Skincare is more than routine; it’s a ritual. Through real stories of identity, healing, and heritage, we explore what it truly means to care for the skin we\u2019re in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Skincare is never just about skin. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s a reflection of culture, identity, and often generational wisdom.
Navigating a beauty industry that has historically overlooked the needs of most skin types can be difficult.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But many cultures have long-held rituals that make our skin and stories feel seen, nurtured, and powerful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From turmeric masks passed down by grandmothers to the struggle of finding the correct SPF, caring for our skin often carries a more profound meaning shaped by heritage, exclusion, resilience, and pride.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Safiya, 23, British-Pakistani, from Bradford, says: \u201cEvery Sunday, my mum and I mix turmeric, milk, and honey into a thick golden paste. She tells me it\u2019s what her mum used before big family weddings to brighten the skin, calm the nerves, and mark a moment of care before the celebration. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe never needed face masks from shops and had our own recipes. That half-hour, with the smell of haldi in the air and old Bollywood music playing from the kitchen radio, feels like home to me.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Safiya grew up in a strong, family-oriented traditional home in Bradford where tradition was lived, not performed. Her nani\u2019s skincare recipes weren\u2019t just for weddings; they were everyday acts of love. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her mum would heat coconut oil in her hands before massaging it through Safiya\u2019s hair. On hot summer days, they\u2019d crush rose petals and mix them with water, dabbing it gently onto their faces with cotton pads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But as she got older, Safiya began to feel the weight of the outside world pressing in. She noticed her classmates never had turmeric stains on their pillowcases, and her skin routines were seen as \u201cweird\u201d or \u201csmelly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She started to wash it off before sleepovers, hiding the scent of her heritage under store-bought cleansers that stung her skin and never quite worked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She says: \u201cI was so desperate to feel \u2018normal\u2019 that I forgot how sacred those rituals were. I didn\u2019t realise then that what I was washing away wasn\u2019t just a mask; it was my connection to something older than me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now in her twenties and studying literature, Safiya is rediscovering her roots through words and rituals. Her turmeric mask has become something she looks forward to: a moment of stillness, of grounding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She performs poetry in open mics about dual identity, self-love, and how even the smallest rituals can become forms of resistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSkincare, for me, isn\u2019t about fixing flaws; it’s about connection. To my culture. To the women before me. And to a version of myself that I\u2019m still learning to love turmeric-stained cheeks and all.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While cultural rituals like Safiya\u2019s have nourished skin and spirit for generations, the mainstream skincare industry has long failed to serve those outside a narrow beauty ideal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
For decades, products were formulated with lighter skin in mind, often ignoring the specific needs of melanin-rich skin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hyperpigmentation. Post-inflammatory marks. Ashy dryness. These aren\u2019t niche concerns; they’re everyday realities for millions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
But until recently, there were few products designed to address them, and even fewer dermatologists who understood the nuance of darker skin tones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Representation wasn\u2019t just missing from shelves. It was missing from science.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt felt like nothing was made for us,\u201d Safiya says. \u201cSo we made it for ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For some, like Safiya, that meant leaning into tradition. But for others, it meant being left behind altogether, especially in spaces where skincare wasn\u2019t even seen as something men were allowed to care about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Samuel, 25, Nigerian-British, from South London, says: \u201cI used to scrub my face raw with a flannel and Dettol soap. That\u2019s how desperate I was to get rid of the acne.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe teasing in school was brutal. I never saw Black boys in skincare ads. It was like good skin wasn\u2019t meant for us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Growing up, Samuel never saw skincare as self-care. It was damage control. His routine was built on trial and error, home remedies, and supermarket soap. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It wasn\u2019t until university and a random late-night skincare video on TikTok that he realised darker skin had different needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI learned that melanin-rich skin can scar more easily and that I\u2019d been using all the wrong stuff. It made me angry, like, why didn\u2019t anyone tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There\u2019s also the stigma. As a young Black man, Samuel felt pressure to \u201cact tough,\u201d not tender. Moisturiser was for women. Serums were \u201cextra.\u201d But slowly, he began carving out a routine that was quiet, intentional, and just for him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNow, my skincare routine is the only part of my day. It\u2019s not about fixing anything; it\u2019s about looking after myself properly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What started with turmeric in a kitchen or a harsh bar of soap in a school bathroom becomes something more as we grow. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
For Safiya, it\u2019s a ritual passed down with love. For Samuel, it\u2019s a quiet reclaiming of care in a world that never encouraged softness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Skincare isn\u2019t just about products or routines but visibility, agency, and healing. It\u2019s how we tell ourselves: I deserve to be looked after.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For many of us, especially those with melanin-rich skin, skincare has always been something more than surface-level. It\u2019s a bridge between who we are and where we come from. It is a gentle reminder that our skin is incorrect; it\u2019s something to honour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And in every drop of oil, every old family remedy, every mirror moment done on our terms, we aren\u2019t just taking care of our skin.
We\u2019re taking our stories back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n