IMATS Purchases: Hakuhodo, MUFE, Velour Lashes etc

Yesterday at IMATS, I spent the most time at Hakuhodo checking out their makeup brushes. These are truly top of the line hand-crafted brushes with uncut hair that feel incredibly soft against the skin.

After much deliberation, I settled on a Special Kit of six Kokutan brushes plus another five individual brushes. There was actually no discount on Hakuhodo, which was charging the US retail prices, so the main advantange of buying at IMATS was saving on the shipping fees.

The special kit comes with a zip pouch with a shimmery midnight blue finish. The brushes in the set did not have individual numbers, so I'm not sure of the model or type of hair used. The glossy black metal ferrules paired with the ebony wood handles give these brushes a lovely classic feel.

I also picked the G5519BkSL Blush Brush (blue squirrel), B021BkSL, G5528BkSL round eyeshadow brush (blue squirrel), J0305 small eyeshadow brush and G5520BkSL pointed eyeshadow brush (blue squirrel/horse). Again, these are not printed with the model numbers. B021BkSL and J0305 do not appear to be listed on the Hakuhodo website. I picked mostly squirrel hair brushes as these feel amazingly luxurious with a good density.

A reader asked for Hakuhodo brush recommendations but I honestly can't provide any as this is my first time purchasing their brushes and I have not used these yet. The most useful blogs for Hakuhodo recommendations are Glossed in Translation and The Non Blonde.

While searching for a flat-top brush for applying foundation, I settled on the Bdellium #957 Precision Kabuki brush (£7). I haven't heard of this brand before but they take part regularly at the IMATS in the US.


At Guru Makeup Emporium, the Make Up For Ever Wild and Chic Aqua Cream and Aqua Eyes kit was going at just £17.50, down from the usual price of £34.95. Nestled inside the chic violet snake print metal case are two full size Aqua Creams #1 Anthracite and #15 Taupe, plus two mini Aqua Eyes pencils in Matte Black and Pearly Brown.

Velour 100% mink hand-made lashes in You Complete Me (£15). On the Velour website, it is listed at US$29.99.



I've been looking for a brush roll for a long time and finally found one that I liked at Paris Berlin. This was £16 at IMATS, slightly cheaper than the Paris Berlin website where it is listed at €25.


And finally, I also purchased BeautySoClean Cosmetic Sanitizer Mist (£15) for quick disinfecting of powder and cream products.

For me, IMATS was great for getting to see brands that are not widely available. Not all brands offer generous discounts though, so it's worthwhile to do research beforehand to know if you are actually getting a good deal. MAC, Illamasqua and Sleek all offered attractive deals but I wasn't eyeing anything from them in particular, so I could safely pass them by.

Day out at IMATS London 2012

Braved the sub-zero temperature in London this morning to attend IMATS at Alexandra Palace. My husband's eyebrows leapt to the ceiling when I told him last night that the plan was to wake up at 6am so that we could be there at 8.30am. He accompanied me there to make sure that I didn't get lost as we had to take three different buses to get to the venue, and then made the one hour journey home while I took my time exploring the trade show. On the third bus, I spotted Charlotte of Lipglossiping, but was too shy to say hello, to my regret!

It was my first time ever at an IMATS show, so I was looking very much forward to it after having read so much about the previous shows around the world. Upon arriving around the opening time of 8.30am, I was able to pick up my entry bracelet very quickly.

The event was held inside a large, airy hall. There was usually plenty of room to move around without feeling congested.

The MAC stand before the crowds descended.

Inglot had one of the largest booths.

Illamasqua was probably the most crowded booth, even more so than MAC.




Sleek did not have any new i-Divine palettes on offer, which was a bit of a disappointment for me.

At Make-up Atelier Paris, I was actually standing next to Gossmakeupartist but didn't manage to work up the courage to say hello. He is the only makeup artist that I watch regularly on Youtube, and it was just surreal seeing him in real life.

Bdellium Tools

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics

Make Up For Ever

Hakuhodo brushes, where I splurged the most. After playing with the Hakuhodo brushes, the brushes by other brands just felt so much less plush and soft in comparison.





Crown Brushes

Royal & Langnickel brushes.


Velour lashes made of 100% mink. These were retailing between £10-£20 for a pair that can be re-used up to 20 times.

It was great fun walking around watching the various makeup demonstrations, which ranged from incredibly intricate body paint done by air brushing to special effects makeup of the monster variety.








All in all, it was a splendid experience. My only regret is that I was too shy to say hello to Gossmakeupartist and also Charlotte of Lipglossiping. Hope you enjoyed the pictures!

IMATS London 2012

Just purchased my ticket for the IMATS London on 4 February at the Alexandra Palace! After reading so much about previous IMATS events around the world, I'm incredibly excited to finally have the chance to check out the International Makeup Artist Trade Show. OCC, Inglot, Hakuhodo, MUFE, MAC, Illamasqua and Sleek are just some of the brands that will be there. Can't wait! :-)