As a beauty lover, the only thing I love more than trying a new product is the feeling of discovering a new beauty brand. Thankfully, the rise of social media provided a springboard for many talented creators to launch successful beauty brands. In today’s post, I’m sharing 6 incredible high end indie cosmetics brands that you should try!
What are Indie Beauty Brands?
All brands in the beauty industry are either owned by a massive beauty conglomerate (ex. L’Oreal, Estee Lauder, Shiseido, etc.) or are operated independently. For example, L’OREAL owns NYX Cosmetics and Urban Decay, while Shiseido owns Laura Mercier and NARS.
Indie cosmetics brands can range from hand-crafted, self-funded brands to ultra luxurious, high end brands. Additionally, some high end indie brands are well-known names. What makes these brands indie is that they are not owned by a ‘parent’ company like the ones previously mentioned.
Lately, I’ve been so inspired to try more indie luxury cosmetics brands. I love the way that indie brands are willing to take risks and set trends. In fact, check out this post recapping some of the indie beauty brands that I love. The below brands are some of the indie luxury cosmetics brands that I’m currently loving.
High End Indie Cosmetics Brands I’m Loving
Although it might seem counterintuitive, indie cosmetics brands can still be well known in the beauty community. In fact, many of the high end indie cosmetics brands in today’s roundup are well-known names. However, you may not have realized that these brands were independently owned!
Dose of Colors | 2013
About the brand: Launched in 2013 by founder Anna Petrosian, Dose of Colors, aims to provide wearers with highly pigmented, top of the line beauty products. Over the years, the brand garnered a cult online following due to its influencer collaborations with Desi and Katy, as well as Karen Gonzalez (ILuvSarahii).
Why this brand excites me? Everyone raves about the Dose of Colors liquid lipsticks and lipgloss formulas, so I decided to pick up a few shades of their lip glosses during Ulta’s Cyber Monday sale in 2018.
Product review(s) on the way: See where my Dose of Colors Lip Glosses rank in my ultimate lip gloss ranking. Also, learn more about the two Dose of Colors palettes that are perfect for Fall-Inspired Makeup in this post.
Where to buy: Ulta, Beauty Bay, Dose of Colors
Huda Beauty | 2013
About the brand: Founded by beauty blogger Huda Kattan in 2013, Huda Beauty experienced a meteoric rise within the industry. The brand initially sold high-quality lashes, and liquid lipsticks, but has since expanded to categories such as complexion, eyeshadow, and skincare. Together with her two sisters, Mona and Alya, these boss babes continue to drop must-try products that consumers lust over.
Product review(s) on the way: Read my review on the Huda Beauty Smokey Obsession Palettes and check out this roundup where I rank all of my Huda Beauty Palettes.
Where to buy: Cult Beauty, Huda Beauty, Sephora, Selfridges
Pat McGrath Labs | 2015
About the brand: Founded in 2015 by award-winning makeup artist, Pat McGrath, Pat McGrath Labs is all about creating the next mesmerizing, high quality makeup obsessions for your collection. Everything from the products, themselves, to the packaging is designed to communicate just how major makeup can be.
Why this brand excites me? I have been hyped about this brand since I saw Tati’s review of the limited edition Pat McGrath highlighters that launched in 2016. However, I was hesitant to try a brand with such a steep price tag. Travel to 2020, and I own 4 full size Pat McGrath Mothership Palettes, three 6-pan palettes, and 2 quads.
Product review(s) on the way: I may or may not write a post featuring some of the limited edition product from Pat McGrath that I own. However, I am planning review the Mothership palettes in my collection. Also, fans of luxury beauty should check out my response to the Boujee Beauty Guru Tag.
Where to buy: Pat McGrath, Sephora, Selfridges
Persona Cosmetics | 2015
About the brand: Founded in 2016 by makeup artist and beauty blogger, Sona Gasparian, Persona Cosmetics is all about providing beauty lovers with high quality products that will make wearers look and feel good.
Why this brand excites me? If you’re a regular reader of my blog, then you know that Sona is one of my favorite beauty YouTubers. Therefore, I was thrilled to see her launch her own brand. Over the past few years, this high end indie brand slowly rolled out products, from her Identity Palette, to the Season One Liquid Lipsticks, and the Season One Lip Glosses.
Product review(s) on the way: Given that I’ve already reviewed the Persona Identity Palette, liquid lipsticks, and lipglosses, I am planning to focus my attention on the brand’s complexion products. Specifically, I plan to share my review of the Cali Glow Highlighters* and SuperBlushes. For a spoiler, see where I ranked my Cali Glow Highlighters in my highlighter ranking.
Thrive Causemetics | 2013
About the brand: Founded in 2013 by professional makeup artist, Karissa Bodnar, after a friend passed away from Cancer, Thrive Causemetics aims to provide buyers with “beauty with a purpose.”. In addition to creating vegan, cruelty-free products, the brand helps women thrive by donating a portion of each sale to partners who aid women facing issues such as cancer, homelessness, or domestic violence.
Why this brand excites me? As soon as I learned about the brand, I knew I wanted to support them. Their mission to empower disenfranchised women resonated. Also, I’ve heard generally positive reviews of the indie brand’s products. Additionally, I’d be lying if I said the cute, teal packaging didn’t draw me in. There is SO MUCH I want to try from this brand!
Product review(s) on the way: I’ve already finished my Brilliant Eye Brightener Pen and my Infinity Waterproof Brow Liner. I plan to purchase more from the brand to review!
Where to buy: Thrive Causemetics
Viseart | 2012
About the brand: Founded in 2012 by former model, Anastasia Sparrow, Viseart was designed to fill a niche in the professional makeup market. Viseart aimed toproduce high quality makeup specifically designed for professional and editorial work. In fact, Viseart’s formula was designed to last even under the brightest and warmest camera lights. Also, the formula is intended to be gentle on the skin.
Why this brand excites me? I’d be lying if I didn’t credit YouTuber, Stephanie Nicole, for familiarizing me with this San-Francisco based brand. As one of my most trusted sources for beauty reviews, I knew I needed to try something from this heavily praised brand. Moreover, the indie brand has an unmatched ability to develop cohesive and intriguing color stories.
Product review(s) on the way: I picked up the Viseart Grande Pro Volume I palette during the one of the Sephora Sale VIB sales. Read my dedicated review on this palette here.
Where to buy: Beauty Bay, Beautylish, Muse Beauty Pro, Sephora, Selfridges, Viseart
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Have you tried any of these high end indie cosmetics brands before? Of the above brands, what brand would you like to see reviewed first? Please let me know in the comments below.