Scavengers Get Free Lashes…and Marvelous Memories

Premiere Orlando has come and gone, but the memories will last forever—as long as you didn’t drink too much at that happy hour mixer, that is. There were classes and competitions, as well as community…oh, and a really great sales floor, too. I scoured the event for the items on my list, some of which I found, some of which I’ll have to save for next year. Now, as promised, let’s see what my scavenger hunt yielded.

1. Get a certification

So I’m a tad bit confused about whether this “technically” counts as a certification, or if it’s just a pretty piece of paper (since the company stated that no certification would be offered). But regardless…a pretty piece of paper, yay! Received upon completion of “The Business of Brows” by RefectoCil.

Regardless of whether the certification is technically “real,” I will probably rave about this class until next year’s Premiere.

2. Sensory Safe Solutions booth

This is one that I sadly didn’t get to cross off my list. “The Business of Brows” took up my entire Saturday, and on Sunday I got sucked down the sales floor rabbit hole and then finished up my day with a class on cannabis in skincare. I’d hoped to track down these lovely people after the class, but by the time it ended, my group was ready to leave. So blame them, not me. Meh.

3. Find Molly!

Sadly, this also didn’t happen. I like to think we were both too caught up in the lights and sounds of the sales floor to be able to track each other down.

Or busy hiding from them…

4. Most outrageously priced food item

I paid $23 for a peanut butter and banana crepe and a Gatorade. Enough said.

5. Get permanent makeup

Wasn’t in the stars, mainly because the booth wasn’t there this year. I did, however, get two permanent bracelets! *Bling, bling!* One from Everlinx was FREE with a subscription to their mailing list. I had to pay for the second one from Linked, but it was well worth it! I also purchased the Linked training and machine, so stay tuned for updates on that side quest.

6. Find motivation to *FINALLY* take the State Board Exam

The motivation was all around me…on the sales floor, in the licensed beauty professionals I rubbed elbows with, and in the classes…especially “The Business of Brows,” which further cemented my desire to become a brow artist. I will be registering for Boards right after I finish moving at the beginning of August…after all, there’s only room for so much chaos in one’s life.

7. Most novel thing on the sales floor

It wasn’t a product, a service, or a person…it was a display. An entire structure, if I do say so. It was on the sale floor in the hair section, it was two stories tall (both functioning and weight-bearing, I believe), and it was decked out like a Western saloon. Needless to say, it was very, very cool. But did I think to take a picture, or even look to see what brand it was repping? Of course not! Who do you think I am? Little Miss Memory and Forethought? Ugh! As if! (If you didn’t just hear that in Cher Horowitz’s voice, you’re doing it wrong.)

I think the booth was dedicated to selling hair tools. Did anyone else stop to gawk at it?

8. Something new I learned

At the tail end of my last day in the dreamscape fantasy land that is Premiere, I took a class called, “Innovations in Cannabis-Infused Skincare,” taught by Jordan Person-Owens, LPN, LMP, cannabis massage therapist, and founder and owner of Primal Healing Topicals, a cannabis-infused skincare line. (What a mouthful, right??) As a future esthetician, I was astounded to learn what a powerful tool cannabis can be in skin’s healing and recovery, and amazed at the “Before and Afters” that spoke for themselves. As a medical cannabis patient myself, I shouldn’t have been too surprised, since I’ve experienced firsthand the wonders it can do for my body. And because I’m a medical cannabis patient, I was shocked how little I actually knew about the science of how it actually works in the body. Now all I need is a trip to Colorado to experience a cannabis massage myself. So if anyone feels like treating me…wink, wink…

9. Something I want but can’t afford

The short answer is…everything. I bought a few little things but couldn’t justify anything more expensive than a tube of the (most magical iridescent) lip gloss. But let’s see how things change when I’m licensed and making those BBBs. (Big Beauty Bucks, for the uncultured.)

I totally just made that term up. Let’s see if it catches…

10. Favorite class I took

Well, considering that I only took two classes, it’s hard to choose. Do I really have to? 

(Cue the moment when I remember this is my blog and I do what I want here.)

With that being said…

Both classes were incredible. “The Business of Brows” by RefectoCil was a six-hour-long (whew!) in-depth course on the theory and practice of brow lamination and brow tinting, as well as a deep dive into their products—namely their Intense Bro(w)ns collection. By the end of it, I had laminated, mapped, and tinted a pair of brows—and not to toot my own horn or anything, but I think they came out pretty darn good. I also had my own brows laminated and tinted, which unfortunately didn’t last due to some clumsy facial cleansing. But all in all, it exceeded expectations and made me feel excited to pursue brows as a career and *somewhat* confident in my ability to perform the steps, although I need a lot more training and practice!

11. Something that points me towards my specialty

I feel like I’ve already touched on this one, but…”The Business of Brows” wins this category hands-down. I. Think I gravitate towards brows because of my (questionably healthy) tendency to zero in on ultra-minute details and work my butt off trying to perfect them. Seriously. I cannot imagine for the life of me being a jack-of-all-trades esthetician. All those different things *shudders.* As much as I wish otherwise, I am not someone who can do a million different things well. I need to pick one thing, just one thing, lock on, and not let go until it’s absolutely perfect. Obsessive? Possibly. Effective? Questionably. But it’s how I roll, y’all.

12. All freebies

The only freebies I received were a makeup brush, a makeup remover wipe, and a set of press-on lashes, all of which I was given at the 3 JJJ Productions makeup competition. The brush I caught as it flew through the air, just like everybody else. The lashes? Well, I was using my cane that day. The guy throwing the lashes took one look at it and just handed me a set. Disability win, I guess?

13. Best freebie

Since I don’t really do fake lashes often, the makeup brush is definitely the most practical. But I’ll keep the lashes around in case I ever need them—which is my go-to excuse for hanging onto everything from extra charging cables to random shiny things, like some deranged crow.

14. Most WTF product, service, or class

This should’ve been a no-brainer…but it wasn’t. So I guess my most WTF moment was that I failed to find one…or at least recall one. Who knows? Maybe I saw something so utterly shocking and traumatizing I simply erased it from my memory. It’s been known to happen. 

15. A class I wanted to take but couldn’t

I know there was one. In fact, I marked it in the Premiere Orlando booklet (which I’ve since thrown away in the frenzy of moving) and planned to attend after “The Business of Brows.” However, I got to talking with a fellow student in that class, and two hours later we were still chatting, laughing, and trauma-dumping. So I may not have made it to the class, but I left with a real, live industry contact!

BONUS: How long can I last in heels?

Turns out, eight hours, forty-eight minutes, and twenty-three seconds, probably due to the fact that I chose the chunky Mary Janes over the pumps. My toes did end up going numb, but hey, beauty is pain.