Form Academy

OOOOhhhh FINALLY they were closed! Scam artist. Big ZERO star. Poor Miriam.

This location is Closed. Refuge Salon and The Form Academy are no longer in business

I waited for 30 min for one of your students that graduated, who also confirmed that she’ll be there. Never answered my text or calls. Also all the phone numbers are disconnected.

I’ve been there 3 times and every time has been great. They did juggle a bit on scheduling my last appointment to find students available but it was well worth it.
I got balayage done by students and looked incredible! There was always a teacher around supervising their work. I highly recommend this place =)

I have been trying to reach a human being since before Christmas 2014. I have left dozens of messages on their recorder, sent emails and tried texting with no results. I don’t know how to reach anyone at this school. I think they must be out of business.

If this is the same Miriam Jones as appeared on the TV show «Hot Bench,» be aware that this woman is apparently very immature and dishonest in her dealings as administrator of this Academy. Watch «Del Campo versus Jones», and you’ll see exactly what you’re involved with (impressed me like gum chewing, high school dropouts that haven’t matured). Character matters! I feel for Ms. Del Campo and anyone who may pay thousands of dollars to be the subject of Ms. Jones’ peevish ridicule.

DO YOUR RESEARCH WHEN CONSIDERING THIS SCHOOL! THERE ARE SO MANY OPTIONS IN LOS ANGELES, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU LOOK ELSEWHERE IF YOU WANT QUALITY EDUCATION IN COSMETOLOGY, SKIN CARE OR NAILS.
I am typically very thorough when making costly decisions and I wish I was when I decided to enroll in this school. I initially enrolled in Form Academy’s cosmetology program because I was lured by the fact that it seemed to be less structured and focused on more immediate hands on instruction and learning more current skills/​trends. That was the opposite of the truth. If you have an extensive background as a stylist and simply need to clock hours to sit for your license, this may be be the place for you. That was the case of a few students that I met there. Otherwise, if you truly want to learn how to be a stylist and you are starting mostly from scratch, you will be at a loss. There are barely any instructors and from what I was told the skin care program shut down because she could not keep instructors. There were a lot of other suspect things going on, you are welcome message me as it is too much to write here.
NOW MIRIAM OWES ME A REFUND AND LIKE SHE HAS DONE TO OTHERS HAS NOT PAID IN MONTHS!
For a variety of reasons including lack of instructors, unsanitary conditions, and pretty much no training, I decided to withdraw shortly after starting. I was sent an email by Miriam that I was only owed back about $ 150 out of over $ 1000 I’d paid. She didn’t have record of one of my payments because she had me paypal it to her PERSONAL account and not Form Academy. When I reminded her of that payment she told me she would include it in the refund ONLY if I could prove I sent it!!! Good thing I kept every receipt since she somehow forgot about receiving $ 250 to her personal account only 2 weeks after it occurred. She also docked me over $ 200 for not attending the minimum requirements of classes. Since the login website was often down I was not able to go back and verify my actual attendance vs what she had on record, so I had to let that go.
I did not receive the final form with a correct refund amount to sign until more than 2 months after I first notified her that I was withdrawing from the program. You are supposed to be refunded within 45 days of notification of withdrawal and Miriam acknowledged this. Part of the issue is that she very rarely answers emails and it is impossible to get her on the telephone. When I got the corrected refund form I immediately signed and returned it. It has now been over a month and I have yet to hear or receive ANYTHING from Miriam. She has not answered an email since and I’ve called at various times and can never get anyone on the phone. I do not have a car now so it is a challenge to get to the school, but obviously I will have to go there in person and demand what is owed to me, over $ 400.
According to other reviews, this is what she has done to many people. I’m glad I did not go through with the purchase of a kit losing out on $ 1500. I am in the process of submitting a complaint to the Cosmetology Board, Board of Ed, and BBB. SAVE YOURSELF THE HEADACHE AND CHOOSE ANOTHER SCHOOL.

I have been here a few times before. Both times I really loved my hair and the stylists. This time I had a 5 pm appt and they said that he had left. So I just assumed somee else would be able to do my hair. But, no! Nope. No. Sorry… That’s it… what!!? I got a babysitter. I took über… and I had to have my hair done by 9! Talk about beyond rude and just flat out BAD business!!! I don’t like to leave bad Unilocal reviews but no one even called me to say sorry or anything! That is just beyond comprehension. I’m still baffled.

