A few years ago the brand Beauty Blender took the makeup world by storm with the introduction of their beauty sponge. It quickly became a worldwide phenomenon and even inspired other companies to create their version of the product. Just this past week, the brand attempted to grab its audiences' attention once more...and they did. Just in all the wrong ways.
Recently, Beauty Blender has been releasing social media teases hinting at a new product launch. They advertised it as "beauty's new power couple." So of course, when the big surprise was revealed, jaws dropped. The company released a foundation to accompany their famous applicator which only makes sense. What doesn't make sense is the lackluster shade range. There are 32 different shades of the new product, which isn't a terrible start for a first launch, but the problem comes when you take a look at the diversity in shades. It seems that out of 32 shades only about eight are suited for darker skin tones while the rest appear to be very light.
As someone with a light to medium complexion, I typically don't have too much trouble finding products that work for me, both high-end and drugstore brands. That is simply not the case for makeup users of darker complexions. If you're reading this and having a sudden feeling of Deja Vu, it's because just a few months ago the brand Tarte was under judgment for the same issue! They too released a foundation in 15 shades, and it was clear it was not a well thought out variation.
The issue that arises when you release 20 plus shades of lighter foundation and only a handful of deeper ones. Consequently, the makeup community begins to see that brands are not putting in enough effort. It isn't about the number of shades created; it's about the variety. A company that promotes a million shades of beige with different undertones is not helping any of the people with deeper or darker skin tones. In Beauty Blender's foundation, the few darker shades they have don't transition well at all. By contrast, the lighter shades graduate smoothly from cool tones to pink tones and then on to warmer golden tones. The line of makeup could very easily make two to three shades in between their already existing deeper ones.
A brand that took on the challenge of varying skin complexion within their products is Fenty Beauty owned by Rihanna. Her foundation comes in 40 shades, which is only eight more than Beauty Blender's but the difference is drastic. In Fenty's line, you can see the clear thought that went into creating each shade, especially the ones on the deeper end of the spectrum.
Makeup should be enjoyable and available for everyone, no matter their complexion. The beauty industry needs to hear the uproar against the lack of representation and do better in the future. It is understandable that a brand can not release a product for every individual skin tone, but it is not impossible to try.
