I'M GOING TO CLASS | 2016
This past week I spent in Portland, Oregon was an absolute dream. I was in the company of approximately 200 other makeup artist’s from around the world, India, Australia, Finland, Ireland, and more. It was exciting meeting all of these inspiring artist’s with the same dreams + goals. I sincerely hope I can make it to next year's event!
THE MASTERS
We had the opportunity to meet + learn from a handful of master’s in the makeup industry. It was INCREDIBLE! Worth every single penny!!!! Erica Carr really put on a unique event that had the best of the best involved.
Sam Fine
I missed the first day due to flight issues which was really too bad but I did sneak in and catch a half an hour of Sam Fine’s presentation. He was one of the artist’s that I was looking forward to the most. He is the master of African American skin. His clients include Vanessa Williams, Tyra Banks, Queen Latifah, Iman and so many more. Watching someone of that calibre doing makeup was out of this world. His techniques and simply watching how he moved, and used his brushes was fascinating and I realized what it takes to create that level of perfection. I luckily caught him checking out of the hotel on his way out while everyone was still in class as I was sitting in the lobby relaxing and collecting myself after a really crazy couple days of travelling. I timidly went up to him and introduced myself, I always love to see what the people that I admire are wearing and he had on a casual black outfit for travel with a chic all black Louis Vuitton scarf around his neck. He was very nice and I am grateful for that interaction as I missed most of his presentation.
Pati Dubroff
This woman is a total inspiration. I felt I could relate to her the most as far as style + esthetic goes. She enhances exactly what women have rather than faking and making something look unnatural. She has worked on the most famous faces and stayed as humble as can be. I remember hearing her name in makeup school, so to actually get to meet her and watch her create beauty, it was a dream come true. I forgot to get a picture with her, sooooo sad. Maybe next year!
Sandi Linter
This woman is a legend. She has done makeup on everybody who is somebody ,especially in NYC. The client of hers that really got me was Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. She demonstrated a mature style makeup for us and it was magical!
How beautiful + fresh is this look she did below? She used pencil directly onto the skin to create/define the eye crease, this is definitely not something I would have done on a mature client but she made it work so incredibly well. It is a little bit trickier to make mature eyes appear bigger but this crease trick worked.
Reggie Wells
It was a true honour meeting Reggie. For anyone who doesn’t know who he is, he has done Oprah’s makeup for twenty years…..amazing! He is so experienced and full of knowledge and he is certainly not afraid to be honest. His personal story really touched our hearts too. He has a book called Face Painting that I will be hunting for!
Michelle Coursey, Chris Milone + Jessica Padilla
These three NYC based makeup artists taught us about Vintage makeup from 30’s, 40’s + 50’s. I had a lot of interaction with all three of these artists. They were incredibly approachable and full of knowledge. The talent was of course, out of this world. I sat with Michelle + Jessica at lunch one day after Michelle offered to take a look at my portfolio in the buffet line. I can’t even explain what that kindness did to my heart, I felt like a little kid at Christmas. To have someone who works with Pat McGrath show an interest in my portfolio and give honest and real advice was a dream come true in it’s own right. I now know exactly where I want to head with my book. I sincerely hope I cross paths with these three artists again one day….New York is definitely in my heart and I hope that it is in my future.
Roshar
What a genius this man is. Out of all the artists that we learned from, he took the time to come over to me, inspire me and fill my heart with passion during the hands-on portion following his class. I appreciate him as an artist as well as a new inspiration for me. His work is something that if attempted by someone else, can look cheesy but he blows it out of the park into something that looks incredibly majestic + expensive. He really impressed me. I can’t wait to watch what he creates next!
Gregory Arlt
I loved this guy, he had great energy, pure talent and just a wonderful personality that translated through his presentation. I have been captured by Gwen Stefani’s makeup since he started doing it regularly. I didn’t always know who the genius was behind her makeup but I knew it was someone special. His brow work is beautiful. He had great advice and I loved hearing his stories etc. I hope I will get the chance to learn from him again. (above image, not mine)
Julianne Kaye
I took so much from Julianne's class. She has done makeup on Justin Timberlake, Zac Efron, Britney Spears, Gigi Hadid, Selena Gomez (ok fan girling a little bit) and so so many more.. She taught us Men's grooming and let us in on many trade secrets and different ways to make every client feel extra special. I loved her personality and teaching style... I now feel fully equipped to do men's grooming at a high level. I wish I could have seen some of her beauty work too, she's incredibly talented!!!!
(not my image)
Joanna Schlip
Joanna was SO refreshing, raw + real. I loved her presentation so much. It was definitely one of my favorites. When she was young she took the plunge and moved to Paris to pursue her dreams of becoming a makeup artist and working in fashion. This was in a time when no one really knew that makeup artist’s were a thing. Joanna got her audience really involved by asking us to bring up certain products from our purses because real life situations happen when your kit doesn't show up for a huge job. You have to be able to work under pressure. There is ALWAYS a solution. She also threw out products for us at the end of her presentation which was a riot, people were jumping and laughing while trying to catch Marc Jacob lipsticks, RCK body lotion + Ellis Faas Concealers. I caught the RCK + Marc Jacob’s lipstick. So much fun!
Joanna's line of transfer resistant body lotion is available through my friend, Ginette Hall Makeup Artist in Regina, Saskatchewan. www.ginettehall.com
(not my images)
ALEX BOX
Where do I even start????? I have never in my life met anyone more inspiring than Alex Box. She was humble as can be and welcomed me in for a photo with kindness and a warm hug. Her class was different than any of the others, she did not talk, she did not explain anything, she performed for us and it was fucking beautiful. Excuse my french, but seriously, just beyond words. She was interviewed briefly before her performance but I do believe that in order for her to get into that place of creativity, she has to keep the talking prior to a minimum.
She is a true artist and I will never ever forget the 2 hours that we were able to watch a master create a masterpiece with an amazing soundtrack blasting. It was fascinating watching her small interactions with the model throughout and just watching as she bounced up and down singing along to David Bowie as she chose her next pigment, paint or eyeshadow. The textures, use of color and techniques were next level. I hope every artist has the opportunity to take in an Alex Box experience at least once in their life.
THE VENUE
We stayed at the beautiful Hilton Embassy Suites in downtown Portland, Oregon. The rooms that the educators taught us in, were so beautiful. Everything about this event was high class. Erica wanted to create an event that was one of a kind. She said when she thought of the name “Class” it was everything she wanted and more. It was perfect.
FIFTH AVENUE COLLECTION JEWELLERY
I was so happy to wear my favourite Fifth Avenue Collection pieces to another makeup driven event. I kept it simple for my days attending classes but bumped it up for a little extra glam when I met + experienced Alex Box and then of course for the after party!
I am SO impressed with this line of brushes, I grabbed a few + we were given two in our gift bags at the beginning of Class.... These gals are also from Saskatchewan originally so that was even cooler! They have done an incredible job designing this line of brushes and other items for artists to use in our kits. I can't wait to get my hands on more of these innovative and unique brushes!
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING..
If you're a makeup artist and want to learn and be inspired by the best of the best, don't miss this event!
XO I hope to see you there next year! Caitlyn