Old vs. New MAC Pigment Packaging: Kitschmas vs. Kitschmas (aka Part 2)
Thursday, January 7th, 2010
Kitschmas vs. Kitschmas: The Results
Much to the dismay of neat-freaks everywhere, pigments once again exploded in my household. I conducted this messy project in my kitchen (easier to clean) with a very small (pocket-sized!) digital scale that can weigh up to 500 grams. I go through the entire process in detail further into the post. This is a follow-up to my original comparison post from a few days ago. I used ounces for comparison, particularly because you get more decimal places using ounces, so I feel like it’s more accurate that way.
Kitschmas: Original Packaging, Labeled 7.5 grams / 0.26 oz.
- Actual Weight: 8.7 grams / 0.280 oz.
- Empty Jar Weight: 0.402 oz.
- Total Jar Weight: 0.670 oz.
- Bonus: You got 1.2 grams / 0.020 oz. more than you expected!
- Sad: Lost approximately 0.012 oz. in transporting it back into the packaging
Kitschmas: New Packaging, Labeled 4.5 grams / 0.15 oz.
- Actual Weight: 6.0 grams / 0.212 oz.
- Empty Jar Weight: 0.282 oz.
- Total Jar Weight: 0.476 oz.
- Bonus: You got 1.5 grams / 0.062 oz. more than you expected!
- Sad: Lost approximately 0.018 oz. in transporting it back into the packaging
One of the bigger concerns I saw voiced in the comments was paying the same price for 40% less. In the comparison between the two jars of Kitschmas, you still ended up with 0.212 oz. of Kitschmas, even in the new packaging. Everyone believed and expected MAC to give them 0.26 oz. of pigment before (though it is clear that they give you more, which is actually a common practice). So, I’m only going to look at that, but in this instance, you aren’t losing 40%. You’re really losing 0.048 oz. or 18.5%.
Keep in mind that MAC only need meet the advertised label of 0.15 oz., so your mileage may vary. Rich Life weighed in at .212 oz. as well, while Universal Mix weighed in at 0.187 oz. I do want to be honest and tell you that it’s the same Universal Mix I used for the original comparison post, so I imagine I lost (at least, because I did a lot of transferring back and forth) 0.012 oz. (this is based on how much I lost just doing these minimal transfers for Kitschmas comparisons).
From weighing several different jars, it seems common practice for MAC to overfill, rather than exactly fill, their pigment jars. For instance, Push the Edge should only have 0.15 oz. of product in it, but it actually has 0.427 oz.–that’s over twice the amount advertised.
See both instructional step-by-step and full-sized (and additional) photos through the process, PLUS weights of other pigment jars for comparison…
Weights of Other Jars
For the sake of argument, the majority of pigments in the older packaging were labeled 7.5 grams / 0.26 oz. — this is the net weight, or the actual product weight. Based on weighing an empty jar, an old empty jar weighs 0.402 oz. So, a jar of 0.26 oz. pigment should weigh a total of 0.662 oz. total. (Please note, I weighed and used empty jars without the lid for the entire time.) An old jar of 4.3g / 0.15 oz. should thus weigh 0.552 oz. A new jar labeled 4.5g / 0.15 oz. should then weigh 0.432 oz.
- Blonde’s Gold is supposed to be 4.3g / 0.15 oz., so it should weigh a good 0.552 oz. The one I weighed (though to be sure, mine also says 7.5 grams, and I imagine I lost 0.01 to 0.02 oz. from the original comparison, haha) came in at 0.646 oz. Blonde’s Gold thus has a net weight of 0.244 oz.
- Milk is supposed to be 7.5g / 0.26 oz. It actually weighs 0.713, which means its net weight is 0.311 oz. This is actually an additional 0.051 oz. than is advertised.
- Rich Life is supposed to be 4.5g / 0.15 oz. It actually weighs 0.494 oz., which means its net weight is 0.212 oz. This is 0.062 oz. more than advertised. This is, thus, only 0.048 oz. less than before.
- Universal Mix is supposed to be 4.5g / 0.15 oz. It actually weighs 0.469 oz., which means its net weight is 0.187 oz. This is 0.037 oz. more than advertised, but 0.073 oz. less. For the record, I used this pigment to compare earlier this week, so I probably lost around 0.010 to 0.020 oz. of product… easily. It was pretty freakin’ messy the first time around.
- Push the Edge is supposed to be 4.3g / 0.15 oz. It actually weighs 0.829 oz., which means its net weight is 0.427 oz. This is 0.277 oz. more than advertised. This is also 0.167 oz. more than even the 7.5g / 0.26 oz. jars. This was the heaviest of the jars I was able to weigh. Go figure.
