Do we need more foundation shades?
Foundation..very literally the base of where our makeup routine starts. Aimed to hide ‘imperfections’, iron out skin woes and hopefully a less amount of people telling you that ‘you look tired;’ enough to be a foundation buyer for life.
Agreed that this product type is a staple in our makeup stashes but how many countless shades and bottles do you own? Ranging from different brands, various claims – from evening out skin tone to covering pigmentation and many warm or cool tones that have been in the bottom of your organiser for years. We are all guilty of hoarding foundations and buying a new bottle as soon as the influencer claims it makes you look 20 years younger or erases that deep line (as good as Botox!) Say it isn’t so… sold!
But there is a claim that is becoming ever so apparent now, shade. Not throwing shade, although I could be quite soon but the absolute beauty buzzword ‘shade’ in the industry that is not going anywhere any time soon. The word has been closely linked to ‘diversity and inclusion’ the hot topic of any beauty retailer/ brand where they want to support as much as possible now or else they‘ll be slated in the media. Harsh truth but I cannot think of a brand where they aren’t on board with this notion which is great because now I have the overwhelming choice of foundations to buy!
40 Shades of Beige
40 shades is the apparent magic number and the place to start when it comes to show that you support diversity and are aware there are more skin tones darker than Beige / Nude. As you may have seen, Fenty Beauty has been the epitome of change in the beauty industry – Rihanna’s first cosmetics line – very recognisable as well as heard loud and clearly proud of the fact they catered for more darker skin tones than other brands have previously sold. This equals media frenzy created the ‘Fenty effect.’ Not only was she one of the first mainstream celebrity to have their own line sold in the UK quite quickly after Sephora online but shone a light on the beauty industry which I imagine touched a few nerves on brands but it was a needed wake up call.
The thing that has always intrigued me is that do we need approx. 30–40 foundation shades per brand? Yes we do. I could argue that you could mix lighteners, darkeners or two foundations together but not everyone will get up in the crack of dawn before work to put their full face on (except me). However in the UK we have such a vast multi-cultural society in various parts of the country that it would be a completely missed opportunity to not cater for all skin tones. There will always be a tone which is missed, lets be honest, unless a company is willing to observe every skin colour in the UK which is unfathomable there is a brand near you which you’d be able to match to, I guarantee it.
Nevertheless, admirable that brands are putting in the work to diversify shade ranges now to cater women of colour but foundation is just the beginning.
There is a whole host of areas where all industries not just beauty, could be majorly improving their diversity and inclusion, tapping into advertising, production innovation and recruitment where seclusion has been happening for more than a decade.
‘’Diversity cannot start and finish with an advert or a social media post in order for it to resonate with the customer’’ Maddie Saunders, brand leader for Lush Makeup
More to be done
The above quote has completely stood out to me. This is very true that diversity cannot simply be rectified with image swaps and social posts. It is suppose to be a natural movement and yet it is still feels forced in 2020.
As for foundation shade ranges, luckily there has been major improvement in the last three years but research is yet to be done to really tailor women of colour needs and make us feel represented. Funmi Fetto’s new book Palette is a good place to start to make an impact and lead change which brands should be for an everlasting good impression on the beauty industry.
Do you think the beauty industry has a long way to go with foundation ranges? Write me your thoughts below!
