In celebration of Black History Month, NYLON is running a spotlight series called UNAPOLOGETIC. Every day, we’ll celebrate different aspects of black culture through profiles, interviews, roundtables, reviews, videos, and op-eds. #Blacklivesmatter and we hold that truth to be self-evident.
Growing out your natural hair or working on that flawless glow? We got you. Winter can do some major damage to your skin, so we searched far and wide and into the depths of Instagram to find some awesome beauty brands for your skin, hair, and makeup needs. All of them were created by black entrepreneurs with black hair and skin in mind; many of the products listed are made from all-natural ingredients, too.
And instead of just buying them once and forgetting about them, by following these accounts on Instagram, you can stay updated on their new scents, colors, and releases. Hopefully, you can even find a product that you're obsessed with and recommend it to your friends. We handpicked 30 of our favorite brands that you need to stock up for this week's #BlackFriday list, below.
The Afro Hair & Skin Co. is an independent Afro beauty and wellness business. They create organic hair and skin products by hand, using natural and locally sourced ingredients.
Balm & Co. products are created with the "intention of bringing holistic, planet and people friendly skin care to those near and far," according to their website. Their assortment of cleansers, serums, oils, and more is vegan and handmade with all-natural ingredients.
Foxie Cosmetics is a line of handcrafted bath bombs, soaps, and other body, skin, and hair care. The line is a one-woman show run by Kayla Phillips, a vegan, Texas-based musician.
Folie Apothecary is 100 percent natural skin care and hair care handcrafted by Urban Bush Babes co-founder Nikisha Brunson. Mists, serums, oils, and more are available on her Etsy shop as well as stockists like Saint Heron.
A'Naturelle is an all-natural topical skin-care line based out of Philadelphia. They incorporate the philosophy of ancient Indian ayurvedic principles into skin health. They only use plant-based ingredients in their creams, oils, and soaps. With more than 11 thousand followers on Instagram, the brand’s cult following loves their fresh scents of lemon, coconut ginger, and tea tree.
Bekura (‘bee-kure-ah’) describe themselves as specialty and avant-garde body care. The line of spa naturals helps with fatigued, dry skin and hair. Their beauty recipes are moisturizing, epicurean-grade botanicals such as floral honey nectars, cacao bean, and cold-pressed fruit butters. They don't use any fillers or GMOs, and they're against animal testing.
Base Butter is an all natural, multipurpose vegan beauty product with SPF 20 to protect you from the harmful rays. This one product can be used on your lips, skin, and hair. Can you say versatile?!
VEE+CO is a cruelty-free, plant- and earth-based apothecary line dedicated to, what it refer to as, the "triangle of life." They focus more on effect than fragrance, and their products can be used by men and women.
Pooka Pure and Simple has gained a large following for its natural body butters, oils, and soaps. Going off of the name, the line uses very simple formulas that are free from all harmful substances such as preservatives, added colors, and sulfates.
Oyin Handmade makes hair and body products that are moisture-focused and affordable. The brand specializes in providing products for curly and highly textured hair types, but their whipped body butters are popular too. They can be found at select Target and Sally Beauty Supply stores, or you can purchase online.
Juvia's Place is an eye makeup haven for high-pigmented gel liners and shadows. The shadows come in palettes with African royalty based themes, and they offer extra pots if you run out of your faves.
Sacha Cosmetics is a brand that specializes in perfecting shades for medium to dark complexions. Its products include lipsticks, shadows, foundations, and more.
Coloured Raine has a selection of colors for eyes, lips, and nails that are as stunning as they are unique.
The Lip Bar might just become your new favorite supplier of vegan, cruelty-free, affordable lip colors, and the fact that they come in an array of colors and finishes doesn't hurt either.
In 1994, Black Opal was the first to launch a doctor-recommended makeup line for women of color, and it has been staying on top of its game ever since.
Ka'oir, by Gucci Mane's bride-to-be, is a line formatted especially for women who want high-pigmented, quality colors in nearly any shade imaginable.
IMAN Cosmetics—started by none other than the goddess herself—has an array of undeniably beautiful shades for all skin tones.
black|Up is a Paris-based line that focuses on perfecting professional-grade makeup for women of color.
MDMflow is a U.K.-based makeup line that draws inspiration from the mid-'90s to early '00s hip-hop culture and delivers it in unforgettable packaging.
Fashion Fair Cosmetics is all for bold colors on brown girls, as seen in their beautifully vibrant makeup and skin-care line.
Shea Moisture has already made itself a staple in the black hair care lane and has now added itself to the makeup scene.
Cocotique is making lives easier with their $20 beauty boxes of hair, skin, and makeup products. Perfect for the girl who doesn't quite know what works for her yet, or just wants to try new things without spending too much.
NeoTress is a monthly subscription that offers naturalistas everything they need for hair care and self-styling. They offer an exclusive hair experience, which packages custom hair tutorials, the best hair products, and the tools chosen for the subscriber’s specific hair needs.
CURLS maintains high standards for quality ingredients and product dependability. Founder, Mahisha Dellinger, collaborated with leading cosmetic experts to develop CURLS.
Unsun is a face moisturizer made for people of color to protect their skin. It is specifically formulated with a mineral tint and it is tested on tones that range from olive to dark.
Bevel is a brand of premium grooming products and services that are meant to reduce razor bumps and skin irritation. The razors are specifically designed for both women and men with coarse, curly hair.
Ginger + Liz is a vegan-friendly and toxin-free nail lacquer brand. The collection was created in 2010 by Ginger Johnson and Liz Pickett, friends that bonded over their love of beauty and style.
The founders of Nubian Heritage started out as street vendors in Harlem right after college. Their goal was to bring the healing traditions of African black soap and shea butter to their community. They used their knowledge of culturally authentic healing traditions to create natural skin and body treatments.
Madam CJ Walker Beauty Culture is a hair care line that stems straight from the legend herself. Walker was an African-American entrepreneur, philanthropist, and a political and social activist in the late 1800s to early 1900s and the brand represents everything she stood for: power and beauty.
In 1993, encouraged by her mother Carol, Lisa Price began creating high-quality products in her Brooklyn, New York, kitchen. As family and friends experienced how her products transformed their hair and skin, she decided to turn it into a company and thus began Carol's Daughter.
