In this day and age everyone has a blog or a YouTube channel. Meaning it’s very difficult to break through all the noise. If you’re a beauty blogger (or YouTuber) it’s even more difficult with the market being overly saturated and blogs popping up a dime a dozen. Sometime it’s frustrating.
I love, I mean LOVE blogging, skincare, makeup, haircare, traveling, etc. I have so many ideas in my mind for post or videos that I am not able to bring to fruition as quickly as I’d like for a multitude of reasons. This is also another source of frustration. I’d love to pull a Tati Westbrook and go to the drugstore and buy an entire line of products to swatch for us brown girls. I’m finding more and more there is a void in the market of black and brown influencers that do full product line reviews especially from the drugstore. And I get it. Until recently, drugstore makeup options for women of color was VERY limited. But times are changing.
Since summer hit there has been a rash of new makeup releases. When I attempt to browse the internet for reviews from people with similar skin tones as mine I struggle to find more than 2. For example Covergirl just launched some liquid lipsticks (which are really lip glosses). When I tried searching for reviews or swatches of the product by black women to get a better idea of which colors would work for me I found 1 video. 1! That showcased the entire line. I found countless videos for Caucasian women and a few for Asian women. But only 1 that related to me and showcased the full line of colors.
Some makeup products are universal. You can get a good idea if it will work for you no matter who swatches the product. But some products, especially lip products are items where skin tone makes a huge difference. I can not even begin to tell you how many “nude” lip products I’ve purchased because it looked amazing on some other skin tone but made me look like I’d been eating powdered donuts.
I feel like alot of beauty bloggers/vloggers of color gravitate towards doing high-end makeup reviews because honestly who wants to pay $60 for a foundation when you can get it sent to you for free just by expressing your opinion? Again, I get it. Makes sense. However everyone is not able or interested in Sephora level products. Some people just want to go to Walgreens. Where are the reviews for those people? Where are the drugstore hauls for us?
AH! I need to hit the lottery or something. I am putting it in the atmosphere and claiming it right now. I will find a way to be that voice, to be that reviewer for the brown girls who don’t feel like dropping $30 on a mascara. I got ya’ll! I see the void and will do my best to fill it. This is my declaration!
Major Morris 
Great post; and you’re 100% right, the market is totally over saturated and it feels impossible to breakthrough. I am doing a giveaway here on my blog soon and I wanted to include some items that would work for a multitude of skin tones and I was having such a hard time finding things that I thought would work. I ended up talking to my coworker (and bestie), who is a woman of color, to ask her what items I should look into since product reviews felt impossible to come by. She is a smaller up and coming YouTuber that is a woman of color and I hope to see many more like her (and YOU) in the future! I think what you are doing is amazing; and girl, I’m crossing my fingers you can win that lottery and become another voice for women of color…and really women everywhere! Sorry this post was so long! xoxo!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzgqWTlKiQACMCxB4UUC8nQ (In case you are interested in checking out my coworker/Bestie’s channel)!
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Thanks for taking time out of your day to read my post. It is so frustrating to not be able to pull up video’s or swatches as easy reference points for melanated (yes I made this word up, lol) skintones.
I will definitely check out your friends YouTube channel. Also if you wouldn’t mind, shoot my blog and YouTube to her to check out :).
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuslFEKTgssfzoshfziPx5w
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I certainly empathize with your experience; I won’t pretend I understand fully, because how could I? But I totally empathize! And I love the made up word! I will definitely have her check you out! xoxo
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Thank you :).
Your new site looks amazing btw. (I don’t think I ever told you)
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Aww, thank you so much! xoxo
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I have a hard time looking at any guru. Not just skin colour. They’re all so young, almost irrelevant to my age bracket? Who has the time to simultaneously use 30+ products in any makeup session.
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I agree. Most of them don’t have day jobs so they have hours to sit and do their makeup. I just take tips and tricks and apply them to my life.
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