Airdrie’s budding beauty experts showed off their skills Dec. 4 at Rocky View Schools’ fourth annual cosmetology competition.
Hosted at W.H. Croxford High School, the event featured 30 students from Airdrie and Chestermere. Local competitors came from the cosmetology streams at W.H. Croxford High School, Bert Church High School and George McDougall High School.
According to Charlene Wight, cosmetology teacher at W.H. Croxford, the event acts as a precursor for the Skills Canada Alberta high-school cosmetology competition, held each April.
“It is also an event that will bring the school community and the professional community together in a real-life setting,” she said. “It would be like any school hosting a competition for fun, but it’s also a way for students to see what they’re competing against.”
This year, the competition included two categories – hair styling and esthetics – with six skill-based subcategories that correspond to the curriculum. In the hair styling category, students displayed their braiding and bridal styling techniques; while in the esthetics category, students demonstrated their nail art and makeup application skills.
Six judges, all of whom have professional experience in the beauty industry, selected the winners.
“One judge was from Redken Western Canada, and is a teacher for the company,” Wight said. “There was a judge who works in the movie industry doing theatrical makeup, a judge on maternity leave who owns a salon in her house, a judge who works in a salon and a judge who previously worked in a salon.”
Isabella Tonelli, who won the Fantasy Makeup category, said she enjoys how cosmetology allows her to experiment with expressing herself. The Grade-11 George McDougall student added she liked how the competition allowed her to showcase her talents to professionals
“I want to become a makeup artist and taking cosmetology will help me get into a makeup school once I graduate,” she said.
“It’s my passion, [and has] been an outlet for me for many years. I hope to make a lifelong career out of it.”
George McDougall was the most successful school at the competition, finishing first in the three makeup subcategories, as well as the nail art and bridal hair competitions. According to the school’s cosmetology teacher, Shauna Taves, George McDougall sent 15 students to the competition.
Taves, who has been teaching cosmetology at George McDougall since 2014, said the discipline is a great elective for students to take, considering the skills learned are useful along many different career paths.
