Rating Black Owned Products
Topicals$28.00Faded Brightening and Clearing Serumshade · Unscented- “This formula contains niacinamide in the low-to-mid 3% range. Contains tranexamic acid around 2 to 3%. It contains alpha arbutin, kojic acid dipalmitate, and a solid glycerin base”▶ 3:09
- “From a pigmentation standpoint, this is a multi-path formula”▶ 3:50
- “I love it. It's one of my favorite for skin of color”▶ 4:11
- “That's a good formula”▶ 4:15
- “It also passes the Naif safe check. There's no fragrance, no essential oils, or denatured alcohol”▶ 4:17
- “The price is $38. So, it is on the more expensive side, but I think it's worth it”▶ 4:30
- “Does it work? Yes. This is a well-formulated product with a well-chosen active stack”▶ 4:31
- “I would give this product a rating of 8.5 out of 10”▶ 4:36
- “The packaging is, however, in a tube. It's adequate, but I would have preferred this in an airless pump”▶ 4:23
Topicals$28Faded Brightening and Clearing Serumshade · Regular (scented)- “This version contains ethylin salicylate. This is a synthetic mask added during reformulation to stabilize the scent. By every formulator standard, this is a fragrance ingredient”▶ 4:48
- “Fragrance is one of the most common triggers of contact dermatitis in melanin-rich skin”▶ 4:57
- “The very product designed to fade the dark spots could be triggering the next one”▶ 5:07
- “Buy the unscented version, same actives, none of the fragrance risk”▶ 5:11
- “If I had to rate the regular version, I'd give it 6.5 out of 10 purely because of the fragrance compound”▶ 5:15
Topicals$16.00- “This is a standard emollient lip balm. It's got castor oil, shea butter, vitamin E”▶ 5:23
- “Unfortunately, there are no tyrosinase inhibitors in this formula, and there's no SPF 50, which is key because the first part of the body to tan are the lips”▶ 5:27
- “At $16, Aquaphor does the same job as this”▶ 5:47
- “For this product, I'd rate it a five out of 10. It wasn't really made with black skin in mind”▶ 5:54
EADEM$68.00- “This formula uses niacinamide just under 3%, a strong licorice base and two forms of very gentle vitamin C, including 3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid”▶ 6:20
- “I love this form of vitamin C for skin of color because it's non-irritating”▶ 6:30
- “You get anti-inflammatory effects from the magnolia bark. You get enzymatic exfoliation from pineapple and papaya”▶ 7:03
- “It's got a phytosterol system that supports the barrier, which I love”▶ 7:12
- “On pigmentation, this is a softer pathway for brightening”▶ 7:17
- “This is gentle. It's not aggressive”▶ 7:30
- “I love the fact this formula is Naif safe. It truly is fragrance-free”▶ 7:33
- “The packaging, however, is in a dropper. It's adequate, but I really would have preferred this in an airless pump in order to ensure that the vitamin C is actually stable by the time it hits your face”▶ 7:36
- “The price is $48. It works, but it's slow and safe”▶ 7:46
- “I would rate this an eight out of 10”▶ 7:50
- “It would go up if it was in an airless packaging and if some of the actives such as licorice root extract were at a higher percentage”▶ 7:52
- “However, if you have sensitive skin, this could irritate you”▶ 7:09
- “This is a genuinely good barrier chemistry. High glycerin, niacinamide, a full ceramide cholesterol fatty acid system, peptides, and adenosine”▶ 8:01
- “It also has a very interesting ingredient called tremella mushroom, which actually outperforms hyaluronic acid in water retention”▶ 8:12
- “For black skin, where you have higher transepidermal water loss, i.e. more water evaporation from the skin, that matters”▶ 8:17
- “The tyrosinase inhibition is modest but present”▶ 8:25
- “The Naif safety check is borderline. There's no synthetic fragrance, but botanical aromatic extracts remain”▶ 8:28
- “The real problem is again packaging. This is a water-based peptide containing formula in a finger dip glass jar”▶ 8:35
- “At $58, that's a chemistry undermining decision”▶ 8:43
- “When fresh, it works beautifully”▶ 8:46
- “So, I give this a seven out of 10. It would be an eight and a half if it was in an airless pump”▶ 8:48
EADEM$36- “This product targets a serious black skin specific issue, razor bumps and post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation”▶ 8:54
- “The actives are real. Lactic acid and mandelic acid, both large molecular weight AHAs, which are very safe for skin of color”▶ 9:02
