Someone Tell Glossier to Bring Back the Flip Phone Mirror

It all started, as many of my favorite discoveries do, with a scroll through Pinterest. I was hunting for inspiration, something to give my brain a hit of aesthetic dopamine. And then it appeared: a picture of a girl holding what looked like a baby-pink flip phone, but instead of texting or snapping a selfie, she was using it like a mirror. On the front? The iconic Glossier “G.”

I blinked. Saved the image. Zoomed in. I had so many questions and zero answers. At first glance, it really looked like one of those early 2000s Motorola Razrs, except shinier, glossier (literally), and… probably not capable of calling anyone. And that’s because it wasn’t a phone at all—it was a mirror keychain, designed to look like a retro flip phone. Suddenly, I wasn’t just curious. I was obsessed.

As it turns out, Glossier released this little gem in June 2023, but not as part of some flashy campaign or limited-edition collab. It was quieter than that. A small, sweet surprise for anyone who happened to walk into their Los Angeles store at just the right time.

There was no online launch, no email newsletter announcement, no influencer seeding. You had to physically be there. And even then, there were rules: maximum three per customer, no exceptions. It sold for $18 USD, not cheap for a mirror, but definitely not unreasonable.

And that’s exactly where these little flip phone mirrors started popping up next: Depop, eBay, Poshmark. People were reselling them for double or triple the original price. The exclusivity made them instant collector’s items—not because they were diamond-studded or part of a designer drop, but because they hit that exact sweet spot between nostalgia and utility

It looks like a phone. But it’s a mirror. You don’t need it. But you need it…

I keep thinking about why this object resonated so much with me. Maybe it’s because it taps into something I miss—something pre-Instagram, pre-constant notifications. Flip phones were the ultimate cool-girl accessory, but also kind of personal. You didn’t scroll on them. You opened them to answer, to check, to connect. And then you closed them—*snap*—and you were done. There was finality to it. And style. And a little mystery.

The Glossier version isn’t a phone, obviously. But it plays into the fantasy. It’s Y2K without being costume-y. It’s branding without being pushy. It doesn’t scream, “Buy Glossier.” It whispers, “Remember this?”