Scarlette French, a 13-year-old girl from Oneida Nation of the Thames near London, Ont., is navigating her self-expression journey like many other teenagers. Despite her severe vision loss due to an eye disorder since birth, French is passionate about punk rock music, dark attire, and makeup experimentation.
To aid her makeup routine, French attached braille labels to her cosmetics for identification. Tiffany Houston, the CEO of the Shine Foundation supporting Canadian youth with disabilities, met French and realized the challenges she faced. As a result, a collaboration with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind and Cheekbone Beauty, an Indigenous-owned makeup brand, led to the creation of “Scarlette’s Palette.”
This innovative makeup palette features tactile elements and an audio description via a QR code, making it user-friendly for visually impaired individuals. The palette comprises three lip and cheek creams, two highlighters, and one powder blush, all housed in accessible circular holders with raised edges to prevent accidental mixing of products.
With only 20 prototype palettes currently available, French and Houston aim to ignite discussions on accessibility in the beauty industry. French’s mother, Samantha Kennedy, highlighted the positive impact the palette had on Scarlette’s confidence and self-care habits, expressing hope for similar experiences among individuals with disabilities.
Scarlette envisions a future as a musician and social media influencer, inspired by her role in promoting makeup independence for visually impaired individuals. She hopes to motivate other girls with visual impairments to explore makeup artistry without limitations.
