Black Friday is just days away—and as we’ve already warned you, this is not the year to procrastinate on purchases! By now, you’ve hopefully stretched, hydrated and have your list ready for the biggest shopping day of the year (closely followed by Cyber Monday )—because it’s already in motion!
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If there are beauty lovers on your list, we’re here to help make gifting them a little easier this year—well, actually, it’s our friends at Sephora who provided this assist, with an increased assortment of Black beauty in their already flush holiday assortment. We’ve had our eye on the international beauty emporium for a while as it’s made concerted efforts to diversity both its employee base and its store shelves, including being the first retailer to join the Fifteen Percent Pledge. In this season of giving, that commitment has extended to Sephora’s annual array of gift sets—which this year includes more Black-owned brands than ever before. We highly recommend taking a browse at the entire assortment (the value sets are always a great get—and all Fenty is currently 25 percent off). But because we’re here for all things Black and beautiful—and one-stop shopping—we’ve curated a few of our Black-owned favorites for you.
Adwoa Beauty
If you know, you know—and there’s a reason Adwoa Beauty has developed a cult following. The “modern, non-toxic, gender neutral beauty brand catering to multi-cultural hair textures” is offering us some seasonal comfort this year with its Baomint Best Sellers Holiday Kit, including its moisturizing shampoo, leave in conditioning styler, and deep conditioning treatment.
“This is nutrient-rich food for your hair,” says Julian Addo, the brand’s founder and head of product innovation. “We coat every last curl, coil and wave with intense moisture...Your curls will look instantly defined and feel insanely soft.” ($39 at a $61 value at sephora.com)
Pat McGrath Labs
TGU 50 icon Dame Pat McGrath—also known as “Mother”—has done it again, serving us an eye-popping moment with her otherworldly MTHRSHP MEGA: Celestial Odyssey Palette, part of the Celestial Odyssey & Holiday Collection 2021. “Featuring 18 wondrously wearable hues presented in five luxe finishes: sateen shimmer, 24K duochrome sparkle, foiled metallic, velvet matte and iridescent sparkle,” this pigment-rich palette, festively packaged in its own baroque embossed box, also gives an exceptional, luxury-level bang for your buck. ($78 at sephora.com)
54 Thrones
It goes without saying that we are an ardently ash-averse people, so it’s hard to think of a more winter-perfect gift than 54 Thrones’ African Beauty Butter Collection. This deluxe gift tin includes five full-size beauty butters, “uniquely scented with sumptuous African oils and extracts” and made with “nourishing plant botanicals to soften and hydrate dry skin.” ($80 at a $120 value; $29 for a mini set at sephora.com)
Bread Beauty Supply
We love this Australia-based brand that was cultivated in Sephora’s own incubator program. After wowing us with their debut haircare offerings in 2020, this year, Bread Beauty Supply branched out into skincare, debuting a Macadamia body oil to complement its cult-favorite Everyday Gloss hair oil. The brand’s Holiday Oil Cassette includes both, making sure your recipient will stay glowing all season long. ($28 at a $42 value at sephora.com)
Fenty Beauty
The brand that helped make Rihanna a billionaire (and an entire industry follow in her inclusive footsteps), is ready to dazzle for the holidays with an array of gift options—and at 25 percent off, you can afford several stocking stuffers. Our fave? The Diamond Bomb Triple Drip All Over Diamond Veil Palette (say that five times fast), which “features three reimagined nude shades delivering the most stunning shimmer.” (currently $31.50 at a $59 value at sephora.com)
Fenty Skin
What’s better than one Rihanna beauty brand? Two, of course—and Fenty Skin is also trying to make it under our trees this year with The Before-Bed Set 3-Piece PM Essentials set. Including “three essentials for juicy-looking skin and kiss-worthy lips, so you can say goodnight to dull, dry skin,” this is the perfect remedy for holiday-fatigued skin. If you’ve set to try out Rih’s secret weapons for a flawless complexion, this might be great to gift yourself, too. ($44.25 of a $69.50 value at sephora.com)
Forvr Mood
Jackie Aina may be our favorite beauty YouTuber of all time, but her debut brand, Forvr Mood, has something to make our homes a little prettier. Newly landed in Sephora, Forvr Mood’s seasonal Candle Duo Set “features Sip Happens, with boozy notes of chilled prosecco infused with fruity pomegranate; and Floral Play, with brilliant notes of gardenia infused with warm strokes of white cedar and bergamot.” Perfect for cozy nights by candlelight. ($72 at sephora.com)
Danessa Myricks Beauty
Self-made beauty maven Danessa Myricks has made some major moves since launching her eponymous brand, including landing a well-earned spot on Sephora’s shelves this year. For the holidays, she’s blessing us with the Rose Dream Set, a trio of her multi-use Colorfix eye, cheek & lip cream pigment...and a dream, indeed. ($30 at a $54.00 value at sephora.com)
Briogeo
Briogeo has earned its spot in the luxury haircare space, and its Honey Hydration Don’t Despair, Repair! Hair Repair Kit makes a welcome return to Sephora’s holiday assortment. The kit’s full-sized hair mask has been proven to boost moisture up to 88 percent after just two uses; it’s paired with travel-sizes of the brand’s bestselling Don’t Despair, Repair! shampoo and conditioner duo, making this a sweet holiday treat. ($38 at a $47 value at sephora.com)
Shani Darden
When it comes to beautiful skin, celebrity esthetician Shani Darden is in the business of delivering results. Her Age-Defying Retinol Set is “a simple, 3-step routine designed to deliver powerful anti-aging results without any unwanted irritation, redness or congestion,” providing “instant brightening along with long-term smoothing and firming anti-aging benefits.” Give someone the gift of better skin this season. ($88 at a $110.00 value at sephora.com)
A Bit of Black-Owned Everything!
Want to gift them a little of everything (or treat yourself, after all of that shopping)? The limited-edition Sephora Favorites Black-Owned Beauty set—which includes full-sized products from Pat McGrath Labs and Fenty Beauty and Skin, as well as sample sizes of most of the brands above—is still available. And if you love a gift that keeps on giving, Sephora is donating $150,000 to the Fifteen Percent Pledge with the support of this kit. ($35 at a $124 value at sephora.com)
Check out all of Sephora’s value and gift sets—as well as their Black-owned beauty brands—at sephora.com.
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