Welcome back to Haul of Fame, your must-read beauty roundup for new products, new ideas and a scented stack of letters. Someone call Emma Woodhouse! (Or Lara Jean Song Covey.)
Included in today’s issue: Augustinus Bader, Billie (the shaving brand), Billie Eilish (the pop star), Beauty of Joseon, Clinique, Cocokind, Commence, Dashing Diva, Derma E, Dune, Erly, Fenty, Flower by Edie Parker, Geologie, Glossier, Hanhoo, Imaraïs Beauty, Inbar & Co, Isamaya Beauty, Lancer, Laura Mercier, L’Oréal Paris, Le Labo, Naturium, Noyz, Octavia Morgan Los Angeles, OMI, One/size, Nyx, Peach & Lily, RoC, Round Lab, RŌZ, Shark Beauty, St. Tropez, Timeless Skin Care, Tonymoly, Tula, Velour, Versed, Vitamasques, Youth to the People, YSE Beauty and so many Target debuts. Wow.
But first…
In 2021, the UK-based beauty brand Lush left every social media platform but Twitter and YouTube. By 2023, the company — which turns 30 this year — peaced out from those, too. “We wouldn’t ask our customers to meet us down a dark and dangerous alleyway,” the brand declared in a public statement at the time. “Some social media platforms are beginning to feel like places no one should be encouraged to go. Something has to change.”
So Lush did. They gave up nearly 4 million followers across platforms like Instagram and TikTok, investing that digital energy into IRL experiences instead. The company reported a sales loss in 2023 — about $30 million — that they candidly blamed on “significant digital” traffic losses, especially in America. Still, the brand made just over $1 billion and forged ahead with life outside the algorithm.
“We knew it was a risk,” says Rowena Bird, one of Lush’s co-founders and the inventor of their best-selling Bath Bombs. “But the mission was too important to us.” Instead of building its TikTok presence, Lush renovated their 260 US boutiques and developed quick-sprint partnerships with Barbie and “Wicked,” a fan base from “Love Island” thanks to contestant Leah Kateb and a collaboration with Spongebob Square Pants. “Participating in pop culture meant we could still reach a new audience, even without Instagram or YouTube,” says Bird.
Lush was also able to refocus their efforts with grassroots activism, which has been a core brand tenet since they began protesting against animal testing in the early 1990s. In the past year, the brand has created a bath bomb to support Palestinian children, raised money for fire relief in the Brazilian rain forest and Los Angeles and staged a “shower protest” in front of the UK Parliament. The goal: “Wash away toxic rhetoric” about human rights. “It was meant to be funny,” Bird says. “You can’t just scold people into doing the right thing. Let them listen and decide for themselves. And for goodness sake, have fun.”
It’s worth noting that while Lush has abstained from social media, the brand is still closely monitoring online conversations and adjusting their inventory accordingly. Witness the brand’s reported 264 percent spike in hair products in the first quarter 2025, driven by the “scalp care” and “scalp facial” trends on TikTok along with a post-Covid fervor for hair loss solutions. And Lush may not be chatting about its new cherry body scrub on the grid, but the brand still dropped two cherry-trending products in the past two weeks.
“We do work with influencers,” confirms Bird. “We’re happy to support the people building their own small businesses on social media. We just have zero interest in giving money to billionaires instead of to hard-working creatives.”
What advice does Bird have for brands looking — or at least wishing — to pull the plug on social? “Just do it. Your customers will really respect you. We don’t regret it at all.”
What else is new…
Skincare
Well, this is interesting. Rank & Style CEO Jaimee Chandlee has created Erly, her first beauty brand, in partnership with dermatologist Hallie McDonald. The Austin-based line has seven products meant for Gen Z including serums, moisturisers and — it’s happening — a $22 skincare brush called “The Mixer.”
