In a global beauty market, where do darker complexions fit when it comes to Korean makeup products?
The never-ending quest to find the right foundation shade gets more complex every season with brands releasing new foundation lines and shades. Rihanna did us all a favor this year with her revolutionary 40 shade range of Fenty Beauty foundation. However, not all of us are down for the ultra matte look that it provides and turn to other brands to achieve dewy, glowy skin.
As a K-beauty connoisseur, I am painfully aware of how limited and unforgiving Korean foundation shades are. Up until the past few years, Korean cosmetics brands only produced an average of 3 shades: No 21, No 22, and No 23. Which directly translate to pale, slightly less pale, and darker but still pale.
When I first learned about the magic of BB creams back in 2009, I saved up my allowance to buy the cult classic Skin79 Super BB Beblesh Balm from some shady website (because Korean beauty is only a recent trend of 2-3 years), praying that this cream, that exists in only 1 color, would hide all the pimples that come with being 15 years old.
Now what I failed to realize was just how tan I really was and how pale Korean makeup would be. Growing up in Southern California means sunscreen is your best friend and you develop a healthy tan by the time recess is over. So when I finally received this so-called miracle in a bottle, I quickly realized one shade does not fit all and it was going to be a difficult journey to find anything that was going to match my sun-kissed complexion in the Asian beauty world.
Thankfully, with the exponential globalization of Korean beauty, brands are slowly adapting to meet the needs of their ever-growing pool of customers by expanding their shade offerings. Most notably, Innisfree launched 2 compact cushion foundations (matte & dewy), a liquid full coverage matte foundation and a pressed powder foundation featuring an expansive shade range and different undertones to go with them. A release of this many shades for a Korean brand was pretty much unheard of! And if you want to try these foundations in person and find your ideal shade, K-Beauty fans can do so at Innisfree’s brick and mortar store in NYC.
