Huda Beauty is celebrated for vibrant eyeshadow palettes, which are a cult favourite among beauty bloggers and makeup artists, but the makeup brand has gone viral this week for all the wrong reasons.
The company, founded by the popular Instagrammer and MUA Huda Kattan, is facing intense backlash for a blog post advising women how to lighten the colour of their "lady parts". The post, titled 'Why Your Vagina Gets Dark And How To Lighten It', originally published on 7th April, runs through tips from a “trusted expert” and dermatologist, Dr Doris Day.
(Oddly, the word "vagina" is also used throughout, when the brand presumably is referring to the labia, the external, visible part, as opposed to the vagina, which is internal.)
Day runs through "DIY vagina lightening hacks", that include putting lemon juice, yogurt, coconut oil and egg white on the area, and various tips to "avoid the hyperpigmentation (darkening)" of vaginal skin in the first place. This is despite the fact that it's perfectly natural for labia to be darker than the rest of the body.
Apparently, she believe that losing weight could alter the colour of your privates. "Excess weight can lead to friction, which can cause darkening," while moisturising "[keeps] the skin healthy and optimised, which reduces darkening," Day adds.
She even goes on to recommend women ask their dermatologist to "prescribe a prescription brightening cream or chemical peel" containing ingredients such as hydroquinone and tranexamic acid.
People are irate that a well-respected brand would dip its toe into the highly controversial waters of skin lightening. A Facebook post on the brand's official page promoting the article has racked up more than 10k reactions, several hundred shares and hundreds of angry comments.
"Vaginal lip darkening is NATURAL," wrote Kristina Brumbelow in the comments section. "You don't need to make it lighter so you look like a prepubescent little girl to 'appease' men who don't shave their ballsack for you anyways [eyeroll emoji], or your bootyhole."
Jade Natalie wrote: "I unfollowed this page over crap like this. What next? A highlight and contour for my vulva? Bore off."
Meghana Manjunath took Huda Beauty to task: "Vaginas are different and beautiful, no matter what. Pubic skin discolouration is as normal as stretch marks. And never has anyone in history refused to fuck someone due to the 'darkness' of the skin around the vagina."
"What's wrong with dark?," said Saborni Mondal. "When will women start liking themselves? Racist-sexist-male [sic] chauvinistic assholes like you are blowing in the balloon and not even realising."
People on Twitter and Reddit also shared their opinions, with many criticising it for fuelling women's insecurities and upholding toxic and unachievable beauty standards. Others were puzzled as to why a cosmetics company was even discussing women's genitals in the first place.
Blogger Caroline Hirons called it out on Instagram stories, asking: "What are you expecting when you're down there? Blackpool illuminations?"
Actually cannot cope with @CarolineHirons insta stories and drinking tea at the same time 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 nearly choked on my tea! pic.twitter.com/UepLDMJsku
— Rachel Maslin (@ballroombeauty7) May 2, 2018
seriously pisses me off when people like huda beauty can be successful and have a huge platform to influence young girls and she writes articles about ‘how to lighten your vagina with lemon juice’ honest to god, women like that need a slap. no wonder young girls are insecure. pic.twitter.com/fHx3ZHJFmX
— 🍑 molly 🍑 (@mollylaura_) May 3, 2018
People using the word vagina instead of vulva is my pet peeve. And stop putting products/food/ or whatever else down there ffs. Let your body do its fucking job. If something’s not right, go see a DOCTOR not fucking Huda Beauty. https://t.co/f3uahawe1y
— L💧👸 (@HekatePhsphrs) May 3, 2018
I found an eyeshadow palette that works with my skin tone and one-hazel-one-brown eye, said thank goodness for Huda Beauty, AND NOW THIS 😩
— PrimroseRoad (@PrimroseRoad) May 4, 2018
Huda Beauty is encouraging women to lighten their vaginas and people are furious https://t.co/zEyRHWpnDx
@hudabeauty SHAME on you for shaming women! Every #vagina is different from every other and they’re all beautiful and perfect as they are. No one needs advice from an ill informed, botoxed, ballon lipped idiot about what their vag should look like. https://t.co/qFkceXUX2l
— artismygod (@artismyonlygod) May 3, 2018
OMG!? DO NOT PUT BLEACH ON YOUR GENITALS. SERIOUSLY. wtf!!?!?!?https://t.co/zTsSpJhVu6
— cunt-a-saurus-rex (@the_squarrell) May 3, 2018
.@hudabeauty you are telling women to bleach their vulvas with hydroquinone, lemon juice, and acids because a lighter vulva is better? Do you realize how poisonously harmful this is? Fuck your homophobia, fuck your non-inclusivity , and FUUUUUCK YOU. https://t.co/7tDSqXQVVl
— Red Lord the Silencer (@fangirlsmash) May 3, 2018
“If your partner is concerned about the Pantone of your genitalia you’ve got a much bigger problem than the colour of your vulva” @CarolineHirons spilling the real T 👏🏻 https://t.co/9dILiEAgfE
— kailtin (@kaitz__) May 3, 2018
@CarolineHirons finding it hard to believe that Huda is inundated with vagina lightening questions as stated. Like, er, it’s a lipstick website.... it’s like asking Halfords about Breast augmentation.
— BritishBeautyBlogger (@britbeautyblog) May 3, 2018
The post has since been updated "to address some concern". The brand said it "appreciates and respects" people's opinions on the issue, but that the goal was to provide "expert advice" to women who did wanted to alter the colour of their intimate skin.
"We do not feel lightening your vulva (vagina/ lady parts/ VJJ,) is necessary. Our goal is to give details for those who may wish to, by sharing expert advice from a leading dermatologist," and to steer women away from following the "harmful DIYs on the internet."
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