IMATS Toronto
So I was very excited for this waiting like a kid at Christmas for the show to come. Over all I will say my review of this shows is positive however I will not deny there was some major let downs. I wanted to arrive early as I had heard in the past there was a line up for tickets. I did sleep in a tad so I didn`t arrive tell 9:00 a.m. The everything about sex show was also on that was very easy to find well marked however no markers for IMATS and anyone that has ever been to the X knows the Direct Energy Centre is massive. I did find it and since I never ordered tickets online I had to buy tickets however honestly zero issue no line up at all.
I walked in made a b-line for crown brush as it was already busy picked up 4 brushes 2 large powder brushes and 2 large fluffy fan brushes 1 for me 1 for the kit. I have to say OMG the quality of these brushes for the price is simply amazing. There are some other brushes I wanted but didn`t see them there so have to get them online to grab them the rest of the day the crown brush booth was very busy.
There were two other brush booths there Royal & Langnickel as well as the very famous Hakuhodo. I didn`t pick anything up from either but I have to say Royal & Lagnickel quality is comparable to Crown Brushes however there price points are not as attractive as Crown`s. Hakuhodo feel amazing as soft as silk the quality is really what everyone raves about however the price point I was just not ready to invest in at the moment but I am sure down the line I will bite the bullet I have learned with MAC brushes that quality is worth it these will likely last a life time.
A booth I absolutely loved was Alcone oh how I wish it was bigger after flipping through there catalogue I quickly saw they carry pretty much everything and they only had a tiny booth. I did pick up a beauty blender and Parian spirit brush cleaner. They do have an online store however they primarily sell to schools and business (need to purchase a minimum of $1500 USD per year) and users can purchase but obviously will not get the same discount level.
I stopped at the Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics booth added to my small collection of lips tars I had Uber and Clear I purchased them online they are twice the size of the ones I got today: Pageant, Grandma, Tarred, Feathered , Hush and Conquest they are all 8 ml. I do love these and I think they are fantastic for the kit easy to place a dot on a pallet and mix up a custom blend lipstick.
The Makeup forever booth had a line up all day I have a good amount of their products already would have been nice to pick up a few things at a discount but I have such little patience for line ups. Plus I am going to apply for their pro card in order to get a discount.
I did pick up NARS Eye palette with eye shadows: Bohemian Gold, Himalayas, Kilimanjaro, Night Flight, Ondin and Surabaya at the bay booth normally no discounts there but this was discounted to $55 because it was from last year.
The first seminar was at 10:00 a.m. It was suppose to be with Eve Pearl but she had so scheduling issues so it was her senior makeup artist Amanda. She went through Eve`s technique`s for bridal makeup for sure some fantastic tips and tricks on creating a well defined out V yet still keeping soft enough for the brides that want the natural look. Later in the day I went to the Eve Pearl booth I have been wanting to try her stuff well they had an amazing deal $150 for HD foundation trio A & B, Salmon Concealer Trio A &B, Salmon concealer trio magic and HD blush foundation trio regular retail $300 absolutely perfect for my kit.
The next seminar was Melissa Gibbs MAC`s senior makeup artist the theme of course was makeup as art. It was essentially watching her paint on a model very edgy editorial not typical beauty makeup although interesting and inspiring jobs like Vogue covers are few and far between.
So one of the big disappointments of the show was no MAC booth now I am spoiled as I live in Toronto and have full access to the pro store on Queen Street but not everyone does. Why MAC didn`t have a booth at the show was beyond me. Another thing is the exhibition booths were all rather small and there were not that many 39 to be exact when I saw pictures of IMATS L.A the booths were huge and looked like there was over a 100. This is the first year in Toronto so I am hoping that next year there will be more vendors.
The last seminar I attended was Kevin James Bennett senior makeup artist for Makeup Forever he was absolutely hilarious. His seminar was very practical creating durable makeup which I loved. It has some great little tid bits rules to help make sure that the makeup last 12-16 hours great for on screen gigs but also practical for bridal makeup let’s face it the wedding day is a very long day the bride should look amazing from start to finish.
I am not attending tomorrow for a number of reason number one is I spent more than enough today two is there was not so many exhibitors that I couldn`t make it through easily in one day. I do plan to attend again next year in Toronto or perhaps I will make a trip of another location not sure we will see. Over all it was a great experience the seminars were worth the price of entry and savings on cosmetics was a nice bonus.