From skin-colour inclusivity to beauty tools that cater for albinos, people with Parkinson’s, and women wearing hijabs, the world of inclusive beauty is growing. And rightly so.
While there’s still a long way for the beauty industry to go, the concentration of new beauty brands, such as Rare Beauty, on extensive colour ranges mark a new era of prioritisation of inclusion of all skin colours and types.
However, truly inclusive beauty steps beyond diverse colour ranges, representing those of different genders, sexualities, and cultural identities.
For example, whilst it was fantastic to see Ellie Goldstein, a model with Down’s Syndrome, featured in Gucci Beauty’s 2020 campaign, there remains woefully inadequate representation of those with disabilities in the imagery of mainstream makeup brands.
FURTHER READING: 4 of the best gender-neutral beauty brands designed to suit everyone
Our founder, Victoria, set up mamabella because she didn’t think the beauty industry ‘saw’ her, and people like her. And that’s from a privileged position of being a white woman.
If a white woman in her mid-30s didn’t feel like the industry was catering to her, we can’t even begin to imagine what it’s like for people from different races, of different ages, with different skin tones, types and all the other wonderful factors that make each and every one of us unique.
Here at mamabella, we’re committed to bringing you the most exciting new launches and brands that cater to all skin colours, skin types, and cultural needs.
We believe inclusivity is reflected not just in products, but in brand identities, so we’ve sought to uncover brands that boost important causes and reflect inclusivity in their ethos, too.
There is always more that can be done, so please let us know on our social accounts or by email what else you’d like to see, or what you think we should be doing more of.
Black-owned makeup brand Beauty Bakerie exploded onto the makeup scene, with its cute bakery-inspired products and inclusive shade range. CEO Cashmere Nicole founded the brand having become a mum at 16 and surviving breast cancer. Her goal was to create long-lasting makeup that meant she spent less time touching up and more time living in the moment.
Beauty Bakerie also founded the charity Sugar Homes, sponsoring children in orphanages across the world. Its first project was the Hopeworth Children’s Foundation, a female-led orphanage based in Uganda. Since its founding, the charity has raised over $100,000 in donations, and we adore the brand’s dedication to women beyond beauty.
The brand is dedicated to increasing representation of Black people within the beauty industry itself. With an executive team that is 75% Black, and a Board of Directors that is 60% Black, Beauty Bakerie is leading by example, improving diversity in what is an unacceptably white-dominated industry.
The brand’s website also contains a wealth of resources relating to the Black Lives Matter Movement, further representing its dedication to racial justice.
Beyond its impressive dedication to social causes, Beauty Bakerie is a makeup range packed with cult products. One of its most raved about products is the Flour Setting Powder (£22.50), a finely-milled loose setting powder that will keep your makeup in place all day.
The formula works to blur the appearance of pores and combats shine and oil throughout the day. It also comes in a range of six shades, so darker skin tones won’t be left with a white cast!
As well as loving its creative product range, we adore Beauty Bakerie’s dedication to improving diversity within the beauty industry, involvement in education surrounding racial justice issues, and sponsorship of vital charitable causes.
Buy now from Beauty Bakerie
It’s been three years since Rihanna entered the beauty industry with Fenty Beauty and changed the game when it came to inclusivity. Instead of being an afterthought, Fenty Beauty was designed with an inclusive ethos from the get-go. The tagline is even Beauty for All.
Not only was it the first brand to launch an incredible 40 shades in its first foundation release, its marketing and advertising has included a wide range of faces and genders.
The singer has since launched Fenty Skin, a gender-free skincare collection, and her Fenty x Savage clothing line has been praised for showing models of different races, sizes, genders as well as models with disabilities.
What’s more, in 2012 Rihanna launched the Clara Lionel Foundation (CLF) in honour of her grandparents, Clara and Lionel Braithwaite. CLF supports and funds education, health and emergency response programs around the world to improve the life for young people everywhere.
You can read more about how Fenty Beauty sells great makeup for men on our sister site, MBman.
Buy now from Boots
With packaging to die for and reviews that’ll have you emptying your bank account, Selena Gomez’s cosmetics line – Rare Beauty – caused quite the stir when it launched.
Taking Rihanna’s lead, the singer wanted to release a makeup range that “breaks down unrealistic standards of perfection without hiding what makes you unique.” Gomez adds that Rare Beauty is “not about being someone else, but being who you are.”
It boasts one of the most impressive foundation and concealer shade ranges on the market, with 48 shades available.
The brand has launched in Sephora in the US, Canada and Mexico, but sadly is not on sale in the UK – at the moment. Rare Beauty’s website also does not offer shipping to the UK.
The brand has announced plans to expand in 2021 and we’ll update this page when we know more.
FURTHER READING: How to find your perfect foundation match
Making sure you don’t get makeup in your hair while applying makeup is a problem faced by many women – it’s why there’s such a market for headbands – yet a headband doesn’t help when you’re wearing a hijab. To solve this issue, Nandi K Baker designed the The ModBeauty Keeper.
As the world’s first modest beauty protector, the ModBeautyKeeper uses Peel, Press, Release adhesive to gently stick the protector around the face, protecting the fabric of a hijab or other religious or cultural head garment from the stands of stray creams or powders.
Even better, the protector is made of an eco-friendly fibrous web and is reusable for up to 3-5 uses, so you don’t have to worry about harming the environment!
The ModBeautyKeeper isn’t just for hijabi women. It could also benefit beauty influencers who share makeup videos online, makeup artists who may be applying base products, or for anyone who wishes to do retouches while out and about.
There is one major catch at the moment – it’s only available in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait,Bahrain, Oman, and within the United Arab Emirates. However, ModBeautyKeeper said it is “working around the clock to ship internationally, and working with distributors in order for all our Modest beauties to have the chance to purchase their very own.” We’ll update this page once we know more.
