MicaBella/MicaBeauty: Questions about their products

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I was stopped by a sales lady yesterday as well (and just joined now after searching to see if I got ripped off or something). I saw someone was being sold the face cream for like, 200, and now I don't feel so bad since the lady really did give me a good deal on that, but I paid a bit more on other things (lower than listed price). I was wondering if they give you deals on things even if it's not your first buy from them, since I was considering going back for more eye shadows to try different colors. I ended up spending like, 150 for foundation, blush, 4 eyeshadows, face cream, and a brush. I would say if you do end up buying, don't look interested and they will lower the price for you. And look at online prices first because they will probably match it at least. Ebay also has stuff on sale, so that is worth checking out as well.

I haven't really had much chance to play with it, but the look on my boyfriend's face after the sales lady applied it kind of encouraged me to get it. Plus it didn't end up on his white shirt, and the lip gloss didn't end up on his face so that is a definite plus. I also liked how it got rid of all the redness that took lots of green concealer and loads of liquid foundation before. It is my first time using mineral foundation though, so I don't know if those traits are typical.

 
Here's a follow up to my original post. I posted this in the main makeup section yesterday or the day before.

Update: I have a pending lawsuit against MicaBella in my local court house slated for August. But given the fact they refuse to respond to the WA State Attorney General I doubt the owner or her manager will show up in court. Here's the latest email from the WA Attorney General office.

Dear :

Mica Bella has not responded to our correspondence concerning your complaint.

Our office does not have the legal authority to force either party to respond or resolve disputes. We regret that we are unable to provide further assistance to you in this situation.

Although our office was unable to favorably resolve your consumer complaint, it does not necessarily reflect on the validity of your claim. Nor does it reflect on the fact that our office may determine that legal action on behalf of the public interest is warranted in the future. Your complaint will become part of our public record of this firm’s business practices.

You may wish to contact a private attorney to assist you, or contact Small Claims Court in your County for information on filing a lawsuit. You may find information at the following website:

http://www.courts.wa.gov/newsinfo/resources/?altMenu=smal&fa=newsinfo_jury.scc

We regret that we are not able to help you at this time. The firm’s failure to respond has been noted in your complaint file.

Thank you for taking the time to contact our office.

WALLI GARRETT-LINDSEY Complaint Analyst Consumer Protection Division (206) 464-6686 Fax: (206) 587-5636[email protected]
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So looks like these scam artists are going to get away with it - for now. I'm still waiting for the BBB response to see if MicaBella contacted them or not.

MY OPINION: DO NOT BUY FROM MICABELLA OR ANY OF THEIR KIOSKS BECAUSE THEY WILL NOT REFUND IF YOU HAVE AN ALLERGIC REACTION OR ANY OTHER PROBLEM WITH THEIR OVER PRICE JUNK MAKEUP.

 
That really doesn't surprise me... and here's why: I was out shopping around Christmas time at a mall by my parents. One of the sales girls from Micabella did eventually convince me to take a seat so she could redo my makeup with their cosmetics. At first I wasn't really interested at all, especially since the price seemed way too high and I was trying to shop for gifts for other people at the time. The girl I did obviously find was a bit pushy, but I also didn't think the makeup was terrible, at least visually. I ended up buying some foundation and blush for probably around $40 a piece, two colour pots and a facial peel.

The next morning I tried the facial peel on my face and much to my unpleasant surprise the facial peel was a real nuisance to get off my face as it was balling up and catching on the little hairs on my face! The product obviously wasn't very water soluable as I tried rinsing well with a soft wash cloth and everything, but really the only way I could get the darn stuff off my face was to pick it off, one ball at a time. It was terrible. Anyhow I went back to return it with the receipt in hand as I too was also under the impression they would do a return. Instead they replaced this more expensive product with their less expensive toner trying to insist to me that it was of the same value. I was really getting annoyed so I went to their website to show the girl and the best she could do was give me an additional two eye shadows with my exchange. They didn't even give me a receipt documenting this, so I also found that kinda fishy.

I really wish I could have mustered up the gutts to give them a piece of my mind, but I really just wanted to be done with it... I would have preferred my money, obviously, as I requested, but I was just visiting my family at the time and something usable is better than nothing. Something tells me that even if I was more aggressive it wouldn't have gotten me far since they continued to tell me that I could get a refund in a week once they are moved into the Bay. Course I was thinking, "I can't wait a week as I have to catch a flight back home!"

I later e-mailed them through their website about this unprofessional business practice and the problem I experienced trying to return their product, but no answer and I doubt there ever will be. Buyer beware. That's all I have to say.

 
I love makeup but with my busy lifestyle I have little-to-no time for it, so my routine is usually wash, tone, moisturize/ primer, eyeliner, mascara, out the door.  If I have more time I add shadow and bronzer to the mix.  Either way, pretty low maintenance and nothing on my actual FACE except bronzer sometimes.  I am the kind of girl who buys a mascara (Lancome or other department store) and nurses it until it is GROSS. 

