In the middle of the covid19 pandemic, singer/businesswoman Rihanna launched her new shoe line on July 15, and, today (July 31) the Barbados born superstar launched her `Fenty Skin’ skincare line. The announcement was made yesterday during a virtual press conference, attended by a small group of beauty editors. It’s really incredible that this was all done during a global lockdown, but Rihanna explained she took this time to get everything done while in quarantine. She has been working on the skin-care line since 2017, but with the “pause” it gave everyone time to finalise everything. “I don’t want to complain about being at home cause I always complained of NOT being at home,” said the exuberant entertainer.

FENTY SKIN

Fenry Skin is an off-shoot of Fenty Beauty, her beauty line that made $100million in sales forty days after it’s launch. It’s highlighters, lipsticks and high-quality products like the long-lasting matte foundations, with 50 shades for every skin tone possible changed the beauty game, and are still popular to this day. The new skincare line is gender-neutral and features three basic products: The Fenty Skin Total Cleanser Remove-It-All Cleanser; then there is the Fat Water Pore-Refining Toner Serum and The Hydra Vizor Invisible Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30 Sunscreen. This sunscreen does not leave a white cast on the skin; a common issue with most products on the market. 

IN THE BARBADOS SUN

Rihanna explained that she suffered from skin problems while growing up in the sun in Barbados. “I always thought that SPF was a tourist thing, growing up in the sun in Barbados…as a woman of color I’m here to say that’s a lie. We need it.” Rihanna said that she’s been through several stages of skin problems with traveling constantly and make-up for the stage, photo shoots and interviews. Noting her own sensitive skin she said she was very particular of what goes into these products. “Like the Bajan Cherry is used as a brightening agent in the Toner Serum. As kids we used to steal them from trees in the backyard. My Mom’s cousin had a Bajan Cherry tree in the backyard. I love them, I started to find out their benefits as I got older.”  

RIHANNA’S VISION

In a statement released to the media, Rihanna said; “Fenty Skin is my vision of the new culture of skin care. I wanted to create amazing products that really work, that are easy to use and everyone can apply it. Traveling showed me the best of the best skin care ingredients for these products. They are safe and effective formulas that celebrate and respect what our planet has to offer.”  

AMINA MUADDI

They say everything she touches turns to gold. As we anticipate a long awaited music album from Rihanna, she’s busy doing other things. Insiders say the album is finished, but it was put on hold….again. No worries, Rihanna keeps us plugged in. She  just launched her new shoe line under her Fenty fashion label. The shoe collection, designed by Amina Muaddi was launched on July 15, and is available on the Fenty e-commerce website.

THE STORY BEHIND THE SHOE

The partnership between Rihanna and Amina developed after Amina launched her own shoe collection in 2018. Fenty’s creative director Jahleel Weaver had bought some of Amina’s shoes for some of the projects that he and Rihanna were working on. As a fan of Amina’s work. he reached out to her and they eventually met up. A friendship started and through several conversations, they both had similar ideas of what they wanted in terms of a Fenry shoe collection. Amina told Vogue magazine: “Rihanna obviously is someone who I admire and whose work I love and whose style I also admire. It’s iconic. I was excited just as a person what the brand was going to look like.” Amina shared that her enthusiasm was just as evident with Jahleel for them to potentially do something together. “So when he told me his plans, I immediately said yes,” recalled Amina. 

THE VISION

Jahleel’s vision for the shoe line under the Fenry label was that of a comfortable shoe with a sturdy heel, strong yet elegant – both modern women, designing for modern women. This vision was echoed by Amina who said the collaboration started from a place of friendship, noting that she wanted the shoes to emphasize Fenry’s aesthetic and have Rihanna’s feminine, yet edgy style and vision. “But I wanted to do it through my own lens.” 

THE FINAL SELECTION

Jahleel said he showed Rihanna a bunch of colored sketches of Amina’s shoe designs and she selected the ones she liked the best. And, as they say, the rest is HER…story. Crystal studded lace-up high heels; Black Mesh mules; Caged heeled sandals and Fenty black sheer-front Mules make up the nucleus of this collection.