Does Hailey Bieber Know What a Pocket Is?

I find it hilarious how every few months Hailey Bieber is inexplicably touted as a genius for taking a relatively normal product and repurposing it to hold…a singular tube of lip gloss. (Though, I’ll admit, the phone case was kinda genius.) Still, hasn’t she heard of a tote? Or a purse? Or even this Justin Bieber backpack I owned in 2011?

Bieber recently showed off her latest creation for Rhode on Instagram as part of her “lemontini” summer collection, and it’s a, wait for it, gold waist chain with attached gold netting to hold one of her lip treatments. My first reaction? This is the most dainty strap-on I’ve ever seen. My second? Does she think her customers are that desperate for a place to keep their chapstick?

Hailey has yet to announce if the waist chain will be formally released or if it’ll just remain a photoshoot prop. But with her track record, we can probably expect influencer Alix Earle to be flaunting it on the beaches of Miami by August.

 

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While this isn’t the first time Hailey’s made a lip gloss holder, it’s also not the first time she’s made a product that, at first glance, appears NSFW. Remember when the Rhode Lip Case was almost exclusively referred to as the pussy lips phone?

“Very subliminal,” one Reddit user commented at the time. “Not only the labial case but the phallus-gloss slotted nicely between.” Another wrote, “ohhhhh this is the pussy lips phone case they were talking about.” Fun!

Also, the silicone suction (ha!) holder she made for her Glazing Milk Mist quite literally looks like someone smashed a wand into a pastie. Although it wasn’t publicly released, it really made me question if she thinks non-rich people don’t have bathroom counters or floors, or dare I say, bags to store their makeup products.

In 2024, Chief Brand Officer Lauren Ratner told Vogue that the inspiration for the Rhode Lip Case came from the need to create something hands-free and practical. “Our customer won’t go anywhere without their Peptide Lip Treatment, but it can be annoying to dig through your bag to find it or realize you left it at home. Since everyone has a phone glued to their hands, it was a natural fit to combine the two.” The brand seems to have adopted a similar philosophy for its other products. Heavy emphasis on seems.

Like, OK, yes, but what practicality could this waist chain even serve? Sorry, I forgot my purse, but not my convenient little clip-on waist chain!? If you wear it to the beach—like Hailey did—do you take it on and off every time you decide to jump in the water? With her impressive collection of leather jackets and jorts, doesn’t Hailey know what a pocket is? Who is actually buying this???