In addition to reading books on racism, listening to podcasts on the history of white supremacy, following Black activists and educators, and holding those close to us accountable, one of the ways we can support Black people right now is by buying from Black-owned businesses. I’ve chosen 20 (of the many) incredible Black-owned beauty brands to purchase from that create amazing products for people of all skin tones. Your next makeup haul might just be sooner than you think.
1. Beauty Bakerie
If you haven’t heard of Beauty Bakerie, you’re missing out. This fun, creative brand has a food theme, and all products are vegan and cruelty-free. Founded by Cashmere Nicole, this brand is built off of strength. A young mom, breast cancer survivor, and entrepreneur, Nicole is your modern day superwoman. Personally, I’m a big fan of the Flour Setting Powder. The packaging is cute AF, and the product works wonders for setting your face and keeping it in place all day.
2. Juvia’s Place
I personally was introduced to Juvia’s Place from YouTube tutorials, and was instantly blown away by the colors in their eyeshadow palettes. It was created by Chichi Eburu to pay homage to the birthplace of beauty, Africa, and celebrate the rulers and queens whose techniques are still used today in makeup. It’s no surprise that Juvia’s Place is famous for their rich and vibrant palettes, perfect for any occasion. Patchy shadows are the enemy, but despite the bright colors, Juvia’s Place has you covered for a smooth, flawless application.
3. Mented Cosmetics
Mented Cosmetics was founded with one goal in mind: find the perfect nude lip. Founders KJ Miller and Amanda E. Johnson came up with the idea over a glass of pinot (iconic), and have since produced makeup that actually works for women of every skin tone. That being said, the must-have product here is of course, the semi-matte nude lipsticks, which come in nine shades.
4. Fenty Beauty
Fenty Beauty needs no introduction, created by living icon Rihanna. I feel like I could write a short essay here about how every single thing Rihanna touches turns to gold, but if you don’t already know that by now, I can’t help you. Fenty Beauty made waves when they launched with 40 foundation shades, setting the new standard for the makeup industry (which was, quite honestly, long overdue) and encouraged brands to be more inclusive. My personal favorite is the Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation, and given the 3,300 five-star reviews, I’d say I’m not alone.
5. Coloured Raine
Coloured Raine was founded with the promise of a line that encouraged self-expression and diversity, and included shades specifically made for people of color. Founder Loraine R. Dowdy left the financial industry to pursue her passion, and as beauty lovers know, it sure paid off. Whether you like to go bold and or subtle, the eyeshadow singles are must-haves, giving you the option to build your own color story without having to purchase a full-sized palette.
6. Pat McGrath
Pat McGrath’s namesake brand is one of the most famous in the industry, with good reason. She’s been said to be the most influential makeup artist in the world, and her products follow suit. If you haven’t tried a Pat McGrath lipstick, you ARE missing out. I can say with confidence I’ve never had a lipstick work as well as the MatteTrance™ line, and as someone who probably owns 200+ lipsticks, that is saying a lot. It operates almost like a liquid lip, in the sense that it allows for all day wear and no budging, but sits on the lip more comfortably, avoiding the dry feeling that liquid lips often cause. If you aren’t sure about color, the Mini Lipstick Trios give you the chance to test out the brand and retail for only $25.
7. Range Beauty
Range Beauty is “clean beauty for the forgotten shades” and right off the bat I can tell you that this message is simple yet powerful. The beauty industry has come a long way, but we still see a lack of makeup for people of color, and founder Alicia Scott decided to take matters into her own hands. From the “fairest of fair to the deepest of deep”, Range Beauty is known for their foundations, formulated with sensitive skin in mind. While makeup so often causes more irritation, these foundations have antibacterial properties to treat and prevent eczema and acne, control oil, soothe the skin, and prevent clogged pores. Consider this your skin care-friendly must-have foundation.
8. Nyakio™ Beauty
Nyakio Beauty is a clean and green skin care line, allowing you to never question your ingredients. Founded by Nyakio Grieco, who started her skin care business using lessons from her Kenyan family, Nyakio Beauty is best known for their Sweet Almond Cleansing Balm, which literally melts away all your troubles (and dirt, and impurities, and all of the other gross things that linger on our skin). The balm-to-oil texture feels like a spa experience in the comfort of your home.
