Play! is a monthly subscription service by Sephora.  It features high end quality products ranging from skin care, cosmetics and fragrance. The subscription cost $10 and you get 6 samples, a playlist booklet and a card or coupon to use on your next store visit. 

Beautycon just redeemed itself in the most awesome way ever!

I remember how awful my 2015 Beautycon experience.  It took me two hours under the scorching sun just to get in the building.  There were no organized lines and there was chaos everywhere.  Inside the Reef, people were grabbing stuff from under the vendor’s table. It was a terrible mess!

Now, fast forward to 2016, Beautycon finally addressed all the complaints and decided to give all the beauty junkies in Los Angeles the best day of their lives.

I was initially apprehensive on attending but I decided to give Beautycon another chance (Thank God, I did). Also, to be able to completely compare both 2015 and 2016 experience, I did exactly what I did last year – I bought a General Admission ticket and I arrived just a few minutes shy of 12:00PM.

The venue was at the Los Angeles Convention Center, which is by far, definitely a much better location choice.  This is where big trade shows are usually held and it can definitely accommodate thousands of guests all at the same time.  Upon arriving at the Convention center, I was already greeted by a line of more or less 1500 girls. The line wrapped around the entire corridor extending to the exit up to the outer part of the building.  Once again, I was under the sun.  I waited just about 10 minutes then the line suddenly started to move. In about 20 minutes, I found myself already inside the hall.

I walked (almost ran) to the main door and had my wristband scanned by the Beautycon attendant. I was ecstatic! I am in! 

I have to say that there were a lot of brands present during the event.  It was a good mix of drugstore and high end products.  There were also vendors selling clothes and make up. Some were giving out samples of food and drinks.

 Beautycon hall map.

There was also a lounge for 21+ years old.  They sold alcoholic drinks in there.  This part was a bit of a letdown for me since last year they had sponsored the drinks for free. The drinks this year ranged from $8 - $10. Boo.

Another upgrade that Beautycon did this year was their ticketing service.  Last year, I purchased my ticket on a discounted price at Living Social. I printed it and I just showed it to one of the girls in the entrance.  My ticket that time was not checked or validated. They glanced at it and allowed me to get in. This year, the ticket was purchased through FlavorUs.  A few weeks before the show, I received a beautiful package containing my wristband with a digital tag, which will serve as my ticket to the show.  In it also include a Beautycon pin and iron-on badge.

  Beautycon 2016 Ticket

The brand experience were pretty awesome.  A lot of the brands gave the attendees an opportunity to try and test their products. Some vendors sold their products for less – A lot of girls flocked to Tarte, Lime Crime, Ardell and Shea Moisture to buy ridiculously discounted items. 

 Quick flowing line at Real Techniques.

As expected the lines to popular brands were extremely long. I was not able to go to NYX and L’Oreal anymore. Some brands had very fast moving lines.  I have to say that the QVC booth was the most organized.  Their line moved quickly and getting the freebie from their booth was fast and hassle free! Of course, it is a given also that most brands will ask you to do something for them in order for you to get a freebie.  It could be as easy as liking or following them on their social media page or it could be as tedious as posting a photo and tagging a million hashtags on your Instagram.  It was both fun and awesome to get something for free!

 Brand Activity at Pixi: Post a selfie on Instagram.  Freebie: Full size liner.

 NYX booth. 

Here are the free stuff I got from the show:

 Freebie from The Glow Recipe.

Since I went to Beautycon mostly for the reason of getting tons and tons of products, I did not really participate in any of the meet and greets.  What I notice though is that since everything is being done inside a single hall, people who were waiting in the lines can see and hear all the interviews and actions happening on the stage. There was also a dedicated meet and greet corner in the hall. I saw that the lines there were pretty long too.  

 Kandee Johnson's meet and greet area.

All in all, I had a good time at Beautycon Los Angeles. I will definitely go next year and I will for sure – get a haulers pass.  Congratulations, Beautycon! You finally did it!