Kat Von D will no longer be involved with her eponymous makeup brand, the company announced Thursday.
The brand — which was founded by the famed tattoo artist and “LA Ink” star 12 years ago — will now go by the name KVD Vegan Beauty, effective immediately.
Von D, 37, said the reason for her sudden departure is so she can focus on mothering her 1-year-old son, Leafar Von Drachenberg Reyes, as well as other creative pursuits such as her music career and recently launched vegan shoe brand, Von D Shoes.
“This past year has been one of great change for me,” she wrote in an Instagram post to her “dearest fans.”
“As many of you know, I gave birth to my beautiful baby boy, launched my vegan shoe line, and am now busy prepping to release my long-awaited album in the spring, followed by an international tour!” Von D said.
“As much as I wish I could balance all of this, on top of continuing my makeup line, it has become clear to me that I just can’t do everything at the maximum capacity,” she continued. “It’s hard to admit this, since I’ve always said ‘You can do everything and anything.’ But I don’t think admitting one’s limits is a bad thing.”
The goth queen sold off her shares, and the beauty conglomerate Kendo — which is also responsible for Marc Jacobs Beauty, Fenty Beauty and Ole Henriksen — is now the makeup line’s sole owner.
“This was not an easy decision, but after careful consideration, I decided I wanted the makeup line to continue to thrive and grow, and Kendo is primed to do just that,” she said.
Von D wants her cult following to rest assured that the makeup line — which has over 250 products — will continue meeting the same quality and standards.
“The transition for you, my loyal customers, will be seamless,” she wrote.
She also thanked her fans for believing in her passion to bring an edge to the beauty sphere.
“I was able to create a makeup line that made outsiders like me feel like we have a place in this ‘beauty’ world, and gave myself and others the tools to express ourselves in our own unique way, whether it was embraced by the majority or not,” she wrote. “And I just couldn’t have done any of this without you!”
Over the last year, Von D’s reputation has come under fire after she was accused of being an anti-vaxxer and an anti-Semite. In an 11-minute video posted to YouTube in May 2019, Von D denied the claims, saying they are “extremely offensive and hurtful.”
Von D continued to explain the rumors, first saying how her reality show “LA Ink” threatened a male artist on “Miami Ink,” which led to him harassing her on set. She claimed he even sent an unsolicited photo of his genitals. She alleged that the same man forged an “anti-Semitic message” on her head shot and showed it to the network.
The tattoo artist also dated “Monster Garage” star Jesse James, who wore a Nazi officer’s hat with two fingers under his nose that resembles a “Hitler mustache” in a 2010 photo.
Von D also explained how she originally considered not vaccinating her son, but has since revised her choice.
“After doing a bunch of research, naturally I experienced some hesitancy,” she said. “If I would have known that I would have let so many people down with that I would have never ever shared where we were at with that at that time.”