K-Beauty brand Round Lab is now at Target with five products including a cleansing oil, toner and moisturiser. The packaging is almost entirely in Korean, which gives it a nice feeling of discovery, as if you went traveling to Seoul instead of to the parking lot next to the movie theater. Timeless Skin Care also rolled into Target on Feb. 2 with $30 serums and droppers full of anti-aging formulas. And shopper favorite Versed loaded up the retailer with an eye gel, SPF 50 and brightening serum on the same day. All are under $20.
Tula’s ceramide body moisturiser ($32) and mint lip mask ($18) hit the brand’s website on Feb. 3. To celebrate, influencer Krista Horton — who helped develop the original lip mask with the brand — posed with a tube in the middle of a snowstorm. Commitment!
RoC Skincare’s Derm Correxion Lip Volumizer landed in stores on Feb. 3. It has hyaluronic acid and (of course) peptides and comes with the claim that 87 percent of users prefer it to lip injections after a week of testing. Whether those users would ever get lip injections in the first place? Dunno. But it’s $33 if you want to try it out yourself. And yes, it has “The Tip.”
Geologie’s five-step acne clearing system landed at Target on Feb. 3. It has face wash, body wash, face cream, zit stickers and a color-correcting spot treatment. Each costs between $15 and $20.
Tonymoly launched a Green Tea Daily Defense sunscreen on Feb. 3. It has SPF 50 and costs $20 at Ulta Beauty. The same day, Beauty Of Joseon introduced its Daily Tinted Fluid Sunscreen, a $20 mineral-based SPF 40 formula with 12 shades. Meanwhile, Dune Suncare is gunning for Vacation’s stunt-y sunscreen formulas. On Feb. 4, the California-based brand dropped Golden Guard, a scented “browning gel” with SPF 30, caffeine, hibiscus, watermelon extract and some ocean-friendly mica for shimmer.
Billie’s body washes hit Amazon on Feb. 4 for $10. They’re scented like roses and peonies, and come with thoughtfully ridged caps, because unscrewing a soap bottle in the shower is hard.
Derma E released under-eye hydrogel patches on Feb. 4 that contain both retinol and bakuchiol, which is like the Coke-and-Pepsi combo of anti-aging topicals. They’re $30 for 30, which feels fair.
Lancer’s $110 Ultra Rich Barrier Cream debuted on Feb. 4 at retailers like Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and Amazon Beauty. Meanwhile, Hanhoo’s Barrier Support Moisturizer with ceramides hit TikTok Shop on Feb. 4 with tea tree extract, aloe and a $17 price that fits with the online swipe-and-win demographic.
Do edibles count as supplements? Ask Flower by Edie Parker. The brand famous for making Julia Fox’s handbag-and-lighter combo introduced a line of chewable cannabis gummies called Seedies on Feb. 4. It promises “a fine balance of relaxation and focus” that might rival Lemme’s “cool girls are chill girls” messaging. Unlike Kourtney Kardashian’s killing-it-at-retail products, though, you can’t get these at Target — just your locally registered dispensary.
Speaking of supplements, Imaraïs Beauty hit Target shelves on Feb. 3. It’s a gummy line from influencer Sommer Ray with six varieties for things like sexual health, hair growth, clearer skin and, of course, “de-bloating.” Each pack costs $24 and has a month’s supply. Ray’s co-founder is Aaron Hefter, who created the Canadian sports supplement line Nutrabolics in 2002 and is still the co-chief executive.
Youth to the People threw themselves a 10-year birthday party in the form of a soap bottle. The new package for its hero Superfood Cleanser was designed by Sebastian Curi, the color-whacking illustrator based in Los Angeles whose zingy work has been platformed by Apple, Nike and Spotify. It’s $39 and hit the brand’s website on Feb. 4, with a Sephora launch happening Feb. 7.