- Brash & Bold is supposed to be 4.3g / 0.15 oz. It actually weighs 0.656 oz., which means its net weight is 0.254 oz. This is 0.104 oz. more than advertised, and only 0.06 oz. less than the 7.5g / 0.26 oz. jars.
- Dark Soul is supposed to be 7.5g / 0.26 oz. It actually weighs 0.702 oz., which means its net weight is 0.300 oz. This is 0.400 oz. more than advertised.
The Process
Step 1: Purchase one old jar and one new jar of the same pigment. Cross fingers they have something light in stock so it doesn’t look like a chimney blew up in my kitchen. Success — purchased one jar of Kitschmas labeled 7.5g and one jar of Kitschmas labeled 4.5g.
Step 2: Purchase a digital scale that can weigh in 0.00 oz. Preferrably cheap! (Got this one for under $20, yay!) Figure out a way to weigh pixie dust without spilling everywhere… Decided to use the cover of the scale as a tray, because otherwise you couldn’t see the weight, which kind of nullified the whole sha-bang. Flip tray, zero out the scale.
Step 3: Lay a small strip of wax paper on top of the scale (so Kitschmas isn’t found in every crevice of my kitchen!), zero out the scale again (hey, each strip of wax paper weighs about 0.02 oz., for your reference — every little bit counts!). Then remove the wax strip and lay on the counter. Dump out the fat ol’ jar of Kitschmas (7.5g) onto the strip. Make sure tap on the sides and bottom, because you’ll miss a lot if you don’t (no, seriously, huge clumps!). Then place onto scale and back away. Oops, got some on the scale…
Step 4: Repeat step 3, except dump out the skinny new jar of Kitschmas (4.5g) onto another strip (that I also made sure to zero out).
Step 5: Weigh each [nearly] empty jar. Use a paper towel to remove the residue that refuses to come out, rinse with water if you feel lucky. It’s a pain in the behind to get every little piece of pixie dust out of the jar, but at some point, you just have to say, “Fine, you win, Kitschmas!” and leave those morsels to rest in the jar.
Step 6: Fill the skinny new jar (4.5g) with water, just before the rim — it’s maybe 4-5mm below the rim of the jar. Basically, I filled it as high as the pigment had filled it earlier. Dump that into the fat ol’ jar (7.5g). Note the difference. If you’re way more kitchen savvy, use a measuring cup that can measure this low (I failed here).
Step 7: Dump the respective pigment piles back into their jars. Cry a little inside because you lose some in the process to the hungry counter. And perhaps the floor.
Step 8: Weigh as many full-sized, brand-new (or used one time… maybe) pigments as you have available. I weighed Blonde’s Gold (the same one that I used before — that is also labeled 7.5g, not 4.3g as the majority are), Milk (labeled 7.5g), Rich Life (labeled 4.5g), Universal Life (labeled 4.5g), Push the Edge (labeled 4.3g), Brash & Bold (labeled 4.3g), & Dark Soul (labeled 7.5g).
Christine, I have a question. I thought that MAC pigments were measured by weight, not volume, so shouldn't they all be the same weight?
As far as I know, the way manufacturers go by is minimum weight, which is not necessarily that you will get exactly that weight - but you will get at least that weight.
Okay. I am still confused though, because I thought that you said that some of the matte pigments only contain 2.5 grams sometimes. That isn't the minimum is it?
As far as I know, the weight is the same, they just don't take up as much room as say a frost pigment would, and therefore the jar looks like it contains less. There may be individual pigments that are some how different, but this is in general.
Wow. What can I say?? This is an awesome piece of research and painstaking work. You're a true lover of makeup. (I've been reading your newly-discovered blog since last night, and it's addictive!) Just love this piece of research on behalf of us makeuup junkies!
Thanks, Jane!
even so, the old jar still was paked up more than advertised so we got those extra OZ even in the old packaging. and even though we still are getting extra OZ in the new packaging; it doesn't compare to those OZ we had on the old jar. But congradulations on you accurate investigation. im proud of you.
