Makeup Advice for Dark Skinned Black Women

Makeup Advice for Dark Skinned Black Women

I love makeup. This is not news. I am pretty fearless when it comes to makeup and I will proudly wear almost any color lipstick. However, I routinely receive emails from women who insist that they can’t wear this color or that color because it’s unflattering to their skin tone. Of course, these kinds of messages come from dark skinned black women and it makes me mad!

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I believe this line of thinking is due to the long history of makeup companies catering to european standards of beauty. However, if you are a woman of color you do have options. You may not have as many options as our fair-skinned counterparts, but the options do exist. Trust me.

Makeup Advice for Dark Skinned Black Women

If you are on a budget, makeup brands that offer a variety of color options for black women include: Covergirl Queen Collection, Revlon, Black Radiance, Black Opal and Shea Moisture. If budget isn’t an issue Lancome, Becca Cosmetics, Cover FX, Makeup Forever, Fashion Fair and Estee Lauder all offer color options for women with deeper skin tones.

Use Bronzer. I can’t leave the house without it and you shouldn’t either. It adds a warm glow to your face, and just a quick dusting to the tops of your cheeks using a fan brush will do it. Read up on some of my top pics HERE or watch this video:

Don’t be a afraid of blush. While we don’t blush naturally, applying a berry colored blush to the apples of your cheeks can warm up your face. Check out some of my favorites below:

Use a primer for your eyeshadow.

If you want your eyeshadow to really pop, use a white cream eyeshadow base (like this one) all over your lid before applying your shadow. Lightly wetting your eyeshadow brush before dipping it into your shadow will also give your color a boost.

Try colored eyeliner.

If you’re intimidated by brightly colored eyeshadow,you can still play with color by using a purple or dark green eyeliner on your lower lash line like so:

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Don’t be afraid of color. 

For brighter lipsticks apply a lip liner a shade or two darker than the lipstick to give your lips a nice ombre effect.

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Get matched for the right foundation.

If you are new to makeup and want to try foundations without buying, go to Sephora. Sephora employees are trained to use a computerized color matching system guaranteed to find your right shade. What’s better is that Sephora allows you to request and take home as many samples as you’d like. This way you can go home and test out the various formulas before committing to a purchase.

Youtube is your best friend.

There are many dark-skinned beauty vloggers who routinely create videos to inspire other women to step out of their comfort zones.  Shana Moore, Tameka, That Igbo Chick, AmyLozy, Coloured Beautiful,  The Mind Catcher and JeNeevaLove and yours truly are a few ladies you may want to check out for dark-skinned makeup inspiration

Don’t be scared.

Makeup is fun and it’s temporary. It washes away with soap and water!

There are a lot of rules regarding black women and makeup and if there is one thing you should take from this post is that those rules no longer apply. Your color is not a hinderance or cross to bear. It opens up the door to endless possibilities. Black is beautiful, so have fun enhancing your beauty.

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If you’re a makeup beginner be sure to sign up to receive my free makeup beginner’s guide HERE.

What are some of your favorite makeup tips? Share them below!

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2 Comments

  1. Thanks. I’ve decided to start wearing the makeup again, but a little holder.

  2. Thanks for stopping by Sam! yes, I agree!! The beauty industry needs to make some changes!

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