Nothing to Disclose/Press Gift
I hope you have your cup of coffee, juice, or whatever you need to sit back and take a look at my experience at Indie Expo Canada in Toronto. This event took place on June 10th at the Hyatt Regency, right in the heart of Downtown Toronto. There was a variety of nail polish and bath and body vendors and I have some information about each one!
I left all the photos in full size, so give a click for a closer look! Also, I've linked each brand below for quick shopping!
Girly Bits is the brand that actually runs Indie Expo and created this entire event! Girly Bits is one of the OG indie brands, beginning in 2011/2012. She debuted her newest collection of Concert Series polishes as well as her new Bridal Bliss Collection! Girly Bits had great promotions, and I loved the free tumbler with 5 polish purchase! There were three limited editions as well as her new Boo Boo Butter. Girly Bits also offered her stamping plate, stampers, and her entire top and base coat line. There was so much to purchase! Pardon my photos—I was actually working the Girly Bits table and by the time I took pictures, many colors sold out!
Girly Bits is the brand that actually runs Indie Expo and created this entire event! Girly Bits is one of the OG indie brands, beginning in 2011/2012. She debuted her newest collection of Concert Series polishes as well as her new Bridal Bliss Collection! Girly Bits had great promotions, and I loved the free tumbler with 5 polish purchase! There were three limited editions as well as her new Boo Boo Butter. Girly Bits also offered her stamping plate, stampers, and her entire top and base coat line. There was so much to purchase! Pardon my photos—I was actually working the Girly Bits table and by the time I took pictures, many colors sold out!
Inspired Sense began around 2015 when Trish was sick. She wanted to create a system with natural and simple ingredients. She took a class on aromatherapy and how to use essential oils and it blossomed into the business she has now. Her line contains body butters, sugar scrubs, cuticle oils, wax melts, nail decals, and more. Inspired Sense also has a nail polish line, which began last year after she took the nail polish making class at Indie Expo 2017! Each polish will eventually have a coordinating charm.
Rogue Lacquer was not present physically at the expo, but she did have a booth. Rogue Lacquer debuted her two new collections, as well as a special duo with Ever After. There were only 20 sets available.
Beyond the Nail began in 2013 and is most known for their soft neons. This brand is a sister duo. They are super different from one another but found that nail polish is their common interest, and began Beyond the Nail together (love that!). The soft neons are gorgeous, and I’m really bummed that I didn’t get back to their booth to shop, like really bummed. At these events, it seems like 6 hours is so much time, and it just wasn’t. Beyond the Nail will be joining Polish Pickup in the near future!
Canvas Lacquer started around 3-4 years. Like myself and so many of us, they began with a love of nail art and saw a lack of certain colors for certain arts. They had two exclusives for the event. I LOVE that they have an ongoing Simpsons collection. If you didn’t know, my boyfriend loves the Simpsons and I do too! I loved all the Simpsons-themed names which coordinated well with the colors. Canvas Lacquer also has floral cuticle oils with real flowers in them and body shimmer oils made with coconut, grapeseed, and almond oils.
Bee’s Knees launched in September 2017, which means they haven’t even been around for a year yet, but they have exploded onto the indie scene! This Virginia-based indie began working with another indie and split to create their own line. They are most known for their creative magnetic polishes with flakes. The Magician was their hit color, which really launched them into indies (and this color sold out at the show before I could get one!). They debuted Part 1 of their new collection at Indie Expo and Part 2 at Polish Con and will have a new stamping line.
Ever After began in 2014 and has been consistently making polish and bath product since. The owners were huge collectors of Julep polishes and decided to try making their own polish. Ever After debuted their Greatest Showman collection at Indie Expo and had a gorgeous blue exclusive. To go with the Greatest Showman theme, they have a whole line of carnival/circus themed waxes, lotions, cuticle crellies with scents like popcorn, snow cone, and more!
Cuter Cuticles is a Canadian-based bath and body maker that began around 4 years ago. She started with doing nail art and needed more cuticle products that were in fun scents beyond the same old lavender and pink sugar. She started experimenting and her friend said “I would buy this!” and that’s how Cuter Cuticles began!
Fair Maiden was not physically present at the expo, but sold a gorgeous exclusive Siren-ade and their two new collections which debuted at the expo.
