Hello readers,
This past weekend I had the opportunity to attend the first ever Indie Expo Canada in Toronto, Ontario as part of the official press team. It was so much fun getting to meet so many fellow polish addicts, makers and bloggers in person. Of course I also had a great time shopping and picking up lots of new goodies for my collection. Let's take a look at who was there and what they had up for grabs.
Alter Ego Body Care Products
I had the chance to meet Cynthia, the face behind Alter Ego. While nail polish is her staple offering, she has also ventured into the realm of body care including items like bath products and solid lotions. Fun fact, the faceted bottles Alter Ego uses for their polishes are actually sold as perfume bottles. Finding caps and brushes to match required some extra effort, but it certainly paid off. You can find Alter Ego Body Care Products on
Beyond The Nail
Beyond The Nail is a Toronto based indie run by sisters Krystyn and Maddy. They specialize in nail polish and have the biggest variety of nail vinyls I have ever seen. Their brand, which opened up shop in early 2014, grew out of a personal obsession with polish and a desire to create high quality, unique polishes to help people take their nails to the next level. You can find Beyond The Nail on
CANVAS Lacquer
Toronto-based CANVAS Lacquer is run by long-time friends Alana and Lan. Everything CANVAS is limited edition as they don't repeat batches, so if you see something you love, grab it while you can. The star of their booth was their dried flower cuticle oils, which seemed to grab everyone's attention. I learned that they even dry some of the flowers themselves which makes each bottle even more special. How they get the flowers in the bottle intact? That's their little secret. You can find CANVAS Lacquer on
Colors by Llarowe
Colors by Llarowe (CbL) certainly wins the award for glowiest display. Her color changing polish racks and logo were mesmerizing. CbL was started in 2011 when owner Leah Ann noticed there was a gap between what was available in the market and what her imagination desired. You can find Colors By Llarowe on
Clionadh Cosmetics
Clionadh Cosmetics is run by sisters Leigh and Maggie and based out of Toronto. They specialize in unique highlighters and blush toppers as well as crazy pigmented eyeshadows. All of their products are vegan and cruelty-free. I know my hands were covered in a rainbow of shimmer and sparkle from testing out all the products at their booth. You can find Clionadh Cosmetics on
Cuter Cuticles
I had a chance to meet the wonderful Sammy (and Mr.Sammy) at the Cuter Cuticles booth. Their shop offers up everything you need to keep your hands and cuticles looking and smelling great! I am so sad that in the whirlwind of trying to visit everyone during shopping time I completely forgot to go back and stock up on some cuticle oils. Guess I'll have to make a visit to their website soon. You can fine Cuter Cuticles on
Ever After Polish
I had the opportunity to meet Rachel and Miranda from Ever After polish. They started their indie polish brand in 2014. Over the last year or so they've also expanded to include items like their hand lotion 'crellies', lip balms, bath products and more. You can find Ever After Polish on
Fair Maiden Polish
Sarah are Adrienne are the faces behind Fair Maiden Polish. What started as a hobby to create unique polishes for themselves turned into a business and it's been growing in the indie world ever since. The ridiculously bright neons (along with matching ponies) definitely made you want to visit their booth. You can find Fair Maiden Polish on
Fiendish Fancies
I met Lara, the owner of Fiendish Fancies, and learned that IEC coincided with Fiendish Fancies' second anniversary. Happy second birthday Fiendish Fancies! This brand takes inspiration from horror movies of all kinds. That doesn't mean that all her shades are dark and mysterious. Even pretty pastels can draw on darker themes. You can find Fiendish Fancies on
Girly Bits Cosmetics
I got to meet Pam and Tara from Girly Bits even though they were super busy running around since Girly Bits was the official event organizer. Thank you for all your hard work putting together this great expo! Girly Bits has been around since 2011 making amazing indie polishes. Over the last year or so they've expanded to also stock some other international brands. Their cult favorite Shift Happens made a rare appearance this weekend and I saw people snatching them up as fast as they could be replenished on the table. You can find Girly Bits Cosmetics on