- “They also add in azelaic acid, another safe acid for reactive inflamed skin”▶ 9:10
- “This formula contains a heavy essential oil blend, including bergamot and lime peel oils. Both are phototoxic”▶ 9:17
- “Phototoxic oils plus melanin-rich skin plus sun exposure equals pigmentation risk”▶ 9:26
- “In my professional opinion, this directly contradicts Eadem's melanin-sensitive positioning”▶ 9:33
- “The actives work, but the essential oils disqualify it for many black skins”▶ 9:38
- “I would give this product a five and a half out of 10”
Hyper Skin$36.00- “Hyper Clear Brightening Serum uses 3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid, one of my favorite forms of vitamin C for skin of color, at a high enough position to genuinely support the brand's claimed vitamin strength”▶ 9:58
- “You also get 1% Kojic Acid, plus arbutin, rich barberry, and licorice, one of my favorite forms of tyrosinase inhibitor”▶ 10:17
- “This is the strongest tyrosinase inhibitor stack so far in this video”▶ 10:25
- “The Na Safe check is borderline. It's not fragrance, but basil extract contributes to the natural aroma”▶ 10:33
- “Most black skin will tolerate this, but highly reactive skins should do a patch test first”▶ 10:40
- “At $36, this product works, and it works well”
- “I'd rate this an eight out of 10”
Hyper Skin$12.00- “It's got gentle surfactants, minimal exfoliation, brightening claims that over-promise in a rinse-off format”▶ 10:53
- “The issue in this formula is grapefruit peel oil. A potentially phototoxic essential oil in a product targeting pigmentation in melanin-rich skin”▶ 10:58
- “Even though it's in a rinse-off, it really shouldn't be there at all”▶ 11:07
- “It's an acceptable cleanser, but not ideal for black skin”▶ 11:10
- “I would give it a five out of 10”▶ 11:12
Hyper Skin$36.00- “This is a chemical sunscreen. The problem with chemical sunscreens in black skin is that it can increase inflammation, and inflammation causes pigmentation in skin of color”▶ 11:16
- “Unfortunately, they also added in clove extract and fragrance compound”▶ 11:55
- “As an SPF, it functions. As an SPF for black skin, it's less than ideal”▶ 11:59
- “I'd give this a four out of 10”
Bolden$24.49- “This has a very high chemical filter load, homosalate at 15%”▶ 12:19
- “Scientifically, homosalate at this level raises legitimate concerns, including potential hormone for black skin”▶ 12:25
- “The inflammation risk alone is enough for me to tell you to go more for mineral sunscreen”▶ 12:31
- “As a moisturizer, it's fine. As an SPF for black skin, it's not one that I'd recommend”▶ 12:35
- “I would rate this a four out of 10”▶ 12:39
Bolden$18.79- “This is a Bolden's sleeper hit”▶ 12:43
- “4% tranexamic acid, 4% niacinamide, arbutin, kojic, azelaic. Plus, they added in tetrapeptide”▶ 12:46
- “This is a clinically dosed brightening product at $24”▶ 12:53
- “It's stronger on tranexamic acid than Topical's Faded at half the price”▶ 12:55
- “This is an excellent product, and I rate it an 8.5 out of 10”▶ 13:01
Bolden$22.49- “10% glycolic acid in a daily use toner is too aggressive for black skin”▶ 13:04
- “I think there's this common misconception that black skin is tougher and it can handle more, but that's just not the case”▶ 13:10
- “It's going to lead to PIH, post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation in black skin”▶ 13:47
- “Glycolic acid is one of those ingredients. It's the most popular AHA on the market, but it's just not suitable for skin of color”▶ 13:54
- “It's one that I would tell you to side step and certainly not on the face and certainly not on a daily basis”▶ 14:00
- “I would unfortunately rate this product at four out of 10”▶ 14:06
African Beauty Buttershade · Ugandan Vanilla + Ethiopian Honey- “It uses unrefined Ghanaian shea plus Ugandan shea nilotica”▶ 14:25
- “It's anti-inflammatory, barrier sealing, soft natural SPF 50”▶ 14:30
- “It's an anhydrous formula, so jar packaging is appropriate here”▶ 14:39
- “This is one of the best body products available in the US right now for black skin”▶ 14:41
- “The only downside of this is probably the fragrance, so I'd rate this an 8.5 out of 10”▶ 14:45
African Beauty Buttershade · Egyptian Lavender + Moroccan Mint
- “It's got sea salt, mulberry, niacinamide. It's quite the real brightening support”▶ 15:19
- “I give it a 7.5 out of 10”
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