When the world seems full of unknowns, we all strive to find comfort and familiarity. For some, it may be watching an old show or going to get their regular cup of coffee through the drive-thru. Humans crave things that give them a sense of stability. Sometimes we seek it even when our daily lives become hectic or when we feel that home is far away.
Harry Styles is no exception. Fans know that there are certain items Harry holds onto even if he could easily replace them with something new. There are many times when Harry has been seen wearing the same striped cardigan or carrying the same brown bag that he has had since the early One Direction days. A fan-favorite has been his favorite cream Quinten Gucci tassel leather loafers, first seen in his 2017 Gucci campaign:
And again on the last night of HS1 tour in 2018:
Even wearing them with swim shorts while posing for pictures with fans in 2018:
Harry has been spotted wearing the loafers multiple times throughout the years, and Harries love to see them whenever he brings them out. As someone who often works closely with Gucci and creator Alessandro Michele, Harry could most likely have any new pair of loafers he’d like at any point, but he has made it a point to keep the ones he has and wear them even when they start to get creased and dirty.
Those loafers likely hold memories for Harry and as someone who travels the world on a regular basis and doesn’t spend a lot of time in his own home, taking familiar things such as his worn loafers where he goes might bring him a sense of comfort and a piece of home.
Not only does he take comfort in familiar material things, he also takes comfort in finding friendly faces and families wherever he goes. During the height of One Direction mania, Harry found a family in London while his home in Hampstead was being renovated, but what started as a two-week favor turned into a twenty-month stint with producer and mentor Ben Winston and his family.
According to Harry’s 2017 interview with Rolling Stone, it was “the Winston’s Orthodox Jewish lifestyle, with a strong family emphasis, helped keep him sane.”
For almost two years, Harry lived in the attic of the Winston family home. Nobody, not even Directioners, found out where Harry was staying, even when the Winston’s would go out to dinner and take him with them. There was a sense of safety and comfort for Harry even in the chaos of One Direction.
“He would act as if he hadn’t come back from playing to 80,000 people three nights in a row in Rio de Janeiro,” Winston added in the interview.
Even though Harry’s life has changed insurmountably in the past ten years, one thing that has remained the same is Harry’s need for comfort, for stability, for a friendly face wherever he goes. No matter how famous or how much wealth someone has, those are human needs that will never be replaced and Harry, even in the madness, still takes those important values to heart.