The best shade-inclusive foundations in Hong Kong

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Credit: Fenty Beauty

It’s been a long time coming, but it seems that the beauty industry is finally waking up to the importance of diversity. In recent years, an increasing number of brands have made the effort to cater for more skin tones in both their products and their marketing – yet despite this, it sometimes feels like Hong Kong is still lagging behind.

While there’s no faulting the variety of complexion products available here, with a myriad of foundations, tinted moisturisers, BB and CC creams from hundreds of brands all competing for our attention, the range of shades on offer generally leaves something to be desired. Many of the big-name brands frequently praised online for having diverse shade ranges sell only a limited number of their colours in Hong Kong – with offerings here inevitably focused on the whiter shade of pale.

With that in mind, we’ve rounded up seven of the most shade-inclusive foundation ranges you can actually buy in Hong Kong – so here’s to finding that perfect match.

Fenty Beauty

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Caption: Fenty Beauty

Any conversation about shade-inclusivity has to start with Fenty Beauty; their game-changing Pro Filt’r Foundation was named by TIME as one of the best inventions of 2017, and is credited with paving the way for other brands to step up the inclusivity of their offerings. As founder Rihanna said, “Fenty Beauty was created for everyone: for women of all shades, personalities, attitudes, cultures, and races. I wanted everyone to feel included.”

Both the Soft Matte and Hydrating versions of Fenty’s Pro Filt’r Longwear Foundation come in a boundary-busting 50 shades, in a full spectrum catering not only for BIPOC with darker skin tones, but also people with albinism. Lightweight and skin-smoothing, it offers buildable medium-to-full coverage in just one or two pumps.

All 50 shades are available to try and buy in-person at Sephora and Harvey Nichols city-wide, and online at Sephora Hong Kong.

Hourglass

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Credit: Hourglass

Stick foundations never seem to get much love from the beauty community – but Hourglass’ Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Stick is a real winner. Boasting “the coverage of a concealer, the fluidity of a liquid, and the weightlessness of a powder”, this revolutionary vegan foundation stick has a beautiful buttery texture that provides flawless full coverage, while also being great for on-the-go touch-ups.

It comes in 32 shades – from fairest Blanc to deepest Espresso – in a range of undertones, all of which are available to shop in-person in Hong Kong at Hourglass counters in Lane Crawford.

Anastasia Beverly Hills

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Credit: Anastasia Beverly Hills

While social media favourites Anastasia Beverly Hills are most famous for their brow products, they’ve been beefing up their beauty offerings across the board – including introducing their Luminous Foundation in 2019.

Available in 50 different shades designed for complexions with cool, neutral or warm undertones, this medium-coverage, water-resistant formula has won rave reviews from beauty bloggers, who reckon it actually looks better as the day goes on thanks to its long-wearing, imperfection-blurring properties.

You can shop the full range at Sephora stores city-wide, or purchase online at Sephora Hong Kong.

Lush

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Credit: Lush

Looking for an eco-friendly foundation that doesn’t stint on its shade range? Lush’s innovative Slap Sticks are zero-waste, plastic-free, vegan and cruelty-free – and come in a pretty comprehensive spectrum of 40 shades. Made from 14 percent pigment and 45 percent Indonesian coconut oil, these solid foundations deliver buildable, breathable, hydrating coverage that doesn’t clog or cake.

The full Slap Stick line-up is available to shop online at Lush Hong Kong or in-person at their Causeway Bay Great George Street store (depending on stock availability); as it’s one of Lush’s “naked” packaging-free products, it’s currently not on display due to Covid-19 precautionary measures, so simply ask staff for help to find your matching shade.

Huda Beauty

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Credit: Huda Beauty

Founded by uber-popular beauty blogger Huda Kattan, Huda Beauty currently holds the distinction of being Instagram’s most followed beauty brand, with a fanbase of over 46 million.

Their full-coverage #FauxFilter Foundation comes in 30 shades, all of which have deliciously edible names, from the fairest Milkshake to the deepest Hot Fudge – and claims to deliver such an impeccably airbrushed finish that “you might delete your photo-editing apps”.

You can browse all 30 shades in-person at Sephora, or buy online at Sephora Hong Kong.

Tarte

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Credit: Tarte Cosmetics

Cult beauty brand Tarte Cosmetics previously faced a social media backlash for their lack of shade diversity – an error they corrected in style, by completely relaunching their full-coverage Face Tape Foundation in a wide-ranging spectrum of 50 shades.

Several of their other foundations also feature an impressive shade range, ensuring there’s a Tarte base for every skin type; their Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Full Coverage Foundation is available in 40 shades, whilst their Babassu Foundcealer Multi-Tasking Foundation and more lightweight Rainforest Of The Sea Water Foundation come in 30 shades, with all three featuring an SPF too.

Tarte’s full foundation collection can be purchased online on their website, while Sephora stocks 30 shades of the Babassu Foundcealer and Amazonian Clay Foundation in their Hong Kong stores.

Charlotte Tilbury

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Credit: Charlotte Tilbury

Makeup artist to the stars Charlotte Tilbury launched her Airbrush Flawless Foundation last year – at one point, it had a waiting list of 17,000 – as her brand’s most inclusive foundation yet, with 44 different shades split into warm, neutral and cool undertones.

A hybrid of “makeup magic and skincare science”, it promises to boost hydration and reduce the appearance of wrinkles, alongside offering weightless natural matte coverage that lasts the whole day.

While only 18 shades of the foundation are available to try and buy in-person at Charlotte Tilbury’s Hong Kong stores, you can still shop all 44 on their Hong Kong website.

See also: Rihanna reveals product line-up for Fenty Skin

In this Story: #style / #beauty