Aspire North Wales Clinic

UK Permanent Makeup Conference and Training

The last couple of months have been incredibly busy, with one of my main focuses being on continuing professional development training, to ensure that a first class services is provided to Aspire Health & Beauty clients.

In April I had the pleasure of attending the 2017 UK PMU Conference which was hosted by Theresa Wild. This conference which is now in its second year, is dedicated to Permanent Makeup artists and having heard so many incredible reviews from last year’s event, I knew that I couldn’t miss out this time around.

Over 3 dedicated days, 12 globally acclaimed trainers from both the Micropigmentation and medi-aesthetics fields took to the stage, to demonstrate live their skills and share with us their techniques and tips for success. Due to work commitments I was only able to attend day 1, but the journey from Wales to London Gatwick where the conference was held was well worth the long 8 hour drive.

After a welcome introduction from Theresa herself, renowned PMU artist Will Anthony was first on stage showcasing his ‘King Coil’ device which is truly unique. After a really interesting presentation, he set to work with the assistance of his partner Kristin, a licensed aesthetics nurse to carry out a live demo of his smokey eyelash enhancement technique on a very excited and lucky model. The speed at which he worked and precise detail of his method were truly mesmerising and after coming off stage, he spent quality time getting to know all of the delegates and talking to us about our brand goals and careers, whilst giving feedback on the work we’d produced on latex pads whilst he had been on stage. This 121 time was so helpful as it not only allowed us to make new friends with talented artists such as Will, but also gave us a new found confidence and drive.

If you’ve never had the experience of seeing Will in action, he’s one funny guy who will make you leave the room on cloud nine feeling that you can achieve anything if you work hard enough at perfecting your technique.

Next up was Rita Romo. A former architect graduate, she opened her presentation sharing with us how she’d made the life changing decision to leave behind the world of interiors and engineering and build a career as a world class Microblader and international trainer. Her live demonstration was mesmerising.
Like all the pros she is highly respected and produces stunning work which we all have the opportunity to see regularly on her Baltic Brows social media platforms, however when meeting her and her Manager Migle in person, it’s clear to see why attending events like this are so important. The speed at which she worked and way she approached working on a skin which some technicians would have found extremely challenging was breath-taking. Although this is not a service I personally offer as I favour using a PMU device vs a manual hand held blade, there were many aspects of Rita’s presentation which I was able to learn from. By lunchtime I already felt that I had received value for my money and couldn’t wait for the afternoon to get started.

The way that the event had been organised was just perfect as every decision made had clearly been designed with the benefit of the attendees in mind. Rather than a sit down formal lunch a delicious buffet had been set up in the main atrium area which was complete with palm trees and a 20 ft. waterfall, giving
everyone plenty of time to chat to each other and mingle without feeling awkward.

When I’d arrived the night before I‘d instantly been made to feel welcome as I was invited to join Theresa, her partner Piotr, Nicolle who works closely with Theresa and provides all copywriting and communications for the event, Will Anthony and his partner Kristin for dinner and drinks. As I’m always slightly apprehensive like most of us are when entering a room full of strangers, genuine heartfelt gestures like these meant so much and they continued throughout the event, which made my time attending and investment priceless.

So back to the afternoon and what a way to start it off with no other than the legendary Claire Hobson who gave a presentation and live demonstration of her ombré brows. This is a technique I offer to clients in my salon in wales, so I was really looking forward to seeing Claire live. Her demonstration exceeded my expectations, I honestly could watch Claire work all day. To see the entire room transfixed on the large monitors or diligently simulating Claire’s every hair stroke using their own machines on practice pads was so surreal. I didn’t want it to end, but there was still more to come, oh yes this event just kept on giving….

During a short afternoon break, I only happened to bump into one of my all-time PMU idols, the Queen of Brows herself Tracie Giles who despite being incredibly busy setting up for her presentation the following day, took time to talk to me about the industry and her newly launched IndelibeLiner range of products and pigments which I instantly fell in love with. It was then time to take my seat once again for a tattoo removal demonstration by Linda Paradis.

Now I have to be honest I’m always a little sceptical when new methods are introduced onto the market that claim to rival long standing procedures such as laser tattoo removal, however I’d heard only positive things about Linda and her technique so was really interested to find out more about the Dermo Power device and Tattoo Removal procedure which Linda has developed. The presentation was very detailed and so informative, Linda clearly is someone who is passionate about her work and this came across in her live demonstration which was fascinating to watch.

The technique exceeded my expectations and is certainly something I’ll be looking into investing in soon. As day one came to an end, I had some time to catch up with Jane Davies of DermaSkin Training who I’d recently completed training with. Being able to show Jane some before and after pictures of eye lifts and anti-ageing pigmentation treatments I’d performed over recent weeks on my clients and having the opportunity to discuss the positive feedback I’d been receiving was fantastic and really made the perfect end to what was a truly memorable and very special day.

As a salon owner it’s so important to be able to network with fellow industry professionals, who are not only passionate about retaining high standards and setting first class treatment protocols for their clinics, but who also actively support and encourage each other to take risks and challenge those all too frequent moments of self-doubt. In such a competitive industry there are sadly many who will inevitably ‘borrow ideas’ or try to outdo your bespoke packages, so mixing with such a diverse group of global experts was a joy. I made so many new friends from all four corners of the world as PMUs from the USA, Mexico, Europe, Australia and Asia were present and I can’t wait to see them all again next year, as well as having the opportunity to meet more fabulous artists who will no doubt fly in from all over the globe.

Thanks so much to Theresa and the entire team who must have spent months planning and organising such an amazing conference. Whoever said learning is not fun needs and that after a couple of years in the industry they have nothing more to learn, needs to sign up to the 2018 UK PMU Conference, it won’t disappoint you. For more images of the conference and other masterclasses I’veattend, as well as client before and after photos, some behind the scenes footage of the salon and my gorgeous team, please follow me on Instagram @aspirehealthandbeauty or visit the website www.aspirehealthandbeauty.co.uk and subscribe to our monthly newsletter