SoGa stands for soap gallery and this Canadian-based company makes the most delicious smelling soaps, bath bombs, bubble bars, and more. Everything is vegan and cruelty-free and made in small batches. The owner was actually in the medical field and switched to making soap full time!
Turtle Tootsie began in July 2015 and the owner was very excited to finally get a passport and come to Canada for the expo! She had three show exclusives and debuted her new summer foils at the show. She also makes lip balms and sugar scrubs. I asked her about her favorite scents and she loves Cucumber Melon and Love Spell.
Alter Ego has been around since 2012! I remember when that was really the first use indies began to appear. She debuted her new matte top coat, She Matters. Cynthia also debuted her new base coat (Tenacious and Sticky Situation) and Ridge Filler (Smooth Operator). She had one limited edition polish for the expo which will be available online after! She debuted her new Velocirapture collection as well, which are 1-2 coaters and stampers (I know this, since I’ve swatched themalready!)
Native War Paints began in March 2014 and has quite the catalog of colors! Just look at how many they brought with them! They had three limited edition polishes which will be online after (but not at the show price of $9). They had their dirty neons, brights, and even magnetic neons! They also shared their Star Wars duos with Bluebird Lacquer and their Shimmer Me Box. They also offer lip balms and cuticle oils.
Clionadh began in the summer of 2016 so they are about to hit their 2 year anniversary! The name is based off the Irish goddess of love! It’s a sister-run business and they do everything from hand paint the palettes to the photography of products! They have shadows and highlighters and will be expanding to matte blushes in the near future. Their palettes will be restocked in July! Their makeup is vegan and cruelty-free; it’s just the pigment!
My Indie Polish began in 2012 and is Canadian-based. They actually began in 2007 and was bath and body-based with lotions and wax melts. There was a great IEC limited edition trio and any overpours will be online later!
Paint It Pretty is only about to be one year old and started making polish out of the love of it. Polishes are 5-free and this Canadian-based maker had one exclusive and a few LEs that will be available at the end of July. She will have 6 new magnetics debuting in July and her first collection, A Day at the Beach, is still her best-seller. I asked about her favorite finish and she quickly said thermal! And her nail art matched the IEC logo and colors!
Fiendish Fancies started in June 2015 so they just celebrated their third anniversary! All of their nail polish is inspired by horror fiction and film. She used to design and make zombie babies and found that the paint was flat and dull and that she would reach into her polish stash for more unique paint; this is what lead to her brand! How fun!
CbL began in 2011 and has been releasing collections consistently since then. She debuted her new Beach Collection at the expo which includes 3 cremes, 2 shimmers, and 4 aurora pigment polishes. She also debuted her new skin care line which she has been testing. She wanted items with words she could pronounce that is organic, natural, vegan, and has essential oils. Right now, there will be three scents: beach, citrus, and natural. These will debut on July 1.
Lyn B Designs was not physically present at the show, but brought with them lots of gorgeous colors! Again, I took photos toward the end of the show, so that’s why it may look a little barren.
Terrah Essentials began around 2012 and is owned by a licensed cosmetologist and hairstylist. She realized that the hair dyes and chemicals gave her headaches and wanted to research a way to make hair and body products with natural ingredients and no toxins. She currently sells through her new website as well as in her salon.
Green Glitter is a new company, having only started this year! The owners are circus performers and so they love their glitter! But glitter is actually bad for the environment as the plastic ends up in our oceans, so they created a biodegradable glitter so you can help the environment. They are the only ones in Canada with this glitter! You can use the glitter as makeup on your face, your nails, anything!
And here are some action shots from the tutorial table I hosted. We were pressed for time, so the tutorial was a little chaotic but we did smoosh manis with negative stamping, sharpie stamping, and gradients. More people ended up coming so I tried to give as much information as possible. I think people got the basics and I hope everyone tries it at home!
Here are the contents of the VIP bag that I was gifted. I will be back in early July with swatches and a full review of the bath and body products. I think there's definitely a great amount of items and a nice assortment of polish and bath/body products!
So do you think you'll make it to Indie Expo Canada next year? For me, the drive was 8 hours and really not bad and it was such a fun weekend. Hopefully, I can go next year!
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