I was at the mall and made a mental decision to buy a new mascara and saw this mineral makeup kiosk and said, "I would like a mascara, what kind do you have?"  She showed me this new one, it looked good I decided to buy it (no matter the cost) and then her sales pushiness came out:  "Well, you know the price of this mascara is $54 but if you purchace any of our kits, I'll give it to you free.."  I said, "This mascara is $54?!?  I was expecting $35 tops..." 1/2 of me was like ohh that sounds great.  1/2 of me was like RUN.

She did a makeup demo by first cleansing (no wash cleanse which is great for when I am in a hurry -which is always!), toner and moisturizer.  I asked how much for these three things, because they smelled and felt and looked great.  She said $100, NO THANKS!

She puts the makep on me and does her blah blah blah stuff, in my head I am thinking, "My face better look like a model or I am not getting any of this stuff."  She hands me the mirror and I was like, "Um, wow, it actually looks REALLY good!"  So I bought the cheapest kit which she knocked down to $72 and threw in the mascara.  I was dissapointed I had to get 2 foundations instead of 1 and a bronzer, but I actually use the darker foundation as the bronzer and the lighter color as the foundation.  The blush looks really good and the eye shasow is awesome.  The brushes that came with the kit are crap and shed all over my face, but I have good brushes, so I don't care.  The mascara is awesome.  Most mascara is "starchy" after it drys.  This stuff stays flexible.  Love it.

So, I felt that stuff was over priced and did my research after getting home.  I didn't get totally ripped, but I wish I haggled her a little more.  I will go back next time I want something showing on my droid the online prices from those discount prices and tell her if she can't do lower I will just buy online instead.

Really bad notes:  My pores showed through horribly.  The foundation looked good under the mall lights but looked fake out in my car mirror when I got outside.  That was because she put the darker color all over my face and I only use it as a bronzer.  So that was just her bad makeup application technique.  The pores are still a problem though.

I asked my husband, hey, honey, don't I look great today (nudge nudge), he said, you look great every day.  I'm like, are you telling me my face doesn't look any different?  He said, kinda.  Well men just don't see anything, I swear.  I went from brown to blonde hair and he didn't even notice.

Overall I like it for the ingredients, and how it looks, minus the pores. Hate the cost and sales people.

 
I used to use micabella a while back.. I bought from a kiosk at my local mall too, but the manager at the kiosk would sell me 5 pigments for $35 if i would sit and model for her once a week. I loved the stuff but then i moved to a different city and my make-up got stolen i went online to get more and yeah they're pretty expensive. more than MAC.. so im pretty reluctant to buy them again but they were my favorite shadows. I used to be able to put them on at night before i went out to party and then go to sleep and wake up early for work the next day and i never had to redo my eye makeup - and that was before i discovered primer haha.

but i agree the msrp price that they set is outrageous see if you can't bargain with them.

 
I was at a mall and the salesguy basically forced himself on me. He was way too pushy and kept trying to sell me every product he had. While I like the products, I would not buy it at the mall again. He kept dropping his price to make me buy more and so I bought some stuff hoping he would leave me alone. I finally just said no and walked away after buying a couple of products. I would not do the mall route again! buy it online if you have to. They are way too pushy and he was way too forward for my comfort

 
Originally Posted by dollybee /img/forum/go_quote.gif

I was at a mall and the salesguy basically forced himself on me. He was way too pushy and kept trying to sell me every product he had. While I like the products, I would not buy it at the mall again. He kept dropping his price to make me buy more and so I bought some stuff hoping he would leave me alone. I finally just said no and walked away after buying a couple of products. I would not do the mall route again! buy it online if you have to. They are way too pushy and he was way too forward for my comfort
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The thing is you can get the bases and mica for much cheaper at TKB Trading or Coastal Scents and make your own shadows.

 
It's sad to see that so many people have had such negative experiences with Micabella.

A friend of mine had a few of their eyeshadows. I tried them and loved them, so I made a point of finding them the next time I was at the mall. The lady who helped me was actually really friendly, she asked if I'd like a demo of their foundation. I've been searching for a good foundation for ages. I was a little iffy, because I know how pushy they can be, but I think she saw that, and she told me I didn't have to buy, it was a slow day and it would give both of us something to do, "I can say I tried, you get to try some new makeup and relax for a while..." She was really friendly, and after a couple minutes in her chair I felt pretty comfortable. When she finally let me see, I was astounded. My face was so even toned, I had no redness, no bags under my eyes. Even my boyfriend had to admit it had really made a difference, and he could usually care less if I wear makeup at all. She also showed me a basket of foundations from other companies, like MAC and Makeup Forever, which her customers disposed of after purchasing Micabella. If I'd had mine, I would have tossed it in too. I was sold before she even gave me the price. I got a box set which included a foundation (Lady Godiva, which matches my skin tone perfectly, far better than anything I've ever tried) a blush, three eyeshadows, and two brushes for 150. I was having a hard time choosing shadow colors, so she gave me one more for free, cause I was "so cute". I'm sure that you could probably get a lower price if you are uncertain about it, but I had the money to spend and I just couldn't hide my excitement. It made such a difference, and I spent the rest of the day smiling whenever I'd catch my reflection in a mirror or a store window.

