Bridal makeup at Lake Como

Natalia Stawiarska-Colluto · NALA Makeups · Villa del Balbianello · Lenno · Bellagio · Cernobbio

In October 2026 I did a bride's makeup at Villa del Balbianello. You reach the villa by boat.

We got ready in a private apartment right on the lake in Lenno, with its own jetty. From there a boat takes the bride, the guests and me across to the villa. I was with her from seven in the morning until the evening, when the boats went back.

I work in English, Italian and Polish, so everything is agreed directly: with you, with your planner and with the venue staff.

How you will look

Skin that looks like skin, not like makeup. Eyes defined softly enough to stay yours, clearly enough to read in photographs.

At Lake Como the photographer works close, with the water behind you. So I build the makeup in thin layers. It has to look good from thirty centimetres, not only from two metres.

Villa del Balbianello, Lenno

I worked here on 26 October 2026, for a bride who flew in from Los Angeles. I can describe this place as someone who spent the whole day there.

What should you know before you plan the morning? You reach the villa by boat. The boats are small, so I agree my place on the transfer with the planner in advance. The crossing from Lenno takes a few minutes.

We got ready in the apartment in Lenno, not in the villa itself. We did the trial there the evening before, so in the morning everything was already decided.

The list of people for makeup can change at the last minute. Here I reworked the timeline several times, the last time on the morning of the wedding. That is why I always plan with a buffer.

The wedding was on a Monday, a day when the villa is closed to visitors. You cannot simply walk into this villa. You need a ticket or an accreditation.

And you may know this garden from the cinema. The wedding of Anakin and Padmé in Star Wars was filmed on the terrace above the lake, and a scene from Casino Royale on the loggia.

Getting married at Villa del Balbianello? Write to me and I will check your date.

Villa Erba, Cernobbio

I have not worked at Villa Erba yet, and I say that plainly. Cernobbio is on the western shore, a few kilometres from the town of Como, so it is easier to reach than the middle of the lake.

Before every new venue I ask about the light in the room where you will spend your morning, and about the way from that room to the ceremony. The whole timeline depends on it.

Planning a wedding at Villa Erba or in Cernobbio? Get in touch.

Bellagio and Tremezzina

Bellagio sits where the lake splits into two branches. Tremezzina is the western shore opposite: Tremezzo, Mezzegra, Lenno.

A ferry runs between the shores, and the roads along the lake are narrow. That is why I am there the day before the wedding and do not depend on a timetable in the morning.

The area I cover

I am always on location the day before the wedding.

Your venue not on the list? Write anyway. I cover the whole lake.

Makeup that holds in the lake humidity

By the water you get three things at once: humidity, wind on the terraces and close-up photographs. No single product solves that. Everything begins with how the skin is prepared, not with what goes on top of it.

I work in thin layers, with waterproof products, and I finish with a technique made for a full day and evening outdoors. Depending on your package I can stay with you into the evening.

The morning timeline

Most ceremonies at Lake Como start in the late afternoon, around 4 or 5 pm, because that is when the light over the water turns golden. So the morning is calmer than usual.

For the bride I plan three to three and a half hours for hair and makeup together. Soft natural waves take around fifty minutes, natural makeup about an hour, full glam about an hour and a half. Each guest takes roughly an hour.

I do the bride second to last, with one of her friends at the very end, so she does not sit waiting. I add time for the boat or the ferry to the plan.

How many people I can get ready. On my own, up to three for hair and makeup together, up to six for makeup only. With my team, eight to ten. For larger parties I work with a hairdresser on location.

The trial, when you live in another country

Most of my brides do not come to Italy before the wedding. That is fine. There are three ways.

• On location, a day or a few days before the wedding. I arrive early and we do the trial at Lake Como. That is how we did it for Villa del Balbianello: a trial the evening before the wedding.
• A video consultation and a look painted onto your photograph. You send me your picture and I paint the makeup directly onto it, so you see the exact style on your own face before we meet.
• A trial on a model in my Wrocław studio. I recreate the look and send you the photographs.

I will be honest about the last one. Every bride wants to see and feel the makeup on herself, and a model cannot replace that. I recommend it only for brides who really cannot travel.

Why one artist rather than an agency

You know exactly who is arriving. It is me, every time, from the first message to the last touch-up.

Twenty years of bridal work. Three languages. Arrival the day before, always.

For weddings in Italy I take bookings from €650, covering the bride and one more person. If I am already working nearby, a smaller booking may be possible. Travel is quoted individually. Message me and I will prepare a quote.

I take a limited number of destination weddings each season, because I arrive the day before and give each bride the whole morning. Saturdays in high season are usually taken a year ahead, so it is worth asking early even if your plans are not final.

What my brides say

Frequently asked questions

How long does bridal makeup take?

About an hour and a half, up to two for full glam. With hair together, three to three and a half hours.

Do you do hair as well?

Yes, updos and waves. For larger parties I work with a hairdresser on location.

How many people can you get ready?

On my own, up to three for hair and makeup together, up to six for makeup only. With my team, eight to ten.

Will the makeup hold in the lake humidity?

Yes. I build it for humidity and wind: thin layers and waterproof products. In Puglia, with around eighty percent humidity, the bride needed no touch-ups until the morning after.

Is a trial necessary?

Not obligatory, but recommended. There are three ways to do it, including a look painted onto your own photograph.

When should I book?

Six to eighteen months ahead, and earlier still in high season, from May to September.

Do you work outside Lake Como?

Yes. Puglia, Tuscany, Rome, the Amalfi Coast and all of Poland.

What does the quote include?

All makeups, a consultation or trial, and my arrival the day before. For weddings in Italy I take bookings from €650. Travel is quoted individually and stated from the start.