Can you tell us a bit about yourself and why you started Live Tinted?
I’m a Telugu girl from Sugarland, Texas that has always had a big love for expressing myself through beauty. But the standards of beauty around me while I was growing up didn’t reflect girls who looked like me. Blonde hair, blue eyes, light skin was what the community I grew up around considered “beautiful”. So as a teenager, naturally, I wanted to fit in. I dyed my hair blonde, wore blue contacts, and did everything to conform to that beauty standard. I started to embrace my features after leaving my hometown, and when I went off to college, and started working in the corporate beauty industry. I started my beauty YouTube channel, and somehow my second video went viral. This led to requests from the TODAY show, and other media outlets. I quit my corporate job and decided to go all-in on my career as a beauty influencer. I have always wanted to start my own beauty company, so when the community expressed a need for a product that catered to their needs it led me to want to begin a company that was more of a movement and community-focused. I wanted there to be a community for girls like me- girls who never fit into the “American standard of beauty”. A place that celebrates our different multicultural backgrounds, our melanin, our unique features, and who we are AS we are. And that’s how Live Tinted was born!
How is Live Tinted changing the beauty landscape for South Asian males and females?
One of the things I’m genuinely most proud of about Live Tinted is the fact that we aren’t only tackling American beauty standards, but South Asian beauty standards as well. Growing up, most of us were told to hide from the sun because we would get “too dark”. Live Tinted is a space that celebrates all of our different tints and hues- and I think that is a game-changer for the South Asian community, as the standard of “pale = beautiful” is still so prevalent. I hope for Live Tinted to leave an impact that helps our future Desi generations to love their skin.
You just launched the Huegard! Can you tell us a bit more about the products in your collection? Anything else exciting in the pipeline?
We did and I am still riding on that launch high!!! It was one of our most anticipated launches ever, and wow it was so surreal to see it all come true. Hueguard is our newest product baby, it is a mineral SPF that leaves no white cast and is packed with skincare, it is a primer and moisturizer as well. I’m so proud that this SPF is brown-girl friendly because so many sunscreens leave behind a white cast that is especially noticeable on darker skin. Some other products I would like to highlight are the color-correcting Huesticks, Hueglow, and our Unity Balm Gloss. The Huesticks are our OG babies, they are multi-sticks that can be used as eyeshadow, blush, lipstick, AND as color correctors. Hueglow is our serum + highlighter combo product, which leaves your skin literally glowing. Lastly, our Unity Balm Gloss is a skincare-packed formula that can be used anywhere on your body where you crave moisture(lips, eyes, face, etc), leaving no stickiness and only glossiness. We’re definitely working on more things for the Tint Fam but it’s all still in the works so y’all will just have to see 🧡.
What does it mean to be a #beautyboss?
Personally, I think the coolest thing a “beauty boss” can do is help people realize that they themselves are already key holders of their beauty. It’s helping them really accept that and learn ways to accentuate their natural beauty that I love doing the most. Accepting myself was something I had a hard time doing, and I wish there was someone out there who helped me realize that I am beautiful as I am. I want to be that someone for somebody. So instead of teaching people how to alter themselves to look like someone they are not, I think to be a #beautyboss means to teach people how to embrace themselves. Self-love> everything.
