The second best thing: Grammys #MusicGlam recap in Toronto with Beauty United (photo heavy!)

Photo by Arthur Mola.

Photo by Arthur Mola.

One of my bucket list items is to attend an award show.  Although I have yet to have the opportunity to do so, I had another pretty cool opportunity a couple weeks ago.

If you follow me on Twitter (@ShaynaWiwierski) and Instragram (Shayna_apopofcolour), you would have seen me blowing up your feeds on January 26 for the Grammy Awards.  No, I didn’t get to travel to Los Angeles to watch them in person, but I got another cool opportunity — I got to go to Toronto to watch them and live-tweet them!

Procter & Gamble (Covergirl, Olay, Herbal Essences, Pantene Pro-V, Vidal Sassoon) was the official beauty sponsor for the 55th annual Grammy Awards. Since I am part of their Beauty United program, they flew me to Toronto, put me up at the fabulous Thompson Hotel Toronto, and threw a fun party at the 1812 Lounge in the Thompson Hotel.

It was a long day, but so much fun!  I got picked up by sedan early in the morning from my house and then arrived in Toronto around 2:30 p.m.  From there, a Lincoln Towncar drove me to the Thompson, located at 550 Wellington Street West in Toronto’s Fashion District.

Thompson lobby

elevators room

Room 2

My view!

My view!

The Thompson Hotel has been on my hit-list of places to stay in Toronto for a long time (I’ve always wanted to hit up their uber-exclusive rooftop lounge, which apparently has the best views, but I was told it was closed due to construction), so I was mega pumped to spend a night there.  Last time I went with Beauty United they put us out-of-towners up at Trump Toronto, so this one was a bit different in style.  I love a good boutique hotel (think W Hotels), and this one really delivers.  They asked me at check in what kind of room I wanted, so I requested on with a view of the CN Tower, which gave me a corner location.  There were floor-to-ceiling windows and hardwood floors, and just like at Trump, the lights were electronic, so you pressed a button when you wanted your room light or bathroom light on.  The bathrooms also had heated floors and a giant shower, which I unfortunately didn’t get the chance to use (I was only there for one night and the next day I was teaching a fitness class).

As soon as I got checked in, I made a beeline to Queen Street West, about a 15 minute walk, to H&M and spent way too money, but we don’t get our H&M in Winnipeg ‘til this fall.  After, I walked back in the chilly weather and got ready for the event.

Photo by Arthur Mola.

Photo by Arthur Mola.

Photo by Arthur Mola..

Photo by Arthur Mola..

Photo by Arthur Mola.

Photo by Arthur Mola.

The #MusicGlam Twitter party was hosted by Arianne from The Glitter Geek, who also chose six winners from the night on Twitter who got their own #MusicGlam Grammy gift bag.  The rest of us beauty bloggers were mingling, chatting, and live-tweeting beauty trends from the red carpet.

Most of the action was during the Red Carpet pre-show, where they streamed CityTV’s coverage on three TVs.  During the commercial breaks, people from P&G, as well as Covergirl makeup pro Amelie Ducharme and Pantene Pro-V consulting stylist Justin German chatted with the group about the beauty trends and what we liked and didn’t like.  We also had to choose our favourite hair look of the night and makeup look, which Amelie and Justin recreated live during the event.  After the red carpet, we mingled, watched the Grammys, live-tweeted, and drank and noshed on some fabulous hors d’oeuvres and sweets.  There was also a #MusicGlam selfie mirror and Covergirl and Pantene tables where we could get our makeup and hair touched up and learn about new products.

Photo by Arthur Mola.

Photo by Arthur Mola.

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Photo by Arthur Mola.

Photo by Arthur Mola.

Photo by Arthur Mola.

At the end of the night, we all got gift bags filled with Covergirl, Olay, and Pantene products.  I ended up retiring in my uber-comfy bed and then had to get up early for the flight home.

With Ande from thebeautyblog,ca, Elaine from Toronto Beauty Reviews, and Christa from Perilously Pale. Photo by Arthur Mola.

With Ande from thebeautyblog.ca, Elaine from Toronto Beauty Reviews, and Christa from Perilously Pale. Photo by Arthur Mola.

With Christa from Peri

With Christa from Perilously Pale. Photo by Arthur Mola.

Although it was a quick trip, I had such a blast; it’s not everyday where I get to fly to Toronto to just watch the Grammy Awards.  Also, it was so nice seeing other beauty bloggers again and meeting new ones.  Seriously, everyone was so nice (you just go up to someone, be like “hay!!!” and then hug them), and it was so cool that they actually knew who I was (small town moment – okay, Winnipeg isn’t that small, but there’s not a lot of beauty bloggers here).

Special thanks to Jenn and all the MSL and P&G people for making us Beauty United bloggers feel so special.

Enjoy the photos :).

with arianne

With Arianne from The Glitter Geek (our host for the night!)

Group

L to R: Elaine, Dee, Sandra and me!

doing makeup

With Montreal bloggers Ellie Somfelean and Alexa Lowe.

With Montreal bloggers Ellie Somfelean and Alexa Lowe.

One more thing, don’t forget to enter my Matrix Valentine’s Day giveaway!

Disclosure: I am a #BeautyUnited blogger. As part of my affiliation with this group I receive products and special access to P&G events. The opinions on this blog are my own.

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