June 9, 2020

Today I Listen, I Learn, I Commit To Doing Better

I think one of the biggest things that has come out of the Black Lives Matter movement is it taught me to listen more. I think in listening you can learn a lot more. There’s nothing wrong with just being silence for a few minutes to absorb what you are hearing around you. There’s a lot of information floating around for us to educate ourselves with. There’s so many ways we can listen, learn, and commit ourselves to being better humans. We’re still going to make mistakes because I haven’t yet met a perfect person in the universe but by learning more we’ll make less mistakes that might potentially hurt others.

I’m really reaching here this week to get back into beauty. I find it a little hard to talk about makeup when so many things are wrong with the world right now but I’m doing my best because I really am committed to reaching out to all of you. I’ll readily admit writing this blog also gives me piece of mind, some sanity, and comfort. I’ve been doing this over ten years and many of you have been here for the entire journey. Some days I wonder how long I can continue but as soon as my fingers hit the keyboard those thoughts disappear and I’m enchanted again about getting the word of beauty to you.

This week, I decided to learn more about black owned beauty brands. I’ve featured brands like Fenty, Shea Moisture, Carol’s Daughter, Juvia’s Place, Uoma, Beauty Bakerie, and others in the past but I want to dig deeper and educate myself more to support these brands. I’ll be reviewing products in future posts that I hope you’ll enjoy seeing from brands you may have never even heard about.

As someone who’s always been heavily involved with Japanese, Korean, and beauty abroad makeup and beauty trends and products it only seems logical to extend my niche further and start becoming more involved with smaller owned businesses (and larger ones) that promote, align with, and support BLM.

My question to you is which black owned beauty brands do you already use, support, and love?

I’d love to hear all about them!

Do share!

12 Comments

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

  • Maxine

    Briogeo! I love their hair care line.

    Up Next:
    1. Pat McGrath for big brands. I don’t own any of her products yet but am loading up my cart.
    2. Propa Beauty for small indy brands. Getting myself on their lipstick wait list.

    Thank you Muse, for keeping this conversation going. I hope that it’s not a short-lived conversation.

    • Isabella Muse

      Briogeo=Amazing! Nancy has a pretty amazing background story as well. I never heard of Propa Beauty gonna go and google that now thanks! ;-D Aw thanks Maxine! It’s important to keep it going!

      • Monica

        I’ve really appreciated all of your content around this time-thank you! As far as BOB, I like Pat McGrath and am interested in trying Juvia’s Place and Propa after seeing a swatch video.

        • Isabella Muse

          aw thank you for reading it! Juvia’s Place is pretty amazing! Try the Warrior Palette <3! Good one!

  • Adrienne

    Hi Muse, I want to commend you on actually doing something. A lot of people talk but don’t back it up with actions, you were an active participant in a protest and that speaks volumes. I have received a lot of emails from companies I have ordered with in the past like Tatcha, Glow Recioe, Marc Jacobs, Ulta, Sallys saying they support BLM and equality for all. Those are a few but don’t recall getting anything from Sephora. How about you? Your post prompted me to think of where money is spent and who are the faces that represent the companies and who is employed by the company. Thank you for all that you do to inform us and try to inject some happiness in the midst of so much hurt and fear.

    • Isabella Muse

      Thank you Adrienne your comment means the world. I was honestly scared tbh! I was concerned about getting sick and also, I was kind of scared that I would be trampled or something scary like that. But it was really amazing and I’m happy I did it. I literally cried at one point because everyone was so there for each other. It feels amazing bonding with complete strangers like that! Funny you asked, I just posted about Sephora. They are doing a weird reward for donation exchange that feels phoned in! I think time will tell how things go with brands and who will make good on the promises they are making right now! Thank you again your comment means the world to me!

  • Cindy

    I like Beauty Bakerie (they have a blush palette with packaging that looks like an ice cream sandwich coming out soon!) and I also like The Puff Cuff hair accessory. It works with a clasp and doesn’t rip out curly hair like an elastic band does and It comes in all different sizes so you can find one that works for you. I like to wear my hair on the top of my head at home so this is very useful. I think you may like it for your hair if you ever wear it up! It says on the website that it’s sold at Sally’s but the Sally’s by me didn’t have it when I bought some a long time ago. I got them directly through the website.

    • Isabella Muse

      OOO i didn’t see that. Do want! I never heard of the Puff Cuff gotta go check that out!!!!! ;-D

  • kjh

    Across all issues, you always remind us to be our best selves. I use Shea Moisture and Nubian Heritage bath products, some Fenty, one Uoma (concealer, girl!) and Pat. Don’t forget to support BOBs for spices and food ingredients! Lots of fine spices from Afro-Caribbean brands. My snarky side is asking if this means we can buy Native American jewelry without engaging in cultural appropriation? It’s all in the attitude.

  • Laura

    Pat Mcgrath (I own every eyeshadow palette she has made, I also like the highlighters and lipsticks), Juvia’s place (I own all of their palettes too, their brushes and highlighters are good too), Beauty Bakerie (their blushlighter palette is amazing!), Briogeo for the hair oil (they also had a honey bear don’t despair limited edition and I wish they would bring that back!), Coloured Raine (so underrated imo! They have excellent palettes and lipsticks, the Power collection had really wet and shiny looking highlighters, I also have every eyeshadow palette they’ve ever made lol).
    And I like Fenty and Carol’s Daughter (but CD is owned by L’Oreal so not sure whether that counts anymore). Quemet biologics has some nice products and is available at Sephora (great for dry hair), Kreyol has hair and body products (they have a hair oil that promotes hair growth in a chocolate scent!). That’s all I’ve used, looking forward to trying more.

  • Dee

    Fenty, Shea Moisture and Carol’s Daughter are brands I have tried. Definitely heard of Beauty Bakerie and Juvia’s Place but haven’t tried yet. It isn’t beauty related but my daughter told me about an artist/poet by the name of Morgan Harper Nichols and we ordered some of her prints. Muse, I think you would like what she writes.

    Thanks for your posts. I think a lot of us are really paying attention and listening and trying to learn how we can and must do better.

    • Isabella Muse

      Thanks Dee! I’ll look her up right now! Thank you for reading my posts and supporting me!