The top makeup artist and design schools in Toronto consider beauty enhancement to be a minor component to a cosmetologist's job. After all, cosmetics are not only useful for vanity's sake, but for reasons that include but are not limited to: zombie replications, drag, properly shaded bruises as an art form, celebrity impersonations, and the occasional prosthetic nose. These schools encourage the innovation of appearances, whether by creating entirely imagined characters or teaching their students how to make the elderly look young (or vice-versa).

Here are my picks for the the top makeup artist and design schools in Toronto.

Complections College of Makeup Art & Design
Complections Makeup (CMU) prides themselves in fostering an artist's freedom of expression - because makeup is art, too! The school, tucked quietly onto Lombard St. downtown, is a top destination for students hoping to break into Toronto's film industry. Those who enroll in the Complete Makeup Artist Program will pick up beauty methods for professional fashion photography, applying realistic, artificial facial hair, and designing and constructing original prosthetic creatures.

SOMA (School of Makeup Art)
Put away your eyelash curlers and blush brushes - SOMA's traded those for fake blood, silicone molds, and other eye-catching prosthetics (if you're into cringing at the sight of someone). Aspiring makeup designers can attend a six-month diploma program to learn transformational makeup practices like how to make skin look burned, old, frostbitten, or deformed. If traditional makeup is more your thing, the 36-year-old institution also offers a 3-month long fashion makeup course to teach you how to look normal, too.

Canadian Beauty College
Canadian Beauty College has seven locations across the GTA, including schools in Newmarket, Mississauga, and midtown Toronto. Their makeup artist diploma course has an impressive historical component - students can learn how to apply and identify a range of beauty styles from the 1920s to the present day. Their curriculum also supplements a business degree with marketing and entrepreneurship sections. If you're just looking to get your makeup done, you can book a student to do a basic application ($15), evening look ($20), prom makeup ($25) or bridal look ($30).

Paramita
While there are many professional makeup artists in the 416 who offer makeup lessons, Paramita is likely the only one that qualifies their studies with the word "bootcamp." The intensive, one-week program covers everything from the beauty basics - skin care, foundation matching, eyeshadow techniques and the like - to developing a solid portfolio and starting a business. Paramita is not locally grown either, instead boasting an international program with locations in Dubai, the Philippines, and New York.

GLOW Academy
GLOW Academy is a M.A.C. preferred institution, which means that if you're brand-loyal and into traditional makeup artistry, GLOW's your best bet. Students can enroll in various levels of training, from a beginner makeup artist's diploma program to advanced bridal, airbrush application, fantasy, and special effects certificates. The tri-location academy (found in Mississauga, Bloor West, and Kitchener-Waterloo) comes with a photography studio, invites to high-end industry events, and a whole lot of zebra print chairs. Score. (If you want makeup help, their students will perform services from a $4 brow cleanup to facials, manicures and makeup application.)

For post-secondary makeup programs in Toronto, check out offerings from Ryerson University, Centennial College and George Brown College.

Writing by Alex Brown.