Every season, a brand releases a new nude lipstick collection and calls it universally flattering. Every season, women with tan and deep Indian skin buy it and find that it does nothing, or worse: makes them look washed out, ashy, or unwell.
New season drop
“Universally flattering”
On lighter skin
Peachy, warm, natural
On tan/deep Indian skin
Ashy, pale, unwell
This is not an accident. It is a brief. The shade was designed to flatter a specific market, and that market was not you.
This is not an accident. It is a brief.
How “universal nude” gets designed
When a brand develops a “universal nude,” they are developing a shade that flatters the widest possible range of their primary market. For most global brands, that primary market is Western Europe and North America, which skews significantly lighter in skin tone than India. A nude that is universally flattering across that range is usually a pink-beige or a warm ivory. Neither of these reads as nude on tan or deep Indian skin.
What “universal” actually covers
When a brand develops a “universal nude,” they are developing a shade that flatters the widest possible range of their primary market. For most global brands, that primary market is Western Europe and North America. A nude that is universally flattering across that range is usually a pink-beige or a warm ivory. Neither of these reads as nude on tan or deep Indian skin.
What nude actually means
Nude, by definition, means close to your natural skin or lip colour. Your natural lip colour is determined by your melanin density, your blood flow, and your undertone. On Indian skin, it is almost certainly a warm brown, a deep berry-brown, or a rich mauve-brown, depending on your depth.
Very light
Soft peachy-pink
Warm ivory with a hint of pink
Light to medium
Warm beige-brown
Golden-warm base, not pink-beige
Medium-tan to tan
Warm brown
Rich terracotta-brown depth
Deep to very deep
Deep berry-brown
Rich, dark, mahogany-brown
None of these shades are called “nude” on the packaging. They are called terracotta, warm brown, mahogany, or brick. You will find them in a section the brand did not label for you.
Looking in the wrong section vs the right one
The “Nude” section
Pale pink-beige
Designed for lighter skin. Washes out tan and deep Indian skin.
Warm ivory
Too light. Makes lips disappear on medium-tan or deeper skin.
Cool rose nude
Pink base clashes with warm Indian undertones. Looks grey.
Where your nude actually lives
Terracotta
Reads as natural nude on medium-tan through tan skin.
Warm brown
Natural-looking depth on tan through deep Indian skin.
Mahogany or brick
Deep, rich, and reads as nude on very deep Indian skin.
Your real nude, just with different labels
Brand label
Terracotta
not called nude
→
Your nude (medium-tan to tan, warm)
Brand label
Warm Brown
not called nude
→
Your nude (tan to deep, warm)
Brand label
Mahogany
not called nude
→
Your nude (deep to very deep)
Brand label
Berry Brown
not called nude
→
Your nude (medium-tan, olive or cool)
The shade exists. The brand just did not file it under the label you were told to look for.
Dear Brown Girl, you were not looking in the wrong place. You were looking in the wrong section, the one that was never stocked with your shade in mind.
You were not looking in the wrong place. You were looking in the wrong section.
HerShade maps lip shade families to Indian depths and undertones. Your real nude is there.