On Saturday, June 16th at New York City’s Redbury Hotel, Face Flawless Skin celebrated their highly anticipated 3rd Skin Clinic event, a day-long event designed to provide women of color with the information and resources needed to achieve their most luminous skin. 130 women, including members of the press, digital influencers, and Face Flawless Skin supporters gathered for information sessions discussing common skincare concerns for women of color including frequency of sunscreen application, how to treat hyperpigmentation, safe chemical peel options, and more.

Face Flawless Skin Founders Christene Carr and Felicia Walker Benson were joined in conversation by skincare experts from all areas of the industry.  Principal Scientist for P&G’s Olay Skin Care Dr. Frauke Neuser, the renowned plastic surgeon behind Very Pretty Skin Dr. Rosetta Garries, Educator, Makeup Artist and Photographer, Danessa Myricks,  and Mario Badescu’s Director of Marketing and PR, Nicole Darmanin participated in extensive panel discussions about the latest research, and resources in skin care for Women of Color.

Danessa Myricks completed a live demonstration during her discussion highlighting her model’s natural beauty with her signature products. Attendees had the opportunity to test out and shop products on display from Mario Badescu, Pooka Pure and Simple, Danessa Myricks Beauty at discounts up to 50%. They also went home went gift bags stuffed with luxe skin care products valued at over $100 each.

The bag included:  Olay’s popular Daily Facials, and a jar of Olay’s Luminous Whip Moisturizer with SPF 30, Mario Badescu’s Wheat Germ Infused Vitamin E Body Lotion and the cult classic Facial Spray with Aloe, Herbs and Rose Water,  Urban Skin RX Even Tone Cleansing Bar, an ONYXBOX curated specially for the event, Danessa Myricks Beauty Illuminating Veil and Wander Beauty Baggage Claim Eye Patches. New Jersey attendees were gifted with a special Clarins offer of a $50 or $80 Facial at Bloomingdale’s Short Hills.

Following the clinic, bloggers, influencers, and the media joined the hosts at the My Black is Beautiful Cocktail Hour held on the hotel’s private terrace. They sipped glasses of prosecco and snacked on prosciutto wrapped dates as they perched on modular furniture and chatted about their skincare experiences. They also seized the opportunity to get additional advice from the panelists in an intimate setting. Dr. Garries gave each guest a personalized skin assessment. Accurately describing the look and feel of their mother’s faces as she predicted their skincare futures. All Things Ada was super impressed with the results of her evaluation saying aloud “That’s crazy! She never even met my mother!”

Dr. Garries remarked on how much the event and the content produced by its hosts had to offer young women saying that, “young women today are very fortunate to have a resource like Face Flawless Skin Clinic. When I was younger, we didn't have anything like this. We had to figure out so much on our own. Women today have so many options and it's wonderful to see an initiative like Face Flawless Skin Clinic provide so much useful, factual, important skin care information for women of color.”

Several attendees took to social media after the event to share how thrilled they were with their experiences.

“Had an AMAZING time today at the #FaceFlawlessSkin event with the incredible duo of @christenecarr and @thisthatbeauty Thank you for inviting #ONYXBOX to share in the Skincare for WOC convo!” -  Face Flawless Skin Clinic attendee, @its_delali

“I am so geeked right now. I stan for @thisthatbeauty, so when she posted about @faceflawlessskin clinic I was so excited. I made a weekend of it and went to NY, cause why not. The event was awesome. The level of expertise on the panels made for engaging, educational and interesting dialogue. Made some wonderful connections, the giveaways and gift bag was lit. Also the vendors had amazing products on sale @pookalita @mariobadescu and the ultra fabulous @danessa_myricks (who is an absolute gem and my adopted auntie in my head). I am glad I made the trip and got to experience the Felicia and Christine effect. Felicia and all her wonderful skin (it looks that good in person too). Christine is very knowledgeable, has great skin and has a great personality. I can see why they are partners, they work well together. All in all a wonderful event and motivated me to continue to give this skin care idea thing of mine a big ole try.” -  Face Flawless Skin Clinic attendee, @glowobsessedskin

“Amazing and informative beauty event.” -  Face Flawless Skin Clinic attendee, Talulah Escoffier

Though billed as a consumer event, influencers Ada Rojas, Gregoria Reyes-Lou, LeAura Luciano, Geneva Thomas, Merli Estime and  Angelique Miles among others were in attendance. They posed for pictures and posted on their social media platforms in order to spread the day’s message of deliberate inclusion and selfcare.

Brown Girl Marketing’s Ylorie Taylor, who has been vocal on social media about how caring for herself makes herself a better mother and businesswoman said “I really enjoyed the clinic and look forward to attending future events.” While she had been a fan of the hosts’ social media content this was her first time engaging with them in person and she wasn’t disappointed. “It was my first event and although I admire both of you for being the skin “gawds” I follow on social, it’s nice to have an in person experience to learn from as well. Can’t wait to have a friend tag along next time!”

“Women of Color are starved for fact based, curated skin care information that is customized for them. We want to empower women to take charge of their own skincare regimen and develop a routine with products that are ideal for their skin type and skincare concerns.” - Face Flawless Skin Clinic Founders, Christene Carr, and Felicia Walker Benson

Special Thanks To Face Flawless Skin Sponsors:

Olay, My Black is Beautiful, Urban Skin RX, Mario Badescu, Danessa Myricks Beauty, ONYXBOX, Pooka Pure and Simple, Very Pretty Skin and Wander Beauty.

This post is written by Keyaira Boone. Photos by Sindy Sanchez and Ranelle Tulloch