by Tai Ross
Let’s be real: Makeup is everything and everyone deserves to wear it — no matter your skin tone. For folks who aren’t white, we need everything from wide ranges of skin products to eye makeup that isn’t ashy. Here’s a list of makeup brands that are mainly black owned.
BlackUp is a foundation / makeup brand that focuses on the darker skin tones that brands might forget or get wrong. There are 16 shades, NFL 03 being the lightest. The brand has foundation, contour, lipstick, and brushes. It’s a good starter brand for people of color.
Fenty Beauty is the makeup brand of Rihanna herself. There are 50 shades of foundation. Rihanna also just came out with a complete line of concealers and setting powders. Her highlighters are also outstanding and wonderfully complex, so whether you like subtle highlight or a blinding highlight, this brand is definitely for you. The brand is amazing and unique.
Beauty Bakerie is a black indie makeup brand created by Cashmere Nicole. The makeup has a baking aesthetic, from their 30 shades of “Cake Mix Foundation” with 1 being the darkest and 59 being the lightest, to their beauty blenders in egg cartons, to their setting powder that’s packaged in a cute flour bag.
Juvia’s Place is a black makeup brand by Chichi Eburu. The brand has African art on each makeup palette and is inspired by African culture via tribes, celebrations, and locations. The most popular palette is the Masquerade Palette. The eyeshadows are vivid and well pigmented. They have volumes of makeup called “Tribes.” All in all, it’s a good makeup brand.
Mented Cosmetics is the nude lipstick for P.O.C by P.O.C. created by KJ Miller and Amanda E. Johnson. They create lipsticks for deeper skin tones. They have matte lipsticks, semi-matte, and lipgloss. All lipsticks are vegan, paraben-free, non-toxic, cruelty-free, and made in the USA. As Miler and Johnson put it, “We know you’ll love being put first – because when it comes to beauty, no one deserves to be an afterthought.”
- Pat McGrath Labs is a makeup brand created by…….Pat McGrath. She has toppled Kylie Cosmetics and her company is worth $700 million. She is mainly known for her pigmented eyeshadows. The palettes are named Mothership (1-5) and each has its own aesthetic. Recently the company has came out with new a lip gloss named Lust. This brand is pretty high-brand with their highlighting palette costing $50.