This review if for hair service done by a student from the Academy.
I booked online for Balayage done by a student. Risky? Indeed — especially because this technique requires a lot of skill. But, for $ 55 (the service can run up to $ 200), the risk was worth the price.
My anxiety level quickly rose when the Academy owner came to give the student instructions on how to start the process. Wait? I thought… did you not already go over this technique in class and practice with hair dummies? Yikes!
Noticing that the student was a bit confused, the owner started off the process and then released it to the student.
I was listening to the owners instructions while she was giving them to the student and I noticed the student wasn’t doing the process right with what was my first quarter of my hair. I did not say anything so as not to raise her anxiety as well. When she was done, I felt relief but nervously waited for the bleach to take effect — then, wash and dry.
The result: It was not really the Balayage service that I requested. There is a clear definition of where my natural hair is and the processing — with Bayalage, the end result has to be seamless.

I went down to LA this weekend to visit some friends and had heard of this academy through my sister, so I thought I’d give it a try. I checked out the price list online and their spot looked cool so I went ahead and called the salon. After many, many series of rings, someone finally answered the phone and proceeded to laugh at me when I asked if I could come in for a cut and color. The chick who answered the phone (sounded stoned) proceeded to pass the phone back and forth to several other employees and they all were making strange sounds into the phone until someone on the other line finally screamed, «WE DON’T DO HAIR HERE ANYMORE! **** OFF!) and hung up on me! Are you kidding me? I called back to complain and someone just kept hanging up on me! What a waste of time! DUMBFOUNDED. Being hip must be so fun.

Wish I could say something good, but I made a hair appointment weeks in advance, changed my work schedule and drove 30 minutes only to have them tell me there was no one because all the students decided to leave early.
No offer to help me rebook or anything. Just sorry, and now no work for the day, no hair done, and pretty let down by the whole experience. Especially since they charge you if YOU cancel.

ATTENTION POTENTIAL STUDENTS! Before attending the school, make sure you check out owner Miriam on Tabatha’s Salon Takeover:
Do not be fooled by the outward appearance of Form Academy. I can only speak to my experience with the nail school, but overall I was *extremely* unimpressed with the entire operation. I know now that the industry as a whole is pretty corrupt, but this school takes the cake. Dirty facilities, (email me for photos of the flies piling up in windowsills), and a staff that couldn’t give less of a f*ck, make for a depressing and uninformative experience. I attended the school only needing my 50 hours to complete CA certification and in those few weeks I learned how to… let me think… ah, yes, I learned how to do water marble nail art, and… yep, that’s it! And my actual attendance was more like 20 hours since they cheat and let students attending half days count them as full. When I would ask for help or clarification, a book was silently slid across the table to me. I can’t imagine how students who haven’t been to school before fare, nor how they pass their boards since I failed my test the first time and had to take it over. Not to mention the fact that they tell you that taking the one-​on-​one class taught by people Unilocal won’t allow me to mention (email me for info), is required; it is not. It is, however, another $ 150 on top of the $ 75 application fee. I also have so many questions about where the money for the school came from after watching Tabatha’s show, as did she, but that’s neither here nor there I suppose.
I know that my experience with this «school» is part of a larger problem with the industry as a whole, but I do believe there are better schools for your money. If you decide to attend Form then I wish you luck. You’ll need it!

So I went to one class only. I was in the esthetician program. My experience: class is a mess. No supplies. We did waxing. Not enough wax to train with. No wooden sticks to apply wax. Missing distilled water so we couldn’t use the steamer for facial. The teacher herself had to go and grab supplies middle of the class. Shady policies on attendances. Those policies are ambiguous especially that they are one sided and even the owner herself suggests «clocking in» to get credit for attendance, even though there is no teacher to teach class (oh right, forgot to add that, there was no teacher available for a couple of weeks).
The administrative panel is nowhere to reach. This means the one owner.
The plus? They have a flexible schedule.
Also, as one of the reviewers mentioned: no kit. I paid $ 1150 back in March. It’s now middle of June and I have no kit. I’m being dropped from school (messAge me, I’ll gladly share details). Wonder how many people had that issue? So now I paid close to $ 3000 with over $ 1000 being in kit charges, I got no kit, I’m not in school and they are suggesting that they need to «calculate» my refund/​fees owed! Huh??? I think the math here is pretty easy.
So like another reviewer said, they have ambiguous attendance policies. My thought is that they enrolled way too many people in this «school» and are looking for excuses to drop people off and still keeping the money. I will most likely go on to the state of California and will take legal action to get just treatment. So sad. I was so excited to start. The owner sold a much different vision of this school when I came in to her office.

I went in for a cut and ended up with Shannon, who was fantastic (not to mention in an awesome band called Jesus Sons that I just looked up). I never know exactly how to articulate my hair concerns, but he was super intuitive and did a really great job. Great space/​atmosphere. Go see them!

