Wednesday, July 6, 2011

THE COUNTDOWN

Today is my last official day at NBU. I visited financial aid yesterday asked how many hours I had left. The fin aid lady smiled and said, "9 hours to go! Congratulations!" I felt a lump in my throat. I clock out at 9PM tonight and my hours are complete. I can hardly believe it. I’m reflecting, but refusing to get weepy-eyed.

I keep thinking back over the past 10 months and wondering where all the time has gone. It seems like just yesterday I sat in the lobby of NBU and marveled at what a sexy place it seemed to be - -everyone all in black, tattoos and piercings proudly accepted, fun music blaring. Now I’ve seen a little behind the curtain and understand a lot more about the beauty industry - - good and bad.

 I still love it.

 Last night I looked around at my classmates and thought about the amazing time we’ve had. Something reminded me of the HBO series Band of Brothers. Ok, so this is hardly a war - - even I realize that. But there is something magical about accomplishing what we’ve accomplished together. We’re all working  a day job, paying for class ourselves, managing relationships and families. It was apparent to me - - there’s  something special that develops when you trust someone to put peroxide chemicals on your eyelashes. You begin to break it down and talk about a family member’s cancer diagnosis, alcoholism, or a spouse's unfaithfulness. There’s something about the beautification process that’s way more significant than the actual “improvement” to the outside appearance.

I’ve heard people talk about how this industry gets in your blood. I get that now. Despite the long hours and the weekend work, I can’t imagine not working in it in some capacity. This brings me to my new beauty venture, which makes me smile. I call it TANtaleyes. Without going into too much detail here, I’ll give you the website – www.thetanartist.com.

I’m excited and I've been singing a line from the only song I know by Semisonic. “Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end. Yeah...” –Closing Time (Circa 1999)

Gettin’ Beauty Schooled,
Rita

For your enjoyment - a few more pics from my beauty school memoirs that didn't make the cut to a blog... 

The first man wax in our class. It was only arms, but we were still excited.

Clearly I was excited about receiving my Smashbox Pro card. Not sure  I've even used it more than one or twice!

The night I broke my purple leopard print phone case. What's beauty school without some kind of animal print?

When the temp got below 60 degrees, we resorted to spa robes to keep warm. 

I meant to do a blog on these things - - the new Kiss lashes with application strings. I wasn't a fan, but I've already adopted my technique. If you've had trouble with applying lashes in the past - - you might want to try them. They are super cheap and at the drug store. 

One of my fave pics of school. My teacher had just had a Jessner's chemical peel. Her skin was coming off in sheets! 

My final state board exam kit. Complete with sheets, a tunic, paper towels, sanitizer, tweezers, mock wax, the list could go on and on.... 

Everything has to be labeled in the state board kit. 


The six "smaller" kits I have to use for state board to test out for things like, steaming someone's face, using a face vac, brushes, waxing eyebrows, etc. 

20 comments:

  1. I j found Adventures of a Beauty School Drop-In today, so I obv have a lot of catching up to do. Before I get busy reading your cosmetology school experience -- congrats on finishing beauty school! This post was really inspirational and the photos are a lot of fun, so I think I'm due for a glass of wine and a good blog read. ;) Looking forward to following your new project, too. So I take it you would recommend the beauty school experience to others?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Love your blog! It is too cute and very inspiring. Thanks for the great info and the sharing of your insights. You have inspired me to go to hair school!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I really love reading your blog to learn new things! Thank you so much for taking the time to write it! Good to have diploma from
    beauty schools.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Did you go to esthetics school in Toronto? I want to go to a beauty school, but I can't decide which to go to.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Many professionals now have a laser hair removal specialist to attend school and become a rewarding career are selected for admission.Laser course | Diploma of Beauty

    ReplyDelete
  6. Beauty school is really good route for women and men to go down. There is always going to be a need for them, and along with that you'll learn skills that you can use for the rest of your life. I don't know much about it, but I have friend that have done it, and they loved it.

    http://www.cosmotechschool.com/admissions/

    ReplyDelete
  7. I would love to go to hairdressing school. I've been considering this since I was a sophomore. I'm hoping to make this dream come true. http://www.hairdressing.ca/

    ReplyDelete
  8. You had such a great experience. It seems like you have learned so much! I'm glad beauty school could do that for you. I am thinking about going into beauty school myself. http://www.schoolsofcosmetology.com/THG_About.html

    ReplyDelete
  9. I have been debating on whether I want to go to cosmetology school. I have always loved wearing and doing make up, but haven't always been the best. i think I do pretty well now, but would like to learn how to do it professionally.

    Alena | http://www.capilo.com/html/cosmetology.html

    ReplyDelete
  10. I appreciate you sharing this info! My wife is thinking about going to beauty school, but doesn't really know what to expect if that's the route she chooses. I thought I would look some stuff up for her to look at, and I think she would really enjoy this.

    http://www.canadianbeautycollege.com/w_location_toronto.aspx?

    ReplyDelete
  11. It looks like you are having a blast with cosmetology school! I think that it is so great that you are getting your experience in as well with waxing arms- it can be harder than it looks. It is fun to see your advancements in the world of cosmetology and I look forward to seeing your other accomplishments!

    http://www.schoolsofcosmetology.com/THG_Cosm.html

    ReplyDelete
  12. Congratulations! All the blood, sweat, and tears were worth it to get to this moment. You can walk away proud. And with a new venture already started! You're ahead of the cosmetology game, and going to go far.

    Jenn | http://cannellabeautyschools.com

    ReplyDelete
  13. Your experience in beauty school sounds amazing! I've always wanted to be a cosmetologist, but it seems like it could cost a lot to go to a good school and requires a great amount of time. However, in your post, I realized what a good experience it could be. Reading about your interactions with your fellow employees and your customers, I think I may give it a try. http://cannellabeautyschools.com/cbs_financialaid.html

    ReplyDelete
  14. My sister was thinking about going to a beauty school. It has been very interesting to hear about what she learns. There is a lot more to beauty and matching than I thought. http://www.cosmotechschool.com/

    ReplyDelete
  15. I love the kinds of products you use in beauty school. It has been a dream of mine to become a cosmetologist and also work with fake eyelashes. I love helping people feel beautiful. http://www.cosmotechschool.com/admissions/

    ReplyDelete
  16. I have been wanting to go to beauty school for quite some time. I know I would be so fun, and I would learn so much. I would love to be a hair dresser, and also do make up. I enjoy dressing others up, and getting all gussied up myself.

    http://www.Cosmotechschool.com

    ReplyDelete
  17. That looks like it would be a lot of fun, if I was a girl that is. My girlfriend has been talking to me about going to beauty school. By the looks of your experience, I would say that it would be a fun and productive thing for her to do. She keeps telling me I should wax my legs, I will never give in. Even after she completes the course, I will never let her do that. http://www.polaris.edu/adult-education/programs/cosmetology-academy/

    ReplyDelete
  18. My daughter is considering going into beauty school. She should look into it some more like this to make sure it is what she really wants. I think it will be a great fit for her though.
    http://www.baltimorestudio.com/location/essex.html

    ReplyDelete
  19. AnonymousJuly 06, 2015

    How do you like going to cosmology school?

    ReplyDelete
  20. AnonymousJuly 06, 2015

    How do you like going to cosmology school?

    ReplyDelete