Meet Gabriela Hernandez
As a young girl, Gabriela Hernandez would watch in complete wonder while her beloved grandmother applied makeup as part of her daily beauty ritual. From the swipe of a bold lip color to the dusting of rouge on a cheek, Gabriela loved how this small moment connected art to beauty, and grandmother to granddaughter.
After immigrating from Buenos Aires to the United States, Gabriela’s fascination for cosmetics grew into passion followed by expertise. She became a historian of makeup through the decades, studying photography and art direction before publishing the book, Classic Beauty: The History of Makeup, and then founding Bésame Cosmetics.
Embracing proven beauty tools, trends, and techniques of eras past, Gabriela has created a carefully curated line of cosmetic essentials – inspired by style icons both famous and familial. Just like watching her grandmother apply makeup decades ago, Bésame offers authentic connection across generations, so you can build looks that transcend time.
100 Years of Romance
Behind Bésame Cosmetics' array of historically iconic shades, you have 100 years’ worth of inspiration from women who knew they were nothing like the rest. Those who've come before you focused on their best assets, their unique features, and never forgot to accentuate it all with one swipe of a signature lip color, reimagining what it meant to be one's own woman.
Meticulously Created for Accuracy and Authenticity
Through our deep respect for the art of makeup, each Bésame product begins with years of research on the history behind the colors and formulations. From movie studios to vintage shops and everything in between, our founder works tirelessly to find the authentic stand-out shades from past eras and revives them for the modern-day woman.
In an effort to stay true to iconic shades, Gabriela seeks out top biochemists to ensure that colors are brought to life precisely as they would have been when originally released. The result is a meticulously designed collection that tells a beautiful history – and unfolds before you in every swipe across your lip or brushstroke on your cheek.
With these thoughtfully designed products and formulations that effortlessly stand the test of time, you have at your fingertips the preeminent makeup essentials needed to create your own iconic style.
The Color of a Revolution
During the suffrage movement of 1912, women marched across the streets of New York City wearing bold red lips in open defiance of oppression by the patriarchy. The daring color alone had the power to outrage men. This was the beginning of a revolution, and red lipstick became a symbol of women’s liberation. Poised and powerful. Feminine and strong.
We take inspiration from those suffragettes, along with the iconic women artists, leaders, and activists in the decades since, to create a line of cosmetics that honors where we’ve come from and empowers a new era of change. We invite you to feel the power, courage, and grace of muses past as part of your beauty ritual. May that connection inspire you to be true to who you are, live boldly, and love yourself courageously every single day.
Premium By Choice
Our carefully curated line of beauty products for lips, eyes, and face is engineered and manufactured through rigorous commitment by our nimble team. Our founder works directly with our chemists to ensure that every aspect of each product exceeds the Bésame standard. As a premium cosmetic line, we do not skimp on ingredients, amounts, and colors. As a result, our deluxe products deliver maximum longevity in wearability and function flawlessly for beauty and skincare. We recognize that our no-compromise premium formulations may cost more, but we think you’ll agree, they are well worth it. And so are you.
Nothing Trendy About Sustainability
Sustainability has gained traction in recent decades, but at Bésame, it’s been elemental to our brand since day one. We continue to operate at the forefront of sustainable beauty, not only educating ourselves in the latest practices, but also leading the industry and our customers in doing the same. For more than 17 years, we have been committed to sustainable packaging with our best-selling products: from reusable tins for our Cake Mascara to and biodegradable paper envelopes to refillable metal keepsake compacts and our signature aluminum lipstick tubes. Our team constantly evolves to provide new innovative solutions to counter wastefulness in beauty retail, and we will continue to set an example for the industry.
Beauty that Feels as Good as it Looks
Bésame Cosmetics has always focused on creating long-wearing, deluxe formulas that function for both beauty and skincare – even for those with sensitive skin. Our beauty essentials are always free from harsh chemicals, parabens, mineral oils and gluten, and we have always been and will always be 100% cruelty-free. Each and every product we create is carefully curated to meet our founder’s impeccable standards and suit every skin type. With rigorous testing – but never on animals – we create and deliver clean beauty products that you can feel great about wearing every day.