Aurelie did my nails, Ashley waxing, and Miriam the instructor did an express bang trim.
I was surprised to find such a hidden gem in Echo Park area.
The ladies there already demonstrate that they are as talented and skilled as a seasoned and licensed cosmetologist and are very appreciative of having new customers.
I’d definitely return.

I’ve been fantasizing about a dramatic change in my look and since the last time i colored my hair was 8 years ago i decided i was going to go Catherine Deneuve blonde. I wanted to evoke the Belle de Jour, Repulsion femme fatale. But when i called a few salons in my neighborhood for price quotes the cheapest i got was $ 150-​$ 200. And then… i discovered Form Academy! Tucked away behind an alley it was a treasure waiting to be found.
Form academy is a school where students get to work on your hair. You get the services you want, for a third of the price you would pay at a professional salon, but you would basically be subjecting your head to a learning pair of scissors and experiments with dye bottles and tints. But hey, if you are on a budget like me this doesn’t sound like a terrible alternative when you are overdue for a make-​over!
Spacious location in Echo Park. Plenty of parking in their private lot. It was tough to make an appointment so my recommendation is that you book yours online. Prices are really fair, just be prepared to be there a little longer than usual since students take a bit more time to do the job.
I was helped right away. My stylist’s name was Monique and she was a sweetheart. She was confident in her abilities and she made me feel very comfortable. She was overseen by her instructor Miriam (the owner) who showed her the process of dual toning on my hair.
Halfway through I was offered water. Very attentive.
Bathroom is clean. Magazines are not up to date but still fun to browse, though Monique was fun to chat with she was very professional. I kinda got the sense that it was her first time doing a dye job and after my hair came out looking chic and amazing she actually admitted that it had infact been her first time ever trying to dye hair. I didn’t mind. She was awesome and i guess we all have to start somewhere– I’m happy i get to be her guinea pig especially cause she did such a great job! Also Miriam kept an eye on the whole process and Monique was never abandoned.
For $ 40 i got a bomb color a quick trim and a fun new look for the rest of the year! I highly recommend Form Academy, Miriam and Monique. I will definitely be going back there for maintenance and other beauty needs and requesting Monique as my stylist.

So I managed to eff up my dark hair and needed to get the brassiness/​red-​tone out of it but didnt want to pay astronomical prices for a simple one-​process color job so I decided to come here (first time ever going to a salon school for color)!
I got Mary and she did a great job! I know it was just a one color job but I’m sure someone one out there would be able to eff that up! Mary gave an amazing shampoo massage and her people skills were great (didnt force me to talk to her the whole time but did make sure to be friendly and polite) which I really appriciate since I’m not always trying to disctract someone thats doing my hair by talking to them the whole time.
My hair came out great, all the red-​tone/​brassiness was gone and it looks so so much better! All for $ 20!
I’m only downer is that the color has faded slightly since (done on May 11^th) but even with it faded, it still looks so so much better than it did before I went in! Also, to note, I do wash my hair almost every day, which I’m sure contributed to the fade.
I’ll def be going back in late June for an updo for a wedding with Mary as well!

***** 5 STARS FOR MOLLY *****
If you have LONG hair, SHE GETS IT! It takes years to grow out hair, and only seconds to ruin it by those who have been trained and just don’t care! Molly cares, understands length, weight, layers, coloring, correct shape for face! She’s the stylist I’ve been waiting for & will follow!

I guess I needed a bit more structure and more preparation for the state board exam. I transferred out of this school and am going somewhere else now.
For students who want to enroll in the day program, I’d still highly recommend it.
It’s just not for me.

Had I driven myself, I would probably bump this to a four-​star for a semi-​unsure parking situation /​trying to find it. But hubby went with, as his fave fusion restaurant was down the block, and said he’d happily wait for me while I got my cut.
Had my haircut done by Arax and it was amazeballs. Now, you might not notice it, but I sure as hell did. She axed off a few inches of dead hay (hair) and my thinning hair has actually been shinier, healthier & substantially less tangle-​able.
The instructor (?) was there to help her and another cut/​customer along. Great way to show them, without doing for them, so-​to-​speak. I think because they are still ‘students’ they do pay great attention to detail, and to what the customer wants. Much more than a ‘veteran’d’ stylist might just shoo away whatever it is that you said you *actually* wanted (like the time I said brown and I awoke from my nap and it was blond … yeah, no).
Hubby thinks its a nifty idea, and is considering getting his «do» did there too. Prices are affordable at any range, for any service. I’d almost dare say you could have a spa date with your bridal party here, granted it’s a few days (as in, not the day before) before your wedding or event or whole she-​bang.
Awesome, awesome, awesome. Will definitely be back!