The Biggest Thing In Beauty Has Landed At MECCA: Polite Society
January 1 | 3 minute watch
Words by Christie Sinclair
Originally published on | May 27
Well, we’ve found our unicorn in Polite Society, the positively playful and new to MECCA makeup brand saying no to toxicity – energy, people and ingredients included.
If anyone could make sustainable beauty appealing it was beauty industry veterans Jerrod Blandino and Jeremy Johnson. The pair have been known for breaking the often limiting and outdated rules of beauty since the late 90s when they launched TooFaced Cosmetics.
This time, they’re bringing a punch of cheeky, on-trend colour to a traditionally ‘beige’ sustainable beauty arena. “I wanted to create a makeup brand where “clean” doesn’t have to mean boring, and where you don’t have to trade glamour, innovation or trend-setting colour for clean, vegan, good-for-you formulas,” explains Blandino. “When someone tells us no or it can’t be done, it's like, okay, let's figure out a way to do it!”
“When someone tells us no or it can’t be done, it's like, okay, let's figure out a way to do it!”
Jerrod Blandino
Bucking conventional trends, it turns out, will help you gain traction, especially on TikTok. Take for instance the viral ‘egg’ foundation, a skincare-infused formula that improves the look of your complexion with every use. The ingenious Polite Pops, that despite their petite size deliver powerful pigments to cheeks in a swipe and can fit into a micro bag. And the brand’s bestselling B.I.G. Mouth Lip Plumping Oil Gloss that is absolutely not for the faint hearted but actually works. All formulated using only vegan, non-toxic and good-for-you ingredients that help support healthy skin function.
Making sustainable beauty choices sexy and elevated is one thing, but where the pair is really winning is in their understanding of the interconnectedness between how we look and how we feel. Blandino’s vision is that Polite Society is the vehicle for people to fully express themselves through a shared obsession with makeup. “It’s all about bringing positivity back to beauty after years of too much negativity,” he explains. “We consider hate, cruelty, and negativity as dangerous as parabens, phthalates, and formaldehyde.”
The idea that makeup is more than just 'makeup' is not new. However, as our fixation chasing the next ‘trend’ has grown, perhaps we’ve forgotten the simple joy in a swipe of bold blush or the ritual of getting ready? More than anything, Polite Society serves as a reminder that while we don’t need makeup to be who we are, wearing and experimenting with it can not only bring immense joy and confidence, it allows one to truly embrace their authentic, creative self. “We’re only serving up amazing makeup, love, light and being our true selves so we can lift each other up and change the world,” says Blandino.
