People are calling out Beauty Blender’s new foundation for the lack of inclusive shades
It's been over a decade since the initial release of the pink, sponge egg we all know and love, the Beauty Blender. And now the creators of the genius tool that has changed the makeup industry are back, and this time they're releasing a foundation.
Makeup artist and creator of the tool-we-can't-remember-our-lives-without, Rea Ann Silva, has always wanted to venture into cosmetics.
She told Allure: "What I was initially trying to create was makeup, not an application tool. Life threw me a curveball and the Beautyblender journey has been incredible, but how could I not come out with a foundation that works perfectly with it?"
The new foundation, which has been aptly named 'Bounce Liquid Whip Long Wear Foundation', and will retail at $40 (£30), has taken Silva two years to perfect, and she says the formula of the product is unique, long-wearing and high-performance. With the Beauty Blender as its older sibling, the foundation certainly has a lot to live up to.
However, just two weeks after the product launch, the brand has received some serious backlash after fans found themselves unable to find a colour that flatters their skin tone.
The foundation is available in a range of 32 different shades and while this might sound like a reasonably diverse selection, on closer inspection, the selection is not nearly as inclusive as it sounds. Out of the 32 shades available, 25 are designed for light and light-medium skin tones and just 7 are a suitable match for dark skin. This acknowledgment of the diversity of tones for light and medium skin and failure to provide an equally inclusive range of shades for dark skin has left fans reeling.
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Dubbing the collection '50 Shades of Beige', MUAs have been sharing swatches of the entire range across social media. Pointing out that 16 of the light shades look almost identical, MUAs are calling out the meagre selection of just 7 dark shades an embarrassing failure to deliver variety of shades that Beautyblender's fans need to complement their skin.
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Out of these 7 dark shades, fans have been quick to spot that two of them aren't exactly flattering on deep skin. Two particularly orange shades have come under fire with MUAs joking that it's not a match for any skin tone at all.
Taking to social media to vent their frustration with the brand, fans can't believe that these really are the only shades that the foundation will be released in. Even makeup royalty, Jeffree Star, has been appalled by the brand's failure to create an inclusive range, calling out the brand in a video titled 'Shade Range Who?'.
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GLAMOUR has reached out to Beautyblender and will update you when we hear back.
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