Juneteenth Reflections: Celebrating Black Beauty and Skincare

June 19, 2025

Melanin-rich skin is so beautiful that Beyoncé had to write a song about it. However, as much as Black beauty is celebrated now, neglect and disregard have trailed its history.

From slavery to myopic beauty standards, Black skin has experienced them all. Yet as we celebrate this year's Juneteenth, Black skin is worth celebrating and dignified for its true value. It's skincare heritage, its glow, the eventual care and attention it's now receiving, and the freedom from wrong beauty stereotypes.

Juneteenth: The Journey of Black Beauty from Overlooked to Celebrated

Juneteenth not only represents freedom; it represents the spirit of resilience inherent in Black culture. Despite the slavery, humiliation, and degradation that Black ancestors were subjected to, they never lost their spirit and kept fighting for freedom.

By slavery, anything “black” was reduced to inconsequential. This cuts across Black culture, music, hair, beauty, religion, and even skincare. Despite this, blacks kept true to their culture, even in skincare.

The Skincare Heritage of Melanin-Rich Skin

With several years of trial and error and by maximizing natural ingredients, they can boast a rich skincare heritage.

Key Traditional Ingredients

Shea butter: This shines as a major ingredient. It is rich in healthy fatty acids, making it a good moisturizer that softens and hydrates the skin. It also protects the skin from external pollutants. Although it's not a strong sunscreen, research indicates that it can provide mild protection for the skin from sun rays.
Coconut oil: This is another widely used product for its moisturizing benefits. Dry skin can become hydrated by consistent use of this oil in the right portions.
Milk and honey mix: This liquid mix is rooted in African culture and is infamous as the ancient queen of Egypt, Cleopatra's, favorite skincare regimen. It clears scars and makes skin glow.
Black soap: This is pivotal in Black history. It is historically made from the ashes of plantain peel, palm oil, and cocoa powder. Its recipe varies depending on the purpose and skincare goal. Some other ingredients include shea butter, coconut oil, and so on. It is rich in key vitamins and helps to deal with acne and restore skin glow while keeping the skin hydrated.
Other age-long skin care regimens include the use of natural oils, like cocoa butter, neem oil, and jojoba oil, among others. These natural ingredients are useful for lightening dark spots and preventing early signs of aging.

With these homemade recipes, Black skin was cared for despite neglect by the skincare industry. However, the lack of a scientific approach to measurement and the difference in human genes made skin results sometimes unpredictable. Some mixtures work well for some skin types and are a bad idea for others. Regardless of these hindrances, the Black community took care of Black skin.

From Neglect to Celebration

Despite the Juneteenth enforcement ending the slave trade in America, Black people still experienced racism. Schools outlawed black hair, magazines ignored black beauty, and beauty industries neglected Black skin. This led to the rise of movements clamoring for Black rights and Black beauty.

One of these movements is the “Black is Beautiful” movement, which was prominent in the 1960s-1970s. It began with a fashion show in a nightclub. Black women in African styles from Accra, Lagos, Nairobi, and so on took the stage in a beautiful catwalk. This strengthened the presence and acceptance of Black beauty.

With more bold statements by many fashion icons, activities, and celebrities, Black beauty became noticed and appreciated. This attention highlighted the need for skincare specifically designed to suit Black skin.

The Rise of Black-owned Skincare Brand - Perfec-Tone

Despite our rich skincare heritage, many Black queens are unaware of the ingredients or the right proportions. Hence, many skincare concerns abound. A deep concern for Black skin is what inspired Lila Pinder, the founder of Perfec-Tone, formerly known as Lila's Skincare, to create skincare products in 1980.

Lila observed that many people in her community had skin concerns that robbed them of their confidence. Yet, they lacked the solution.

Staying true to Black roots, Perfec-Tone's formulations are natural, acid- and toxin-free, and melanin-focused. As a brand owned and operated as a Black-owned family business, our mission remains clear: to help our customers achieve the most flawless skin possible.

Our natural and scientifically proven formulations have successfully dealt with acne, hyperpigmentation, melasma, and aging, regardless of gene or melanin shade.

Some of the natural oil extracts we use include wheat germ oil, lemon oil, vitamin E, and many more. Each product is soothing and perfect for Black skin. With Perfec-Tone, Black skincare achieves the glow it deserves.

Black Skin Shines with Perfec-Tone

Regardless of the skin concerns, Perfec-Tone has created different products and regimens to achieve as flawless melanin skin as possible. These products are grouped based on various skin concerns below:

Acne: These products are perfect for clearing your acne: Clarifying Gel, Exfoliating Cleanser, Cleansing Soap, Purifying Toner, and Sensitive Soap.
Hyperpigmentation: With Resurfacing Crème and Spot Eraser, hyperpigmentation and dark spots get cleared easily.
Melasma: To address the dark discoloration on your skin, our multi-functional products—the Resurfacing Crème and Spot Treatment—are perfect.
Discoloration/Uneven Skin Tones: For this concern, you can combat it with Resurfacing Crème and Refining Crème.
Anti-aging: To slow down the aging of the skin, you can use the following products: Miracle Moisturizer, Revitalizing Serum, Resurfacing Crème, and Refining Crème.

With these products, you’d begin to see visible results in 5-7 days. Perfec-Tone is committed to developing excellent skincare technologies while staying true to its Black roots. Happy Juneteenth. Take care of your skin today as a way to celebrate Black beauty.