Meet Micah McBee | Makeup Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Micah McBee and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Micah, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I have always loved art. When I was a little girl, I would sit for hours and mix paints, watching as the colors would change and entering into my own world. This form of escape quickly became my place of refuge and favorite form of therapy. In high school, I found a passion for art. Creating became an outlet for me. When life was difficult, I could escape in my art and lose track of time entirely. Makeup was a medium, just like paint and charcoal, that I used to highlight and shade with to create something beautiful. However, makeup was special. My canvas was no longer an inanimate object, instead, it was a person. Someone with a story, with insecurities, and someone benefiting from what I loved most-creating. I decided to pursue makeup as a career because it was life-giving. I could invest in my clients in a manner that allowed them to leave feeling more confident than when they walked in. It opened the door for me to be verbal about just how unique and beautiful each of my clients are, with and without makeup. My career is my therapy, my place of refuge, and my way of pouring into people and reminding them of just how beautiful they truly are.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
The art I create is on people. People who come to me wanting to feel more beautiful and typically verbal about things they want hidden on their faces. I believe that I have failed if a client leaves my chair believing the lie that they are more beautiful with a face of makeup on. I have made it my duty to speak life over women while glamming them and bringing out their NATURAL beauty. I am not creating a face that looks entirely different from the individual who walked into my studio. I enjoy flattering and bringing out what each client already attains and making sure they are aware of this. It fills my cup when a client gets teary when they look in the mirror and love what they see. I don’t just want to paint makeup on in a manner that emphasizes the makeup. I want to create a look that emphasizes the face and natural features of my clients. I use the 40-60 minutes I have of time with each client to speak life into them and make them feel like the most inwardly and outwardly beautiful human that they already are.

I have made this my mission as an adult due to a level of empathy and understanding I have for clients who want to feel “transformed” in my chair. I am someone who hid behind the mask of makeup for years. I believed the lie that I was not beautiful if I did not have a full face on. It took years of inward heart work to recognize my beauty and my worth. It is my duty to help my clients realize their value when the guise of makeup is removed and they are no longer in my chair.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
My husband and I currently reside in Tulsa, Oklahoma. If my best friend were to come visit, I would immediately take her to my makeup room. I would show her my collection and glam her before hitting the town for our week-long rendezvous.

We would start our week getting coffee, catching up, and talking all things life. I would listen to hear the good, the bad, and the ugly my friend has walked through since last seeing each other. Quality time and words of affirmation are my love language, so this is my favorite way to start any trip with a friend.

My friends always request to visit the local Ulta and Sephora and help them pick new makeup essentials. I begin this product shopping spree by first going through what they currently have in their kit. We talk skin concerns, daily routines, and budget to formulate a game plan. This is one of my favorite things to do for friends because it benefits them and is a BALL for me!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
It truly took a village to build the business I run now.

My mom is the most encouraging person in my life. From a young age, she called out my gifts and helped me foster them into what they have become today. My older sister has a creative, artistic brain and was the sounding board I needed when starting my business. She is also a marketing GENIUS and helped me advertise my business in a way that people began to notice.

My dad is an entrepreneur and taught me from a young age that if you pursue your passions for work, you will never truly work a day in your life. He has been a deep well of wisdom when it comes to the business side of things.

My husband has talked strategies, affirmed me in every endeavor, and is my greatest cheerleader. In times of doubt, he has been the calm and nudge I needed to keep going.

It takes courage (and a little insanity) to step out on your own and trust that the gifts you have will be sufficient in supporting you financially. My husband, mom, dad, and sister all deserve credit for where I am with Makeup with Micah today. They were a source of abundant encouragement in times of feeling inadequate.

Instagram: @makeupwithmicah

Facebook: Makeup With Micah

Youtube: @makeupwithmicah

Image Credits
Maggie Moriah Photography Ashley Sunderland Kelsey Marie Photography Ashton Reynolds Photography