The sales lady told me it would be safe to sleep in, although she didn't recommend it, and that it would actually improve my skin with time. So far so good. I'm still using it and still thrilled every morning when I do my makeup. The redness that I used to be so selfconcious about is lessening. And honestly, as far as the price goes... every thing is good quality, people spend 18 bucks on mac eyeshadows, and even more on other high-end products. It lasts for 8 months if you use it every day, according to the sales lady, and longer if you don't. And it WORKS!

 
The sales lady told me it would be safe to sleep in, although she didn't recommend it, and that it would actually improve my skin with time. So far so good. I'm still using it and still thrilled every morning when I do my makeup. The redness that I used to be so selfconcious about is lessening. And honestly, as far as the price goes... every thing is good quality, people spend 18 bucks on mac eyeshadows, and even more on other high-end products. It lasts for 8 months if you use it every day, according to the sales lady, and longer if you don't. And it WORKS!
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What she claimed is complete BS. Your skin cannot improve over time from wearing it, it's primarily MICA powder and mica will not improve the skin. I'm actually using Coastal Scents mineral powder ($4.95 for their sampler), the full size is $21.95 and you get far more than MicaBella (which also sells under the name BellaPierre) which sells for $64.95. I'll never use MicaBella again (see above) due to allergic reactions but also due to the price not when I can get mica for far less at TKB Trading and Coastal Scents and fantastic shadows at Fyrinnae.
 
That's not altogether a fallacy because if you wear non-irritating products, eventually that irritated appearance to your skin will go away. You probably would also see similar results with any mineral based foundations.  Just not as expensive.   Unless of course if you have an allergy towards titanium oxide/zinc oxide or mica, then you wont get relief from mineral foundations either. 

Originally Posted by zadidoll /img/forum/go_quote.gif

What she claimed is complete BS. Your skin cannot improve over time from wearing it, it's primarily MICA powder and mica will not improve the skin.
I'm actually using Coastal Scents mineral powder ($4.95 for their sampler), the full size is $21.95 and you get far more than MicaBella (which also sells under the name BellaPierre) which sells for $64.95. I'll never use MicaBella again (see above) due to allergic reactions but also due to the price not when I can get mica for far less at TKB Trading and Coastal Scents and fantastic shadows at Fyrinnae.
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Micabella huh? I think I just read the same post on a different forum .. And guess what - I had seen this more likely about 4 times this week, isn't it weird? Well I am not familiar with what Micabella is yet but it seems that they are not of a big deal for now.

 
Yeah, I suppose I should have been more specific, it has less to do with wearing Micabella products and more to do with NOT wearing all the other non-mica products I've tried. Instead of using a primer, concealer, liquid foundation and powder, I just use this and I'm good to go. Sooo yeah its not complete BS. All in all, I very much like my Micabella lady, and yes, the product is expensive, but its not garbage.

 
This makeup made me break out! Not to mention the HIGH PRESSURE RUDE salespeople. Stay away from the booth at the malls! It's a huge RIP OFF.

 
Ladies,

Well I was stopped by a chick in West Edmonton Mall, and she tried on the mineral powder foundation on me as well as the vita-c exfoliating peel gel. When she told me to look at the foundation I didn't know what I thought until others were telling me it covered my acne. I was pretty happy when I heard that so my next question was how much.

She quoted me for some kit and the peel like $300. I was like WOW!! I told her I didn't want the eye shadow and other stuff I just wanted the Mineral Foundation, Vita-C Exfol Peel Gel, and two brushes. So she gave me all of them for $150.00. I feel I got a deal after checking online how much everything was I saved about $118 total. 

I think it looks good, I am having a hard time adjusting to the fact I can't see much acne when I'm use to it everyday but hey I'm not complaining, lol! I think give them a chance we all have a choice wether we want to spend the money or no. As well as you can always bargain them to a price you are comfortable with and if not don't buy.

Each to their own there will always be something for some and not for others no matter what it is. Thanks for all the reviews as they helped me and hopefully they'll help others. Just know if your unsure do research on price, product, ingredients and then make a choice. 

 
Overpriced and some people, like me, have had nasty reactions to their products. You can get mica products for far less through indy sites like Fyrinnae or wholesalers like TKB Trading and Coastal Scents. But if you like it then you like it. :D /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> Glad it worked out for you.

 
I've bought from more reputable brands and it wasn't $150!  Thats a rip off and high pressure sales make me walk the other direction.  

 
I just got this there was a good deal for 2 for 20 or 3 for 30 instead of 15 dollars each and i love it.. its super pigmented!!

 
So what did you buy that was 2 for $20 or 3 for $30?

Originally Posted by BforeverTV1 /img/forum/go_quote.gif

I just got this there was a good deal for 2 for 20 or 3 for 30 instead of 15 dollars each and i love it.. its super pigmented!!
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I won some Micabella stuff on here. Mineral Make up and brushes. I like the foundation and the blush but the eyeshadows are nothing to write home about, even tho the colors are gorgeous. And the brushes go funny when u wash them. I got a black stain on all the ones I washed, and I didn't use black shadow on them.

 

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