9. Base Butter
I can’t even explain why, but something about the word “butter” in products and brand names gets me every time. Lip butter, face butter, body butter? Give me all the butter. I love seeing women come together to succeed, and that is exactly what Base Butter founders She’Neil Johnson and Nicolette Graves have done. With the mission to help women feel more comfortable in their skin (and literally make their skin feel more comfortable), Base Butter has products like the Aloe vera Face Jelly that revitalize and rejuvenate your skin. A healthy balance of aloe to protect the skin, evening primrose to boost elasticity, and lavender and tee tree to calm and disinfect, this moisturizer is one that keeps me coming back for more.
10. Epara Skincare
Luxury skin care that uses African botanicals? Yes please. Founded by Ozohu Adoh, Epara Skincare is a “brand born out of a need to provide luxury skin care products to women with dark skin tones.” Adoh, who received her MBA from Oxford University, made the decision to develop her own products after seeing a lack of products that could treat her own skin concerns. The Intense Hydrating Mask in particular is nourishing and creamy; the mask softens, cleanses and purifies the skin, leaving it hydrated, bright, and even in tone.
11. Hyper Skin
Goodbye dark spots, hello Hyper Skin! Founder Desiree Verdejo conceptualized Hyper Skin after dealing with aggressive breakouts during pregnancy. The brand launched with the popular Hyper Clean Vitamin C Serum, working to smooth fine lines and rough texture, and dramatically clear dark spots from hyper-pigmentation.
12. skin BUTTR
Hello I’m back for more butter brands. skin BUTTR, founded by my ANTM idol Tatiana Elizabeth Price (!!!), is made of natural body and skin care products. The body line consists of whipped shea-based body butters and scrubs, and the skincare line is an all-natural, step-by-step hydrating system. The scrubs and body butters are equally amazing, but if you’re stuck inside and dry at the moment, the Cocoa Vanilla will hydrate your life and leave your skin glowing. You’ll also smell delicious. You’re welcome in advance.
13. Kaike
You had me at marshmallow. Kaike (pronounced like cake!) was founded by Keli Smith with a belief in celebrating your skin. Kaike is plant-based and made up of multi-purpose products for a more practical skin care routine. With yummy products like Frosting, you can moisturize your body and hair simultaneously. Plus, it literally smells like frosting, so you’ll smell amazing.
14. The Honey Pot Company
Designed for ~ down there ~, The Honey Pot Company is plant-based feminine care. They are the first complete feminine care system powered by herbs, and for that, we are thankful. The Honey Pot Company was founded by Bea Dixon, who is open with the fact that she made her own line simply because she was suffering and couldn’t find vaginal relief. The line varies from organic tampons to feminine wipes.
15. Briogeo
Briogeo. Where do I even begin? I so genuinely love this brand. Literally every single product is great, and my bathroom cabinets are flooding with favorites from the line. Founded by Nancy Twine, who casually formulated her first product at age five (yes, literally), Briogeo is my favorite clean hair brand on the market. It’s actually hard for me to select a favorite product (I’m being dramatic, but idc), but having naturally curly hair, I always opt for the Curl Charisma line, which helps tame my lion’s mane every morning.
16. GIRL+HAIR
GIRL+HAIR is dermatologist-designed, founded by Dr. Camille H-Verovic. Targeting growth, itch relief, and odor relief, this line was designed for the hair and scalp. You’ll absolutely want to get your hands on their newest product, Curl Cloud, a hydrating pimento and castor oil hair mask. Heavenly.
17. TGIN
If you haven’t noticed yet, I am a sucker for brand names, and TGIN may be in first place: Thank God It’s Natural. As someone who generally tries to keep my products clean, this name tells me off the bat we are good to go—love that. On top of running a successful business, founder Chris-Tia Donaldson is a successful author. Her book Thank God I’m Natural: The Ultimate Guide to Caring for Natural Hair is a #1 Amazon bestseller—yes, big deal! TGIN has a full rose water line that includes leave-in conditioners, hair masks, and styling products, all to enhance your hair’s natural beauty.
