Beauty. Fashion. Lifestyle. Photography. : IMATS NYC 2015: My Experience

This blog should've been posted a while ago, but I'm commited to my dolls and I told myself, no matter how long it's been, I'm going to post this.

Since I feel like this may be a uber-long post, I decided to make this a two-part blog series: (1) IMATS NYC 2015: My Experience, and (2) My IMATS NYC 2015 Haul. So here we go...

IMATS (International Makeup Artist Trade Show) is like the Bronner Bros. of the makeup world. It is a big event that is held in four different countries for makeup artists, beauty bloggers, YouTubers, makeup enthusiasts, and all who share a love for beauty and makeup.

At IMATS, there are different stages with guest speakers sharing tips and tricks. Watching makeup and Special FX artists do the most amazing artistry, constructing costumes on models while people walk around shopping. You have the opportunity to meet and network with other makeup artists and beauty gurus. And the best part of going to IMATS? All the different vendors selling their makeup and beauty products at discounted prices, from 10-60% off.

I had the opportunity to attend IMATS NYC on Sunday, April 12. Normally, I like going on the last day since the crowds ain't as cray-cray as the Saturday crowd. (although I will say since IMATS is becoming more and more popular, the Sunday crowd was just as turnt up) I caught the 3:54 train from Baltimore to NY early Sunday morning. I arrived in NY around 6:50. I grabbed a quick breakfast, hopped in a cab, and was on my way to Pier 94. I got there a little after 7:00, and there was only 10 people standing in line. I guess they thought the same thing I did: get there early; avoid standing in the back of that long ass line.

By 9:00, the line was getting pretty huge, wrapping around the building. They were ready to get in.

Finally, 10:00 came, and the doors opened. First, they let in the Pro-Card holders; then after a couple of minutes, they let the general admission ticket holders in. I walked in, showed them my ticket and ID, grabbed my booklet and complimentary shopping bag, and I was ready to shop.

First booth I stopped at was Sugarpill. How ironic that this was also the first booth I stopped at last year. I only had one thing on my mind, and that was the Pro Palette. The Pro Palette is a combination of their three popular palettes: Heart Breaker, Sweetheart, and Burning Heart. They created this palette specifically for makeup artists carry in their kits, and is sold only at IMATS and PHAMExpo. I bought this palette last year for my freelance kit, and told myself that I would get this for my personal use this time around. I ended up getting the last one they had before selling out that day: lucky me :-) I also picked up two of their new loose shadows, Grand Tiara and Penelope. (Shrinkle made me get Penelope. She swatched it on the back of my hand, and I fell in love. Gorgeous!)

Next stop on the list was Inglot. I picked up the ever-so-popular AMC Eyeliner Gel in 77. Everybody on Instagram and YouTube has been going crazy over this, after I used it a few times on me (since IMATS), I can definitely see what the hype is about. It is the blackest black gel liner I've used in a while, and it doesn't move at all. This has definitely taken the place of my holy grail L'Oreal Infallible gel liner.

Then I made my way over to Dose Of Colors. This was their first year exhibiting at IMATS NYC, and I was super excited to purchase their liquid lipsticks (since liquid lipsticks has been trending a lot this year). A few weeks prior to the show, Anna (the owner of Dose of Colors) posted on IG that they were releasing their limited edition Terra Collection exclusively at IMATS NYC before launching it on their website later this month (since this is a late post, they already released this). I knew I had to get my hands on this. So, I got the collection, along with their limited edition Black Rose liquid lipstick.

After leaving Dose of Colors, I stopped at Velour Lashes. I've been wanting to try these lashes since I saw Nicole Guerriero (https://www.youtube.com/user/nguerriero19) talking about how these were some of her favorite lashes. These lashes are made of 100% mink hair, and can be worn up to 25 times. (hell, for the prices of these lashes, they better last until forever...lol). At the show, they were selling them for $20 a pair, so I ended up getting three pairs: Girl You Craazy, #WINGing, and T Dot Ohh.

If there was one item that was on my list that I had to have (besides the Sugarpill Pro Palette), that was MacDaddyy's Diamond Glow Powders. For my dolls who don't know who he is, Angel Merino (aka MacDaddyy - https://instagram.com/mac_daddyy/) is a celebrity makeup artist who's very popular on Instagram for his makeup, especially his highlighted cheekbones. He has his own cosmetics line, Artist Couture, which features the Diamond Glow Powders. At IMATS, they were selling their On-the-Glow Powder Bundle deal. This included all of his powders in travel size. Of course, I love me a good highlighter, so of course, I had to get these. (lately, Conceited and Yasss! has been my go-tos. I also use Conceited with my Becca Opal highlighter).