I know I am a bit behind in this discussion, but I was just reading up today on how hyper everyone is getting upset on this...yes, yes I am 5 months behind, but it is in fact a business and a business is established to make a profit...anyway you look at it....gas goes up to nearly $5 a gallon on and off and people go through that in days...I can spend $10 on a lunch in ONE DAY!, something that is gone immediately...people complain as though it is a gigantic noticeable difference because something changes...if the price did physically go up and they kept the original packaging, people would still be upset, but nothing as rediculous as some of the comments I am seeing here....If I have a jar of pigment for a full year, to me it is $20 well spent. With the economy, prices are going to go up, businesses are going to look for ways to make more profit, save money, cut costs, etc....prices on clothing, food, and everything else consumable change on a DAILY basis and people are SO angry that an eyeshadow packaging has changed size making it look like they are suffering some huge loss! Lets get angry at MAC for what, doing what any other company has to do in order to stay in business.... Thank you Christine for all of your work and for showing us the REAL difference, although people still are throwing a fit because the jar sizing looks so drastically different... personally I am happy to get rid of the little chubby guys and move on to something a bit more sleek and modern!
i was just wondering. how did you even get the chance to purchase the full sized jars? and where?
I bought a full size jar at the cco last summer. My son decided to dump the whole jar on the floor. I finally bought a new one through that MAC Pro store. It was way too muuch for something so small. I think that the new jars are a little bit bigger than the jars in the holiday sets. You might want to check the cco. It looks like they are sending the old pigmrnt jars there.
I totally hate the new jars. I bought Blonde's Gold pigment. I still have the old jar as well. I opened my package and discovered that the new jar is way smaller than what I thought. The new jars are not much bigger than the holiday sized jars. And just an FYI... Blonde's Gold was 3g not 4.5g. This stinks. Go to your local CCo and get what you can. I just picked up Tan, Fuschia, and Vanilla. I think that MAC saw that these things last forever and that they were not making a lot of money on them. I just hope that they don't get any smaller. They don't give out pigment samples anymore either.
U can complain to MAC and tell them your dissatisfaction. The more people complain the better. There is a chance of them changing things around. The point is to get them to realize they will not sell the new jars with new prices as well as they thought they would. It's worth a shot.
I was told that MAC has some new jar that locks and that the jar cost more. I was also told that MAC realized that they were not making a lot of money off of the old jars. MAC is really cutting good products. The holiday pigments use to have 4 pigments and 2 glitter items. Now you only get 5 items. I just wish that they would bring out the old stuff and not make any new changes.
I did complain and made them collect my order, I got no apology for them changing the size with no announcement or sign online and they said well you get more than you will use anyway, their CS stinks
yeah it's true. They just find more excuses to tell you off. I'm seriously considering not buying another pigment from them again!
I'm not and I told them that, they think they have the monopoly but they don't, I am finding much nicer colours for a hell of a lot cheaper
I would suggest getting what you can at your local CCO. The new small pigments will be sold at the counters in June.
Is the Jar still big enough that you can put a brush into? like, the opening of the jar?
Yes!
It depends on the brush. If it's an eye shadow brush,shader or lip brush then yes. But, if it is something like a highlighter or blush brush then it is too uncomfortably small for that.
So when I was at the MAC store yesterday the girl there told me that only the packaging changed not the amount in it. I don`t know if Mac told her to say that or if she just doesn’t know any better but it seemed odd to me. Anyone else had that experience?
The amount changed from 7.5g to 4.5g!
I think that is what the company tells them. They say it to us because A)they have to and B)they didn't have a digital scale to measure them Either way they won't know unless we point them to this blog. Sure, they see the difference in size but so what. When I was there they told me that the MAC website said it was the same amount but they were still skeptical. They were at least being honest in their opinion. I later went back and told them that there really was a difference.
I emailed MAC outlining the fact there was no banner on the UK site announcing the change of container and amount of product and felt I had been conned, their reply was........... Many factors contribute to the cost of our products, such as quality of ingredients, state-of-the-art product formulations, quality assurance programs and so forth. Like all manufacturers, we are also challenged with constantly rising costs, particularly in shipping and distribution. In view of this, it is sometimes necessary to either increase the suggested retail price or decrease the net weight. We hope you can understand that cost increases are sometimes required if we are to maintain the high quality product standards which our customers expect from us. We do believe, however, that our products offer excellent value for the price. To which I replied and said I did not agree and wanted a full refund of the order and the cost to return it to them. I was going to keep them before they had arrived but when I actually felt the cheapness of the packaging and the wonky lids added to the 40% less product I decided to return them. They have agreed to me returning them and unless they change the packaging back or reduce the price I will not be buying anymore pigments from MAC
Now that's what I'm talking about! It's the principle of the matter.
It is for me Roni, who do they think they are that they can do that and expect no one to say anything? There are lots of companies that do pigments and minerals waaaaaaay cheaper and nicer colours too so it's MAC's loss not mine :0)
MAC collected my pigments today I wonder how many more people have complained?
