Toy kit that teaches young girls about science through makeup

There are many career paths into the beauty industry. There are clear traces: marketing, brand ownership, and even social media influence. Dallasite scientist Kristen Wells Collins makes it her job to encourage young girls to find other paths, such as becoming science communicators or cosmetic chemists.

In 2020, Wells Collins launched Black to the Lab, a $30 toy makeup kit that lets kids as young as 6 mix their own beauty products while also “learning the science behind formulating.” did. Her mission is to inspire children to consider careers in STEM fields.

Wells-Collins’ teachers always encouraged math and science as a child, and encouraged her to go to college early and study medicine “all the way to my high school graduation.” She joined Prairie View A&M thinking of becoming a pharmacist, but changed her major to chemistry, after which she earned a master’s degree in community development.

“I have always had a passion for educating youth, especially black girls,” Wells-Collins says. According to one study by Microsoft, girls begin to lose their interest in science by the age of 11. Wells-Collins wanted to use her own education to change this statistic.

She arrived at exploring science through beauty for several reasons. First of all, this age group is interested in cosmetics. Also, until she entered college, she didn’t know that such a career was possible. In Prairie she was encouraged by a professor to study organic chemistry as she used hair care and makeup products. “At first I was excited,” she says. “And it made me a little sad because I felt like she missed the moment to really explore the industry.”

Up to that point, all Wells-Collins knew about the science behind cosmetics was from her own experiments. She began creating her own skin care and beauty products after developing a severe citrus allergy during her high school years. Because of her exploration, “I became even more obsessed with beauty,” she says.

It also inspired her first business, a subscription skincare box, which she launched in 2017. Each box, called “The Chemistry Of,” highlighted the science behind a particular ingredient, such as lavender, rose, or pumpkin. The box contained five products and a card explaining “the benefits of these different ingredients and how they are incorporated into different beauty products.” Wells Collins did everything by hand, including manufacturing and packaging their products. But she knew she wanted to incorporate her education into her own work.

In 2020, she transitioned The Chemistry Of into a health and education company and rebranded it as Black to the Lab in the fall of the same year. Wells Collins transferred her lessons learned from her old business to her new business. In this toy kit, I used The Chemistry Of her base formula for the lip gloss and body scrub. These formulas were easy and safe for children to mix themselves, she says. No need to use heat or wait to use. The children were excited to apply the lip gloss right away and were able to “share it with friends and family to further develop their interest.”

Additionally, after hand-formulating and packaging everything in The Chemistry Of, she realized she needed a product that was easy to manufacture and sell in stores. That way, she will have more time to focus on her education.

A key component of Black to the Lab is learning activation, Wells-Collins said. She and her team will go to schools, summer camps, and other organizations to teach children “the scientific foundations of beauty using Black to the Lab toys.” They have taught classes in the city of Dallas, Duncanville Independent School District, Girl Scout chapters, and more.

Black to the Lab has two different educational curricula. Little Chemist focuses on product formulation and short business pitches. The creation of the brand focuses on entrepreneurship and teaches older girls about business planning. Wells-Collins wants to get younger kids interested in STEM and give older girls the resources to make STEM a career. She is working on her third agriculture-based curriculum, which she hopes to start later this year. Students will create bath bombs while learning how plant-based ingredients are incorporated into cosmetics and beauty products.

Wells-Collins hosted her first class in October 2020, when her kit was only a prototype. It was a virtual children’s birthday party. She was so nervous that she drove her car to Houston herself instead of mailing her kit. After teaching that class, she learned that for some ages, virtual her classes weren’t the answer. “We wanted to be in the same space,” she says. Then, in the summer of 2022, she led in-person classes with high school girls from Seed School in Washington, D.C., a public charter school. “It was a very inspiring group of young girls,” says Collins of Wells’ girlfriend. The group investigated changes in the industry. “This allowed me to have deeper conversations with my students during learning activations.”

In each class, she asks kids to think about everything that’s part of the beauty industry, including face wash, shampoo, and hair care. It’s not just makeup, science plays a big role. Wells-Collins says that the children and adults in the room are “amazed” as she teaches the class. Cosmetic science is not a well-known profession, and few universities even offer degrees in it. “We always have parents and students who are really excited about that educational background,” she says, in addition to her makeup.

Since launching in late 2020, Black to the Lab has grown thanks to word of mouth and social media. People are drawn to science because it explores what’s missing in the classroom: how to see yourself in what you’re learning. Wells Collins says. The company has also won several business pitch competitions, including 2021’s Delta Red Tank and 2022’s Dallasite Marty McDonald Boss Women Media’s Building Women for the Future. The former helped Black to the Lab launch its manufacturing business, Wells-Collins said. It helped her build a relationship with Amazon. After gaining attention with the retail giant’s 2023 Holiday Gifts guide, Black to the Lab sold out before Christmas. “It was very exciting,” Wells-Collins said.

Between toy makeup kits and classes, Wells-Collins says she has a few goals in mind. For girls in elementary and middle school, she hopes Black to the Lab will “foundate their interest” in STEM. She wants it to be a resource center for high school girls for college advising, internships and jobs. She plans to launch a scholarship program this year. She hopes to incorporate more technology into her business and continue to expand her curriculum.

She also hopes to launch a beauty product line developed by the students she works with. “So they have a chance to say, ‘Look what I made,'” Wells-Collins says. That way, they can see their future in the industry.

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katherine wendlandt

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Catherine Wendlandt is Deputy Online Editor. D MagazineWith her Living and Home and Garden blog, she covers everything…