Beauty in Other Cultures

Asian Culture

Asian beauty focuses primarily on the eyes, which are the most enchanting feature in almost all cultures, though Asian cultures tend to pay most attention to them. The use of black mascaras and eyeliners is very common, as they tend to complement the Asian and Oriental skin tones.

Skin tone is one of the largest factors in Asian beauty. Lighter shades of foundation and makeup can cause a 'washed out' effect; while darker hues will create a more intense hue, which can bring life to the eyes and cheekbones.

Yellow undertones in foundation tend to work best to complementing the Asian skin tones. Pink is a commonly used alternative, although it tends to create an un-natural skin tone as it clashes, rather than complements. Yellow foundations do not make the skin tone more yellow, but instead bring out the natural skin tones and create a modern, beautiful and flawless look.

As Asian beauty focuses mainly on the eyes, eye shadow is an important factor to take into account. It is common to apply darker, bolder colours, particularly where there is plenty of 'fold' above the eyelid. Bolder colours can look stunning, particularly where they are multilayered. Otherwise, a bronze or light colour may be more appropriate for everyday wear, perhaps with a more intense colour blended on top.

Asian hair tends to be very thick, which is great for styling, although makes colouring very difficult. In most cases, the hair colours unnaturally as black hair is a difficult colour to match. However, done correctly it can be stunning - though the natural black hair can be difficult to colour-match, so experienced colourists should be used.

Middle Eastern Culture

Middle Eastern beauty traditionally uses more natural products such as henna and kohl, although many countries are seeing the use of more modern and artificial make-ups, where the local culture and customs allow it.

Henna is commonly used in this culture to stain nails, skin and hair to enhance beauty by creating decorative designs. Black henna (saumer) is used on the feet and hands, while red henna is typically used on the tips of the fingers and toes. The orange markings will turn black, and last on the skin for up to 30 days. The application of Henna is a traditional ritual, which may take up to 6 hours, or possibly even longer depending on the complexity of the design.

Kohl is a black substance, commonly used by the women of the Arabian Peninsula as eyeliner and eye shadow. Apart from making the eye look bigger, it was also believed that kohl could prevent eye diseases. In desert areas, kohl is used by both men and women, as it controls the suns glare from the desert, and thus is of huge practical use.

In Arabia, rouge was also traditionally used in order to apply colour to the cheeks of women. Ear and nose piercing is also common, and children commonly have their ears pierced at birth.

African-American Culture

It is fairly difficult to generalise on the beauty culture of black women, as the skin tones can vary enormously. However, creating glowing skin should be no problem, making full use of the natural bronze skin tones.

Typically, foundations and powders should have a yellow undertone, though finding the specific shade is the difficult part, as there are a large number to choose from! It is common for black women to have more than one skin tone, in which case foundations can be blended. It is suggested than 'translucent' foundations are not used, as these can give a dry look to the skin.

Blusher is a common cosmetic on black women, as the pinks can complement the dark skin tones perfectly. Alternatively, bronzer can be used for a more 'sun-kissed' option.

African-American women have a wide selection of eye shadows and eyeliners available. For a distinctive look, a dark blue or green can look stunning. Chocolate, mahogany, bronze and gold are the best tones to select if aiming for an understated look.