Good question! But, I hope enough to realize they should make some changes. Today, I was at the MAC store and one associate who I always talk to said they had 2 old pigments left in the Frost color. A permanent pigment color that they recently discontinued when they launched the new pigment sizes. I grabbed them, ofcourse! There was a third bottle on hold for another customer. I think that will also show MAC that customers are not happy with new sizes/old prices. If only they had more colors in the old sizes, I would have wiped them clean. MAC: beware!
If I was anywhere near a MAC store I would do the same, sadly I am housebound and only shop online :0)
OMG How bad is MAC CS in the UK, wondering why my refund has not gone through and receive this email today, taki into account they collected the parcel from me............... Good Morning Julia, Your recent Mac purchase has been returned back to sender. Would you like me to send this back out to you or would you like a full refund? If you would like the order to go back out to a different address could you please forward me the full address? Thank you for taking the time to purchase your goods with Mac Online. Kind Regards Nikki
Got another mail today to say they are now doing the refund and said sorry for the mishap and could they do anything else so I said................. Yes you can do something for me. You can tell the powers that be that changing the packaging and amount of product you now receive in pigments without any consultation with the customers, and by not announcing it in advance has annoyed not just me. There are a lot of people on beauty forums all over the world who have now said like me they will not purchase MAC pigments again. Mac seem to think they are invincible and can do as they please with no regard for loyal customers who spend huge amounts on every collection and pay full price. These are the people who will protest with their feet and once you have lost a customers trust it is very hard to win it back.
Thanks for this. Although, I'm not a huge pigment user this is very much appreciated!
wow, still more on the pigment thingy?! the prices and volume don't really matter, it's the value that matters. people who don't love the mac pigments as much will not continue to buy it. but i'm bettin my chips on mac (and their market researchers)--even if they double prices, they'll still be selling those piggies like hot chocolates on a rainy day! people can grumble and grumble but that's the way the world goes, you no likey the price-y, no buy-ey. it's a luxury product, and in the greater scheme of things, who cares for ladies who whine because they can't afford their little mac piggies anymore lol.
Whether u can afford them or not is not in question nor is it the point. If u don't care to pay more for less...u got the picture. As for those who want to buy them or not: Well, not buying them is another way to show MAC the consumers aren't happy with the change. As for the previous comment saying that u no likey no buyey: Duh..as if people can't figure that out for themselves. But why not make a little change in the world today even if it is MAC. Well, if u don't care and obviously u don't then why post? That's not advice but attitude. That's not an answer! Let's hear more genuine opinions of those who do care and not those acting all childish nah nah and giving us attitude. Opinions please not attitude! Don't care, don't post!
I understand the whole thing about companies increasing prices and MAC switching to smaller sized pigments to sell more often. Again, it is company's problem and we don't have to make it ours. So, let's not get objective here and understand why companies do what they do. We know why they do what they do. But, we don't have to sit back and let things be. My point was that we can make changes as consumers and go with whatever the company is forcing upon the consumers. As I said before, we could at least get them to lower the prices on the new pigment packaging! MAC has already done a price increase on uts products. We don't have to sit and take any more though! If we complain and refuse to buy the new packaging for the same price the company won't sell. So, they will be forced to negotiate and cater to our demands. Besides, MAC is good enough to listen to consumers without threats. They have done so before. Viva la choice.
Above my comment I meant: not go with whatever the company is forcing upon the consumers.
I think the repackaging is more friendly. The lid is a bit taller allowing for better grip when taking them off and easier to screw back on reducing spillage.....pigment is pigment. None of this really concerns the everyday MAC wearer because so little is used on a regular basis if being used correctly. It is more of a nuance to other professional MUA's that may be getting "jipped" on having less product for bigger projects.
Thank you Christine. That was a lot of work to break it down to dollars & cents. Truth be told, I have never purchased a full size jar of MAC pigment. It it has always been a "too expensive" product for my budget. I could never justify the cost against actual usage. You know? The method for justifying a big ticket item, like kick a** boots or a chi chi handbag. How many times will you wear it? You can break the cost by cost per wear...LOL I know silly, but an effective way to decide whether to splurge or not...but I digress :) Samples have been the way to go for me...I do not mind paying $2 - $4.50 for a 1/4- 1/2 tsp. Even then, those little bitty sample jars last forever. However. I do confess I broke down this past holiday season and bought both the Haute High Jinks and Cool Capers pigment sets in the Magic, Mirth & Mischief collection. For a total of $65 plus tax ($68.90), I felt like I got my monies worth. I got 10 different colors for less than the cost of 4 full size jars of pigments. Essentially each color cost me $6.89. That is a cost I can justify against usage. Plus I am a sucker for the packaging! Bright, pretty & fun! I will probably keep my pigment minis in their boxes for a very long time. And those little bottles are easier to handle. Love em! Thanks again Christine. I really appreciate the efforts you make. Peace, Elise
It's always my pleasure to be able to help when and where I can :) The pigment sets are definitely worth getting if you don't already have 'em, so I'm glad you broke down!
