Meet Dawn Walsh
Dawn Walsh is the founder and lead educator of Blink & Brow Co. Academy in Langley, BC, the first lash extension academy in Canada. She's been teaching lash certification since 2011, has certified more than 1,500 artists, and is a co-author of the Beauty Council's BeautySafe Level 2 Lash Extensions course. She still runs a working, insured, two-location lash studio, and has coached hundreds of people into their own businesses, including the first Blink & Brow franchise.
Hi, I'm Dawn. I've spent my whole career doing two things: lashing real clients, and teaching other people how to do it safely and well. I started teaching lash certification back in 2011, and I've been at it ever since.
I want you to know who's actually teaching you before you spend your money, because in this industry that matters more than most people realize.
How I got here
I've been teaching lash extension certification in Canada since 2011. In fact, Blink & Brow Co. Academy was the first lash extension academy in Canada. Since then, I've certified more than 1,500 students. Some came to me as complete beginners looking for a career change. Others were already in the beauty industry and wanted to add lashes to what they offer. A lot of them now run their own studios, I've coached hundreds through opening their own businesses, and our first franchise is up and running.
I didn't come to teaching from a classroom. I came to it from behind the chair, and I never left it.
I helped write the safety standards
This is the part I'm proudest of. I'm a co-author of the Beauty Council's BeautySafe Level 2 Lash Extensions course, the safety program for lash extensions in Canada. We built it alongside a physician, an optometrist, and Health Canada to get the safety piece right.
That work changed how I teach. When you've sat at the table setting the standard for how this is supposed to be done safely, you don't cut corners in your own classroom. So when I tell you why something's done a certain way, it isn't a personal preference. It's the standard, and I helped write it.
I still work behind the chair
I'm not a full-time talker. I still run a working, insured, two-location lash studio alongside the Academy, and I lash real, paying clients every week.
That matters for you as a student. It means the techniques I teach are the ones I actually use, on real people, right now. Lashing changes. Products change, retention challenges change, client expectations change. Because I'm still doing the work, what I teach you is current, not something I learned years ago and never updated.
How I teach
Here's what you can expect in my classroom:
- Small groups. No more than five students per instructor, so I can actually watch your hands and correct you in real time.
- Real models, not mannequins. You'll practice on live models, because that's the only way to learn to work safely near someone's eye.
- Safety first, always. You'll understand not just how to apply a lash, but why each step protects your client. That's what keeps you, and them, safe.
- Support that doesn't stop at the door. I offer follow-up after class. Getting certified is where the real learning starts, and I don't disappear once you've paid.
I'd rather teach you properly and have you leave confident than rush you through and hand you a certificate you're not ready for.
Credentials at a glance
- Founder and lead educator, Blink & Brow Co. Academy, Langley, BC
- Founder of the first lash extension academy in Canada
- Teaching lash extension certification since 2011
- More than 1,500 students certified
- Co-author of the Beauty Council's BeautySafe Level 2 Lash Extensions course (built with a physician, an optometrist, and Health Canada)
- Coached hundreds of people into their own lash businesses, with the first Blink & Brow franchise now running
- Owner of a working, insured, two-location lash studio
Train with me
If you want to learn from someone who's still doing the work and helped set the safety standard, I'd love to teach you. Take a look at my in-person certification classes in Langley, BC, or start with my guide on how to become a certified lash artist in Canada if you're still figuring out where to begin.
Dawn Walsh, Founder and Lead Educator, Blink & Brow Co. Academy. Teaching lash certification since 2011 and co-author of the Beauty Council's BeautySafe Level 2 Lash Extensions course.