Explore the ModBeautyKeeper range
The founding mission of Jecca Blac is gender-free makeup, encouraging inclusion of makeup wearers of all gender identities. The goal was to offer a safe space for trans women to experiment with makeup, without prejudice or judgement.
Jecca Blac’s website and socials also represent models of all genders and skin tones, making this an exciting brand to follow for inspirational content! And, as well as boasting a varied product line and gorgeous packaging, all Jecca Blac products are vegan, cruelty-free, and made in the UK. What’s not to love?
We are especially excited about Jecca Blac’s Complete Base Bundle, which features its Correct & Conceal Palette, Sculpt & Soften Palette, and Blur & Matte Primer, for the reduced cost of £52.80. For someone who may just be starting out with makeup, this is the ideal option to get all you need for a flawless base at an affordable price.
We also love its versatile Play Pots (£16.50), which are cream pigments that can be applied anywhere on the face. Our fave is the Pink Pearl, which gives a light shimmery glow over the eyelids, and Gold Touch is a beautiful cream highlighter for deeper skin tones.
Jecca Blac is a brand with an exciting, high-quality product range to match its inspiring dedication to gender inclusivity in the beauty industry. We can’t wait to see what it releases next!
Buy now from Jecca Blac
Dermablend is a brand well-known among dermatologists and professional makeup artists, but one that you may be less familiar with. This high-performance makeup, which forms part of the wider Vichy range, is ideal for those suffering with hard-to-conceal skin concerns, ranging from vitiligo to severe acne.
The brand was founded in 1981 by American dermatologist Dr. Craig Roberts with the goal of establishing a brand at the cross-section of dermatology and makeup. Dermablend has thus produced a range of products that are safe for use of all skin types and conditions, as well as being inclusive of a broad range of skin tones.
Dermablend is PETA-certified cruelty free and is working towards its range being 100% vegan in the very near future. The brand is also free from SLS, Triclosan and phthalates, meaning that it’s great for your skin and the environment. You can learn more about this in our guide to clean beauty.
We love the Fluid Corrective Foundation, a high-coverage, long-lasting base product which is suitable for moderate skin concerns including acne, rosacea, tattoos and scarring. This foundation is buildable, and can be applied in a thin layer for more sheer coverage. It can also be mixed with a moisturiser for lighter coverage or for use on the body.
The Fluid Corrective Foundation even boasts SPF 35 sun protection, providing ultimate skincare benefits.
Dermablend’s dedication to makeup suitable for even the most severe skincare concerns, and ethos dedicated to beauty with and without makeup have earned the brand a well-deserved place at the top of high-performance professional makeup, and is the perfect addition to your makeup collection whether you suffer with skin concerns, or not.
Buy now from Vichy
Whilst skin tone inclusivity is frequently discussed in the beauty industry with respect to darker skin tones, we rarely see mentioned the difficulties that those with albinism have sourcing beauty products that cater to skin at the other end.
Ivoree Beauty was founded by influencer Jennifer Rhodes, or J Renée, who herself has albinism, to cater to this problem. Albinism is a genetic condition that impacts melanin production, resulting in a lack of pigment to the skin, hair and eyes. It can also result in sight problems.
The brand produces False Lashes in a variation of colours, from white to light brown ($15.00 each), representing colours that are not seen on the high street. Unfortunately, the lashes are only currently available in the US, but we hope to see this move towards albino inclusivity reflected across the pond very soon!
FURTHER READING: Ivoree Beauty is a new makeup brand created for people with albinism by J Renée
Explore the Ivoree Beauty range
GUIDE Beauty is a makeup brand inspired by, and designed for people with Parkinson’s Disease. We hadn’t considered that people with Parkinson’s wouldn’t be able to apply makeup in the same way people without the disease do.
With this in mind, makeup artist and beauty educator Terri Bryant – who, herself, has Parkinson’s Disease – wanted to create makeup and tools that improve the precision of applying makeup for people with Parkinson’s and other, similar conditions.
The clean beauty brand also worked with chemists to introduce unique vegan, cruelty-free formulations that are “as forgiving as they are luxurious.” It’s another US brand but you can get the products shipped to the UK. You can spend up to £135 and not incur any duty on your order but VAT is 20% and due on any order above £15.
Buy now from Guide Beauty
Thrive Causmetics is a luxury beauty brand with a cause. Established by makeup artist Karissa Bodnar after she lost her friend Kristy to cancer at 24 years old, Karissa was inspired to establish a brand that promotes female empowerment and boasts products containing proven ingredients with skincare benefits.
The brand is 100% vegan and cruelty-free, and for every product purchased, Thrive Causmetics makes a donation to women’s charities supporting those fighting cancer, emerging from homelessness, and surviving domestic abuse.
Thrive’s Buildable Blur CC Cream ($38.00) is a fantastic base product with a diverse shade range and skin-loving ingredients, including Broad Spectrum SPF 35.
This product works to correct any imperfections and uneven skin tone with its buildable formula, as well as being moisturising. It is also enriched with Vitamin C, which is proven to brighten the natural appearance of skin.
We love Thrive Causmetic’s message of female empowerment and commitment to supporting causes that assist women in difficult situations.
Although this is an American brand, it does ship to the UK. You’ll just need to pay shipping and customs charges.
Buy now from Thrive Causmetics
After graduating from the University of East Anglia with a degree in History, Katie has gone on to pursue a Master’s Degree in Human Rights at University College London and is currently interning at a legal representation charity. When she’s not poring over books on politics and legal theory, she’s obsessing over cat TikToks, playing with makeup, or prowling ASOS