Augustinus Bader doesn’t want your sheet mask to slide off your face. Instead, the blue-bottled skin saver launched a hydrogel mask on Feb. 5 that comes in two handy parts so you can actually fit them over your face’s unique contours. The masks contain the brand’s signature TFC8 compound along with copper peptides and niacinamide, and costs $32 per pack, or $180 for six. Because: Augustinus Bader.
Shark Beauty’s first skincare product, the CryoGlow Mask, got a lot of attention at the Consumer Electronics Show in January. On Feb. 7, you can officially take it home with you for about $350. It uses LED, infrared and cooling sensors to help tighten and stimulate skin, and doubles as a Halloween mask if you want to look like a generic cyborg.
Peach & Lily’s Glass Skin Luminizing Stick is a highlighter that also moisturizes and promises buildable shine. It costs $40 and debuted Feb. 5, with a later Ulta Beach launch date of Feb. 9.
If you’re a sucker for salad-adjacent ingredients, get excited. On Feb. 6, Inbar & Co. debuted a body butter with quinoa peptides and a recyclable aluminum tube. The smaller size costs $38 which is about the same as a Sweetgreen bowl today, right?
Makeup
Clinique’s True Highlight Weightless Illuminator hit online retailers Ulta, Macy’s and Nordstrom on Feb. 3. It comes in four shades,promises a “light-reflecting” effect that reads as luminous but not shiny and costs $44.
Isamaya Beauty’s Core Collection hit shelves on Feb. 3. It has 22 products, including tools like a $145 Edge Lash Control Kit and cosmetics like $32 metallic lip balm. Every product is stunningly sparse in its design; several (like the $18 “squeezer” that clamps onto tubes of balm) could likely double as murder weapons. This is, I understand, part of the brand’s whole Thing, which I respect very much.
On Feb. 4, L’Oréal Paris announced Renee Rapp as its newest global ambassador, and I am already losing sleep (in the best way) waiting for a campaign that stars her and Cara Delevingne. My goodness.
Nyx is getting into… fantasy football? On Feb. 4, the makeup brand introduced a new DraftKings collab where fans can “bet” on who will kiss at the Super Bowl starring influencer Brittany Broski.
GloRilla is the new face of Fenty Beauty and Savage x Fenty apparel. This makes a lot of sense, and also makes the rapper an undeniable fashion and beauty player. Which luxury brand is gonna call her next?
Vitamasques rolled a $5 lip mask, three $5 tinted lip balms and two $5 tinted lip oils into Target on Feb. 4. If you bought all seven products, it would still cost less than a $40 Dior Lip Glow Oil, and yes, the product developers are thinking about that a lot.
Glossier’s Ultralip unveiled two new shades, Crest (a “90s brown”) and Flute (a slick red) on Feb. 4. The tubes are $22 each, and apropos of absolutely nothing, that’s just $3 less than Clinique’s Almost Lipstick.
Carolina Gonzalez has done makeup looks for Sabrina Carpenter and Ashley Park, so yes, she already has our attention. Now the artist has paired with Velour on her own line of $22 reusable faux lash clusters, which hit the internet on Feb. 4 and begin shipping Feb. 11.
One/size introduced its B12 Base Thinner Vitamin Pearl Serum on Feb. 4. The shimmery drops are made from “vegan pearls” and promise to add a luminous cast to “any foundation or cream.” They’re meant to be used in both makeup and skincare, so you can… uh… glow it alone.
It’s not often that brands truly bridge the gap between backstage access and consumer excitement but Laura Mercier is going for it. The brand’s New York Fashion Week “pop up” boutique included a chance for shoppers to win real seats to Jonathan Simkhai’s runway show on Feb. 5, when the LM team will provide beauty looks to models and, let’s be real, probably to Mr. Simkhai himself. Those cheekbones!
On Feb. 5, Dashing Diva launched One Coat, a new single-swipe gel polish for $11. The lacquer comes in 13 shades, including one called Sonic. Alas, it is a peachy pink and not a Sega-hedgehog blue.