18. Miss Jessie’s
Miss Jessie’s was founded by sisters Miko and Titi Branch who wanted to give curly haired women a reason to look forward to trying new products. Too often, brands miss the mark when advertising the “perfect” hair, showing straight, thick, shiny hair that’s not the most inclusive. The line was inspired by their grandmother, Miss Jessie Mae Branch. When they were children, Miss Jessie would create all sorts of formulas at her kitchen table to help tame and style her granddaughter’s beautiful curly hair. Some winners include the Curly Buttercreme (which hydrates hair) and Curly Pudding (which relaxes natural curls).
19. SheaMoisture
Sheamoisture was founded on the belief that the best in personal care and beauty should not belong to the few, and their accessibility comes compromise-free. Built off the legacy of his grandmother, Sofi Tucker, Richelieu Dennis has created a line of natural, sustainably produced products. Their creamy, dreamy leave-in conditioner provides relief, and is a must for anyone who regularly destroys their hair with heat and color.
20. Camille Rose
And for the grand finale, Camille Rose. Founded by Janell Stephens, who has been an iconic trendsetter within the beauty space, Camille Rose was too built on the foundation of inclusivity. Their “about me” section reads: “We seek to share the purest and warmest joy, happiness, trust and gratitude to each and every person who experiences our products,” and if that doesn’t make you a customer, IDK what will. With products to cleanse, define, and bring life to your hair, Camille Rose embraces the natural gift of curls. I recommend the Aloe Whipped Butter Gel (butter again!), crafted to provide moisture and light styling hold.
These 20 lines are in good company with 100s of other Black-owned brands, and I encourage you to purchase, support, and comment more brands below! Check out this Instagram post that highlights Black-owned brands that are also cruelty-free.
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support black owned businesses, cruelty free edition 🌱 #supportblackbusinesses
Images: SofikoSShutterstock; Beauty Bakerie, Juvia’s Place, Mented Cosmetics, Fenty Beauty, Coloured Raine, Pat McGrath, Range Beauty, Nyakio Beauty, Base Butter, Epara Skincare, Hyper Skin, skin BUTTR, Kaike, The Honey Pot Company, Briogeo, GIRL+HAIR, TGIN, Miss Jessie’s, SheaMoisture, Camille Rose / Instagram
As a proud non-influencer with less than 600 followers, I’d just like to say that I truly think most influencers are full of sh*t, as are most of the products they get paid to promote. Take, for example, literally everyone under the sun who shills Flat Tummy Tea, which is proven to A) not work and B) give you violent diarrhea. Fun! For whatever reason, I get the feeling that most of these people care way more about the paycheck than the results of whatever they’re promoting. But because I don’t want to be 100% cynical, I tested out a few products that my four favorite influencers swear by. Some of it was great, and some of it wasn’t, but here are my honest thoughts about some influencer-approved products.
Arielle Charnas
If you’ve read any of my beauty articles before, you know that I am a big fan of natural and/or plant-based products, so I am seriously loving the Arielle Charnas-approved haircare company, Briogeo. If you’re a sucker for chic packaging, this brand is def for you. Secondly, and more importantly, it legit changed my hair for the better. I usually think that no one, including my scalp, will notice when I switch up my hair product game, but I actually did see a difference when I started using Briogeo. Because I am an absolute glutton, I bought like, eight products all at once after I found out my girl Becky Arielle with the good hair uses the brand. Because I’ve gotten my hair colored, I always look for something extra moisturizing, so I got the Don’t Despair, Repair shampoo and conditioning masque, which literally smell like a Le Labo perfume (in other words, amazing). I also got the Be Gentle, Be Kind kale and apple conditioner and Curl Charisma rice amino and avocado leave-in defining crème. Gag-worthy names aside, the products are incredible and made without sulfates, silicons, parabens and cruel treatment of animals. I know this sounds like an #ad, but Briogeo has no idea who I am, and my 500 Instagram followers def don’t care. I did, however, recommend this to my biggest fan, my mom, and she just placed her first order. Look at me, I’m influencing people!