Great Lakes Lacquer
I got to meet the lovely Mariah of Great Lakes Lacquer which is a brand that has certainly popped up on my radar over the last year. Her lacquers aim to remind you of a special moment or memory captured in colour. See that swatch stick at the bottom right? I came back to buy it but sadly the shade was sold out. Guess I'll be visiting the website soon. You can find Great Lakes Lacquer on
Hit The Bottle & Beautometry
Therese and Teresa from Beautometry were at IEC representing Hit The Bottle and Beautometry. Hit The Bottle specializes in stamping polishes and they certainly had the entire rainbow covered at the booth. Beautometry is a stockist based out of the US that has a wide variety of indie and mainstream polish brands along with nail art and nail care products. They brought some stampers and stamping plates so you had everything you need to create that perfect stamped mani. You can find Hit The Bottle on
You can find Beautometry on
Lovacado
Lovacado imports extra virgin avacado oil from Mexico and add their own blend of essential oils to create a natural multipurpose serum for hair, hands and skin. I tried out the sweet orange scent at their booth and it smelled delicious. You can find Lovacado on
Moo Moo's Signatures
Singapore based Mei Mei is the face behind Moo Moo's Signatures. They've been selling nail polish and collector needle felted animals since 2015. You've gotta admit that their logo is pretty adorable. You can find Moo Moo's Signatures on
Native War Paints
I met Amanda and Brian at the Native War Paints booth. Amanda was rocking a dress covered in Native War Paints logos. That right there is dedication to your brand. Though they are most known for their shimmers, NWP creates a wide variety of finishes. I'm personally looking forward to their upcoming Nifty Shifty collection which was previewed at IEC. They also had a variety of cuticle oils and lip balms for sale. You can find Native War Paints on
Pahlish
Shannon and Josh are the faces behind Pahlish. Though they weren't able to attend personally, their booth was manned by some wonderful volunteers. They aim to provide unique and unexpected shades to polish lovers around the world. You can find Pahlish on
SoGa Artisan Soaperie
Louise came from Winnipeg to bring SoGa soaps to IEC. They look good enough to eat - but don't. Do smell though as there were so many amazing scents. SoGa soaps are handcrafted in small batches. They're made using only natural vegetable oils, exotic butters, clays and botanicals which are vegan and certified cruelty-free. Along with more traditional soaps they also offer a variety of bath and body products. You can find SoGa Artisan Soaperie on
Superficially Colorful Lacquer
Superficially Colorful Lacquer is an Israeli-based indie brand offering nail polish, bath and beauty products. Though the owner Jin wasn't able to attend in person, there were some very helpful volunteers manning the table. The brand reflects Jin's love for all things beauty and aims to share this through vegan and cruelty-free products. You can find Superficially Colorful Lacquer on
Tonic Polish
Lindsey and Amy went for a minimalist aesthetic at the Tonic Polish booth. Unfortunately, this wasn't by choice since Canada Customs was holding most of their stock for the show hostage. As a last minute workaround, the Tonic team brought all the polish they could be fit in their suitcases and also gave out free shipping vouchers to use on the website later. I know I definitely appreciated that solution to a not so ideal situation. Tonic Polish is a newer addition to the indie world having launched in mid 2016. If the line ups at their booth are any indication, they've gained quite the following in the indie community. You can find Tonic Polish on
Conclusion
I definitely had a blast at IEC. You can tell from the pictures that will power and a well adhered to shopping list were a must. There were so many amazing polishes, bath & body products and cosmetics to pick from. Thank you so much to all the organizers, vendors, volunteers, bloggers and attendees for making the weekend such a success. I hope this will be the first of many Canadian indie expos to come.
Happy polishing,
Michelle
Great coverage! It was so nice meeting you :)
ReplyDelete- Maddy (Beyond the Nail)
Thanks so much Maddy! It was lovely meeting you and Krystyn as well!
DeleteI loved reading about all the other brands that I didn't get to see. Great post!
ReplyDeleteLoved the post. Beautiful photos!
ReplyDeleteThank you Rebecca!
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