.

On 27 September 2016, George Clooney and Amal Alamuddin were married in Venice. The bride wore a bespoke Oscar de la Renta gown and an engagement ring designed by George. Amal had a picture-perfect look and was hailed as one of the most beautiful brides of our time also because of her makeup. The legendary Charlotte Tilbury was the artist that Amal Clooney trusted with her wedding makeup. Tilbury revealed how she created the famous look, and her guidelines may be useful for Spring brides who will do their own makeup.

How Charlotte Tilbury Did the Prepping

According to the makeup superhero’s website, Tilbury started by prepping and plumping Clooney’s skin. She used the Goddess Skin Clay Mask, and then her Magic Cream. For the base, she combined the following three products: Light Wonder Foundation, The Retoucher (for disguising the dark circles, and a Light Dusting of the Airbrush Flawless Finish down the t-zone.

Brows and Eyes

Tilbury used The Brow Lift pencil to add definition to Clooney’s brows and combined the color through the hairs in the growth direction. For the eyes, she used Eyes To Mesmerise in Oyster Pearl, which is an antique gold hue. She washed the product back and forth with her finger and also used a touch of Champagne in the inner corners to brighten the eye. She then created a soft feline flick with The Classic Shimmering Brown Eyeliner. Charlotte Tilbury ran the liner along the lash line, extending the liner slightly on the outer corner to create a gorgeous elongated cat-eye. Finally, she added lashings of Full Fat Lashes mascara to the top and bottom lashes.

Contouring and Lips

Contouring was subtle. Tilbury achieved it by working the darker shade into the hollows of the cheek and sweeping the highlight shade on the tops of cheekbones, down the bridge of the nose, and over the Cupid’s bow. For the lips, the makeup artist used Lip Cheat in Pillow Talk for creating the outline. She then layered M.I. KISS over the Matte Revolution Lipstick in Walk of No Shame to achieve pretty rosebud lips.

The Finishing Touch

Cheek to Chic: Love Glow was applied to the apples of Clooney’s cheeks.