Briogeo Don’t Despair, Repair! Shampoo
Elyse Fox
When I think of what an influencer should be, I think of someone like Elyse Fox. This powerhouse founded Sad Girls Club, which, like, hello, great name, and she’s a charismatic voice for a community who needs one. SGC is an online and IRL community of women supporting each other to address mental health, and the organization’s first order of business is to remove the stigma surrounding mental health. That is a mission I can definitely get behind. Elyse is also stunning and just had the literal cutest, smooshiest baby boy I’ve ever laid eyes on.
Anyway, because I think so highly of Elyse, I don’t think she’d ever promote a brand she didn’t completely believe in. So when she posted a badass video of her with her OWYN drink, I bought a few bottles. OWYN stands for “only what you need”, and they’re protein drinks made without a bunch of crap you can’t pronounce. The drinks are also 100% plant-based, which, as we’ve already discussed, I love. I bought the Turmeric Golden Mylk and the Cookies & Cream drink. As you can imagine, the former didn’t taste amazing, but it did feel like I was drinking my way to a healthier liver, which was in dire need of a substance that wasn’t tequila. The latter just tasted like cereal milk, which I was and am always down for. These drinks are expensive af, so unless you’re, I don’t know, an influencer who gets them for free, I don’t recommend having one every day. I have one on days I wake up hangry or feel extra gross from bad decisions. I would also just like to say that as filling as these are, they are not substitutes for meals! Meals need to be chewed, not sipped.
Mi-Anne Chan
If you are an Refinery29 fan, you know who Mi-Anne Chan is. If not, start reading. She’s a video producer and beauty writer at R29 and tries out literally every beauty trend ever and lets her followers know what the deal is and whether or not we should do it. Mi-Anne jumped on the non-toxic beauty train and tested out Sundays Studio, New York’s wellness-inspired nail salon that uses only vegan, cruelty-free products. Also, they’re 10-free, which means the polishes don’t have any of the 10 most harmful/toxic ingredients, such as formaldehyde, toluene and camphor. For reference, most decent nail brands these days are either 5-free or 3-free. So Mi-Anne tried this place out, which made me want to try it out, because I would trust this woman with my life. Or, if not my life, at least with my face/skin.
The second I walked into the salon, I could tell that Sundays isn’t just a nail salon, it’s like a full-on meditation station that also happens to understand the importance of a good mani/pedi. As your nails are being painted with pure health, you’re listening to a guided meditation and getting a five-star spa quality shoulder massage. I’ve never felt more in love than I did in this moment. Seriously. The best part is that you aren’t destroying your nails or animals’ lives and you walk away with a fresh manicure (and what I’m convinced was a brain transplant, because I am not naturally so happy and positive).
Pia Arrobio
I first heard about Pia Arrobio when Glossier used to make those “Get Ready with Me” videos. Pia had the most decadent, fabulous beauty routine by far, and I instantly fell in love with her and her feed. She is like the definition of L.A. cool (read: not obnoxious/trying to be an actress) and her new husband is disgustingly attractive. So, there’s that. She recently did a post about HUM Nutrition, which make beautifully packaged supplements and, as a supplement addict, I had to give these bad boys a try. So I got the Hair Sweet Hair gummies because I’m a child, but I also got Beauty zzZz (fancy melatonin), and Pimp My Calcium. The supplements, in my opinion, are great. Now, be aware that you won’t actually see or feel the effects of supplements after taking just a few. My doctor compared the supplement game to working out: you won’t see the effects of your SoulCycle classes after taking three—you need to make it part of your routine. Supplements are the same way in that they need to really become a part of your system to start working. So I got two months’ worth of each supplement and the one I really loved was the Beauty zzZz. Yes, it’s essentially just melatonin, but there was something so calming about these pills that I felt like I was taking an all-natural Xanax. The hair gummies didn’t have a huge effect on my hair, which may just be because my hair is already incredibly thick. As for the calcium, my bones feel great, I guess? But, I would def order again. Thank you, Pia. As always, I love you.
The Verdict?
Trust influencers who don’t seem like they’ll do literally anything for money. Also, maybe do a minute or two of your own research before blindly trusting the people whose entire lives take place on a platform famous for being fake.
Images: Daily Nouri / Unsplash; Sephora (2); HUM Nutrition; piabaroncini, ariellecharnas, mianne.chen, elyse.fox / Instagram
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