Common Makeup Myths for Black Women
For years black women have been told that they aren’t allowed, or can’t wear certain things when it comes to makeup. Black women were taught not to wear makeup or wear it very naturally. For example, stick to natural or neutral colors like brown or beige and never ever be caught wearing blush of any color. Four of the most common makeup myths for black women are:
Black women can’t wear bright eye shadow or smokey eyes.
Black women believe they can’t wear bright eye shadow because they’ve been told that it would look clownish. They believed that the contrast between our dark skin and the bright eye shadow would look silly and unnatural. However, that simply isn’t true. Black women can wear anything that anyone of any race can wear. It’s all about how you do it. For example, blue eye shadow used to be a big no-no. But in order to make it work for you, you might have to wear a different shade of blue or use a base under the shadow to make it pop more. It all depends on the look you’re going for.
The same thing goes for smokey eyes. Black women have been told to not wear black eye shadow because we’ll look like a raccoon. This is false as well. Smokey eyes tend to look very good on dark skin if executed well. Also, it’s all about making it work for you. There are many different types of smokey eyes, so you don’t have to do a black one. Try a brown one, a purple one, a green one, a grey one, etc. It’s all about making it work for you.
Black women can’t wear bright lipstick or nude lips.
I used to be one of those people who believed this myth and I stayed away from lipstick for as long as possible. But as I became more familiar with makeup and learned how to wear it as a black woman, I began to embrace it. A common myth is that black women can’t wear pink lipstick. However, it’s all about how you wear it and what shade you wear. In order for black women to wear a pink lipstick or any lipstick for that matter, they may need a lip liner. You can wear either a purple lip liner or brown lip liner with your lipstick so that it blends in with your skin better. If you’re dark skinned, it will look silly if you go from a dark face to very light lips. But, you most definitely can wear bright lipstick as a black woman.
The same thing goes for nude lips. Black women can wear nude lips but they have to manipulate it to make it work. You first have to pick the right shade and use a dark brown lip liner to make it blend in with your skin and look more natural.
Black women can’t wear blush.
Black women were told not to wear blush because of the fear of looking like Ronald McDonald. The only way to do that is to wear entirely too much blush or wear a blush that isn’t your shade. Again, the contrast of bright colors on dark skin can look amazing if executed correctly. A good universal blush color for all skin colors, from the lightest to the darkest, is an orange or peach blush. It looks the most natural and warms of the face very naturally.
Black women can’t contour or wear bronzer.
I was also a firm believer in this myth as well. Being a darker skinned woman, it’s extremely hard to find products darker than my own skin to contour or bronze with. However, there are companies like BlackUp Paris that cater to darker skin and make products that are dark enough to contour with. If worse comes to worse, you can even take a matte black eye shadow VERY SPARINGLY, and contour with it. But everyone can contour. You just have to find what works for you.
Of course there are many more makeup myths when it comes to black women but these are some of the most common. As I’ve learned more and more about makeup, I’ve learned that there is very little that black women can’t do with it. It’s all about picking the right shades and manipulating products so that they work for you.