I promised my little sister that I would get her some makeup brushes as a birthday present when I went to IMATS. Question was: Where would I get them from? So many vendors there with amazing brushes. Of course, Sigma had a long ass line as usual (not surprised about that), so I decided to go to Sedona Lace. Like Dose of Colors, this was their first year at IMATS NYC. Sedona Lace has some really good quality brushes, like MAC and Sigma, but unlike MAC, for an affordable price. At MAC, you might spend $100 on three brushes, whereas with Sedona Lace, you can get a set of 12-15 brushes for that amount. In my opinion, this booth had the best discount of the entire day: 50% off all of their individual brushes and brush sets. SAY WHAT?! You know I wasn't gonna turn that down! I bought two of the brush sets that I actually use in my freelance kit. (when I was first building my kit, these were the brushes that I bought. I still have them three years later).

Here's me with my girl Makeup by Ren Ren (https://instagram.com/makeupbyrenren/). I love her!

I wanted to add some more mink lashes into my makeup collection, so I bought two pairs from Mink Wink Lashes, and a pair from Esqido Lashes. So, in all, I ended up purchasing six pairs of mink lashes that day.

After a while, I took a break from shopping and attended some of the seminars on the main stages. Around 2:00 ish, I headed over to the Pier 94 stage to watch my friend Jordan Liberty (https://www.youtube.com/user/givegoodface) at his Editorial Beauty seminar. He was doing a live makeup demo on the editorial look he did for the cover of Make-Up Artist Magazine. I spoke to him earlier that day, and he was telling me how nervous he was to be on stage. I told him he had nothing to worry about, and he was going to do fine. And I was right. He was amazing, and I was in the front row, cheering him on. After his live seminar, he had a magazine signing at the Make-Up Artist Magazine booth. You know I had to support my friend, and get my autographed copy. His work is nothing short of phenomenal.

Of all the people I saw and met that day, the one person that I was the happiest to see was my handsome friend Brian Champagne. I hadn't seen him since last year's IMATS, but we're always in communication with one another. He is a professional makeup artist and world champion facialist who has been in the industry for last 28 years. He was the lead makeup artist for the late Tejano singer Selena for many years, even doing her makeup for her final performance at the Houston Astrodome before her death. Brian is one of the most humble and beautiful people I've met, not just in the beauty industry, but in general. Always having encouraging words, telling me to go forward with my career, and he sees the true potential in me. Thank you my love for being who you are, and thank you for being my friend.

As the day was winding down, and the lines weren't as long as earlier, I decided to make my final purchase at Anastasia Beverly Hills. I knew exactly what I wanted: two of the Dipbrow Pomades. The best thing that has ever happened to my brows. And made me really want them was the price they were. Normally, online, at Sephora, Nordstrom, and Macy's, the normal price is $18, but at IMATS, they were selling them for $13. Nice.

Before I tell you how my overall experience was, there was an issue that happened that I want to discuss. I was hearing that they were banning YouTubers and beauty bloggers from the show, due to the chaos they were causing. Here's my opinion: in a way, I can understand how the people running the show was feeling since it's about the show, and not a meet-and-greet for YouTubers. However, if it wasn't for certain YouTubers, like Jaclyn Hill, Nicole Guerriero, Carli Bybel, and others, a lot of people (including myself) wouldn't know about IMATS. And YouTube is becoming such a powerful form of social media. So, I am bias about the whole situation. I love meeting fellow YouTubers I admire, since I am starting my own YouTube channel later this year. I don't think they should ban YouTubers from IMATS.

Overall, IMATS NYC was an amazing experience. I enjoy myself every year that I attend, and this is my third year going. If you find yourself asking, should I go to IMATS? My answer is yes. It's well worth the time, the money, and the experience itself. Especially if you're just getting into makeup artistry and you're looking to build your makeup kit, this is the place to be. Even if you're a makeup addict and want to keep up with the latest beauty trends, this is the place to be. Will I be attending IMATS next year? Yes I will (that's if they don't kick me out for being a beauty blogger and future YouTuber... lol). Hopefully, I'll be able to finally make it to IMATS LA, since it falls around the week of my birthday. And I will be at BeautyCon NY in October. It's my first one, I can't wait. Next stop: Makeup Show NYC

Stay tuned for part 2 of my IMATS NYC blog series: my IMATS NYC 2015 Haul.

Before I end this blog, here's a brief description of what I wore to IMATS NYC. My Outfit of the Day (OOTD)

Blazer: Ann Taylor Loft (bought at a thrift store)
Cami Top: Forever 21
Boyfriend Jeans: Rainbow
Shoes: Bare Feet
Purse (not shown): BCBG
Jewelry: Swarovski
Makeup: Marcus Miller (https://instagram.com/makeupmanmae/)
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T3i with 18-50 mm Lens