I have always loved makeup. I was introduced to makeup at a young age due to my early obsession with America’s Next Top Model and my experience as a competitive dancer. When I had a recital or a dance competition, or if I was performing in The Nutcracker, we would put on makeup for the performance. I would watch tons of YouTube videos with my sister and experiment with different makeup techniques. Putting on my makeup every day for me is meditative—a moment when it’s just me getting ready for the day. I love doing my makeup, and over the years, a problem that I would run into was not being able to find a foundation shade that matches my skin tone.
I’m biracial, so finding a shade that matched the mix of my two parents’ different skin tones was frustratingly difficult. Shades would either be too orange or too beige or have a cool undertone that came out gray. Every makeup lover knows that if your foundation shade is off, it can completely ruin an entire look. For a long time, many beauty brands treated women of color like an afterthought, and thanks to beauty influencers, like Jackie Aina and Alissa Ashley, who voiced their frustrations with not being able to find shades that work for them, calling out beauty brands who would release several shades of white and only three to five shades for brown people and women of color who own beauty brands like Pat McGrath and Rhianna I’ve seen a huge shift in the number of shades included when a new foundation is released. I have listed six brands that are my go-tos for shade-inclusive foundations, my personal favorite being Nars. I use the Radiant Longwear Foundation, and I swear by it.
Keep scrolling to check out the five other brands on my list and more holy-grail beauty products I have in my makeup bag.
I swear by this foundation. It’s like liquid skin. It went viral on TikTok, and I was out of my shade for months. Nars has such an inclusive shade range, and its products last months, so it’ll be hard to get me to switch over to any other foundation.
I haven’t tried this foundation myself, but I know so many people who love it. Fenty Beauty is known for its inclusive shade ranges in every product it puts out. Plus, I love just about everything Rihanna does.
Make Up For Ever is one of those brands that never fails. I am a huge fan of its Matte Velvet Skin Blurring Powder Foundation because it’s truly one of the best blurring powders out there. This foundation is next on my list to try.
I have been using Urban Decay since high school, and I’m still a fan. I’ve tried this foundation, and it lasts so long and doesn’t look too cakey. What more can you ask from a foundation?
I’ve never tried this foundation before, but I have been itching to. The reviews of this foundation are glowing, and it comes in 36 shades.
This foundation is definitely a Charlotte Tilbury cult favorite. A little goes a long way, which means you’re really getting bang for your buck when you go with this product.
Up next, check out this beauty story.