It’s a good week for Dauphinette’s Olivia Cheng. Two days after the designer won the Genesis Prize for emerging talent, she’s released a $12 partnership with Cocokind that includes a tinted lip balm and compact mirror with a Dauphinette motif on the lid. It debuts Feb. 7 at Dauphinette’s New York Fashion Week gathering, then goes live online Feb. 14.
Naturium has a Calmer Ceramide Body Wash hitting stores on Feb. 7. It’s $24 and has skin-soothing ingredients like colloidal oatmeal and microalgae. I keep picturing Panicked Ceramide Body Wash just waiting in the wings, but maybe that’s for April Fools and not a random winter Friday.
St. Tropez Tan introduced its Sunlit Skin Bronzing Tint + Tan on Feb. 7. It’s a $34 bottle and the brand claims instant results.
Haircare
OMI stands for “outside meets inside.” On Feb. 1, the brand from “wellness explorer” Naomi Whittel debuted a haircare supplement that claims “visible results in 60 days.” Celebrity hair stylist Tracey Cunningham has lent her seal of approval; the tablets are $79 per month.
Brooke Shields is teaming up with Molly Sims to boost her Commence line, which seems like a natural and super-fun partnership. On Feb. 6, the shiny-haired celebrities debuted a Revive & Refresh Set featuring Shields’s 2-in-1 Instant Shampoo with Sims’s under-eye gels from her YSE Beauty range. The duo is $50.
Congrats to stylist Mara Roszak and not just for Emma Stone’s pixie cut! On Feb. 11, her haircare line RŌZ will hit Sephora.
Fragrance
Eucalpytus 20 hit Le Labo stores on Feb. 1, along with Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom. Its inspiration is “an oasis, a waystation where tumbleweeds and rusting dust come to settle in the hallowed shade of silver leaves.” I was honestly hoping rust was one of the top notes, but alas, it’s actually a combo of eucalyptus, cedarwood, frankincense, musk and labdanum, which is sap from a rockrose. Still cool.
Noyz introduced five solid versions of its signature fragrances at Ulta Beauty on Feb. 2, including “Sh**ty Day,” which has notes of “ocean air” plus clary sage and fig. Each fragrance is $35.
On Feb. 4, Octavia Morgan Los Angeles became the first fragrance brand to debut from Ulta’s 2023 MUSE Accelerator program, which was developed to mentor “BIPOC beauty brands within their early stages.” The label launched with four signature fragrances, which retail for $150 per bottle, carry great names like Legendary and L’Affaire and look a bit like Byredo and Le Monde Gourmand had a baby.
Happy birthday, or should I say bon anniversaire, to Portrait of a Lady by Éditions de Parfum Frédéric Malle. On Feb. 5, the fragrance house released a limited edition bottle in honor of the perfume’s 15th anniversary in a deep lipstick red. POAL is famous for including 400 distilled Turkish rose blossoms per bottle. I am famous for almost dropping one of those bottles in an Elle beauty closet a long time ago. Apologies to legendary editor Emily Dougherty, now at Cultured (so good!) for that one…
Billie Eilish’s latest scent, Your Turn Eau de Parfum, hits shelves on Feb. 7. It has notes of bergamot, jasmine and coconut water, and features black-and-white imagery reminiscent of Julia Margaret Cameron’s portraits of willful Victorian girls.
And finally…
We’ve got hair scents and room scents and even washing machine scents (thank you, Ded Cool). Last night, the writer Rachel Syme teased letter scents, the practice of spritzing your personal notes for an extra intimate touch. The New Yorker staffer is celebrating her new book, Syme’s Letter Writer, with advice on modern correspondence, and gifting friends with a vial of M+ perfume along with the coffee table reader. I keep thinking about Elle Woods’s pink scented resume; I also keep thinking this is a brilliant move for analog nostalgia branding and DS & Durga should hire Syme immediately.
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