I read a lot of the comments posted to this topic. First of all, to all the people who don't mind the pigment size change with same dollar amount: Hello? U don't care if u pay more for less? R u ok? Next, for those who are awake in the world and do care what is happening like myself: We can all make MAC change their minds by calling the corporate number (800)387-6707 to complain about this. This has been done in the past and MAC actually listens! MAC has had discontinued products returned again perminently because of customer complains. Let's do something about this and call MAC! If people start complaining and refusing to buy into this new MAC pigment disgrace the company will have no choice but to either decrease the price or go back to the original packaging. We can make a difference!
I don't think that people are asleep it is a fact of business and life that prices go up. I am old enough to be most posters here mother. My daughter is thirty. I actually have one MAC eye shadow bought in the 90's that never got thrown out. It is charcoal brown and a whopping 3 grams. The package is the same size as the the plastic dome top on your mineralize blush. Of course no one wants to pay more for less however everything goes up. Discontinued products being returned to permanent is not the same thing since the pricing was still the same I'm sure as other comparable products. That being said I wish you the best of luck with your campaign because sure I would love to buy the old jar for the old price.
Thanks Christine for taking the time out for your subscribers to do this. You have a lot on your plate and it shows your dedication to this blog. I feel a lot like you do. These are business decisions on one hand and what do you do, sell less for the same price or sell the same or the same size and do a price increase? Yes, as a consumer I want the most for my money so I see both sides of the coin. I only started buying pigments a year ago when I realized that my prone to rash eyes liked them. I will still buy if I like the new pigment. I did buy Universal Mix. I called the MAC Pro store in San Francisco and they said they sent all of the old pigment jars back. I only wish I had been paying more attention to your blog and jumped on the old jars before they switched. Maybe the CCO now or maybe I will try that 800 number. Did that person say she was able to buy the old jars?
No problem, Ruby! I don't mind doing it -- I think since I've always been so interested in business (my mom has always been very entrepreneur-ish and managerial), I see these as business decisions and am kind of like "Wow, great move... for business!" LOL. Sounds like they made this transition REALLY fast. My store had them in the back and let me buy one, but they *do* know me there. That was last week though...
I love pigments and I actually don't mind the new design. The thing that I do have a problem with is the fact I live and Australia and we already pay $39 per pigment!!!!! So decreasing the size to us is a big thing!
Great post Christine! Very imformative! Although at first I was rather disappointed with MAC... I decided to give the new jars a chance, but unfortunately, things didnt work out too well. The new jars felt cheaply made (to me at least), except for the rubberized finishing on the caps which looked and felt nicer, but the packaging failed IMO because despite the "lock" feature the cap loses its grip so that you could simply pull off the cap even w/o having to unscrew it... I guess my pigment-buying days are over... :(
totally agree one of my lids was falling off and you don't realise how little they are till you hold one I sent this message today. In the hope of some explanation. I have just received my order of pigments and they are significantly smaller than those I have purchased in the past and cost the same? Can you please explain why there was no indication online of the change and have I been charged incorrectly??
The website has the new jar pictured and the size updated as far as I know...
Okay, this is off-topic...but Kitschmas is gorgeous and I am being seriously tempted to swerve off the "no-buy" road here. That is like my perfect color, and it's sparkly. *facepalm* Weaknesses, all of it! But I will stay steadfast in my resolve. *staring at the beauty that is Kitschmas*
thanks. definitely, NO MORE MAC FOR ME! =(
Christine, I'm sorry I didn't read this post more in depth, but I started to get confused. What I think I gleamed rom this post is that we have always been paying for the JAR and the PIGMENT weights added together? Is that what NET weight means? ie 7.5 grams is the total weight of the JAR with the pigment in it, and not the weight of the just the pigment? PS: I notice your Blondes Gold must be really fluffed up because mine and all my other richmetal pigments never came close to filling the rim when new. If we are paying for the weight of the jar, and the jars are smaller now, in addition to increased dollars from product decrease MAC should be able to save additional money in shipping costs alone. Since most people buy from the actual store, those purchasing online probably won't share in the decrease of shipping cost.
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