Jim Marsoobian
Opinion Editor
He’s back at it again, this time with a line of nail polish and skincare products.
November 15th, 2021 marked the launch of a new beauty brand, Pleasing: founded by none other than Harry Styles. The singer, songwriter, and actor continues to expand his title, this time dabbling in the fashion and beauty world. Having attended the Met Gala and always impressing with his bold and unique closet, Styles has become a fashion inspiration for people all over.
So far, Pleasing is selling a variety of nail polish and a few skincare products. The Perfect Polish Set, containing four pearl-inspired bottles and letter decals, is selling for sixty-five dollars. All of the products Pleasing offers are vegan, biodegradable, cruelty-free, and made with plant-based ingredients to have a sustainable effect, which explains the high price. The packaging contains recycled materials and the carton is completely compostable, as well.
The four nail polish colors being offered are Perfect Pearl, a creamy white, Pearly Tops, a subtle barely-there polish, Inky Pearl, which has a deep black-blue hue, and last but not least, Granny’s Pink Pearls, a lovely light pink. As stated on the website, all of these colors can be combined to create unique colors and designs. As of now, the only colors being sold individually arePerfect Pearl and Pearly Tops for twenty dollars each.
Styles’ inspiration for this new project is simple: “I wanted to find a way to explore more ideas and have more opportunities to collaborate with people who were inspiring me; that’s how Pleasing was born,” he said in a recent press release. “When we decided Pleasing would make beauty products I wanted to be sure they were something I would use. I didn’t want to make products to mask people, I wanted to highlight them and make them feel beautiful,” Styles explains.
In a recent interview with Dazed, he said, “I really think that the essence of Pleasing is finding those little moments of joy and showing them to people.” Styles continues, “I don’t think being beautiful or feeling beautiful is about looking good. When people are happy and glowing, they’re radiating. And that’s what I think the products do, it’s about helping you feel beautiful.”
Already, this hysteria-causing brand is receiving great reviews. “My primary complaint about Pleasing, frankly, is that there isn’t more of it to go around,” writes Nicola Dall’asen of Allure Magazine. Shannon Lawlor of Who What Wear talks about how “It’s not claiming to be perfect—it’s open, honest and is trying its best to act inclusively and sustainably without getting hung up on nuances.”
Most importantly, however, this new line represents a change in beauty. The products are marketed towards all people and promote a diverse, inclusive outtake on the target market of these items. The brand claims that “by exploring the contradictions around and within us, we dispel the myth of a binary existence.”
Overall, this new line of products establishes the beginning of a new era of inclusive, sustainable beauty. Hopefully, this new addition to the beauty world inspires brands across the globe to create a long-lasting change that not only encourages a diverse and inclusive society but also a healthy and happy planet.
