14 Delicious Food And Beauty Collabs

Who says you can't play with your food? More so, who says you can't play with food all over your face? That's not a suggestion to go out and embarrass yourself at a restaurant — we're talking about makeup. You might remember the array of food-inspired flavors that made Lip Smacker balms famous. According to Click Americana, it was dubbed the world's first flavored lip balm, introducing basic flavors such as cherry, strawberry, and peach. Later, it expanded into name-brand flavor collaborations by teaming up with some of the biggest candy and soda brands in the country: Tootsie Roll, Dr. Pepper, and Orange Crush, to name a few.

In recent years, numerous companies have jumped on board the food marketing trend for limited-time products, including some of the world's biggest makeup brands. While makeup and food might not appear to go together, both industries share the same goal: targeting a young demographic (via Content Cucumber). The novelty of non-edible cosmetics is exciting for hungry consumers and content creators who love to experiment and create endless colorful looks. Here are some of the top tasty makeup and food collaborations that will make you crave the real treats while you unleash your inner artist.

Brand new for Spring 2022 and sold exclusively in Ulta Beauty stores, the popular budget brand e.l.f. Cosmetics collaborated with Dunkin' for an assortment of coffee and donut-inspired makeup products. The collection can be viewed on the e.l.f. website and includes a set of three mini eyeshadow palettes based on classic Dunkin' donut flavors: strawberry frosted with sprinkles (pink shades), Boston Kreme (neutral and brown shades), and chocolate frosted with sprinkles (pink, yellow, blue, and brown). The Dunkin' Dozen is sold together and packaged in what looks like one of Dunkin's donut boxes. 

Other products, as reported by USA Today, include a coffee-flavored lip scrub, donut scented putty primer, glazed donut-inspired lip glosses, and a sponge applicator that looks like a strawberry frosted donut with sprinkles. The Classic Dunkin' Stack Vault is a collection of all the items, complete with a reusable branded cup and straw.

The products even smell like their food counterparts — but remember that none of it is intended for actual consumption! e.l.f. Cosmetics, known for its affordable quality makeup and skincare products for the past 20 years, reported via CNN that about one-third of its customer base is eager to buy its products when there is a fun collaboration involved. The novelty aspect is attractive to fans of both the food product and makeup brand.

Sticking with K-beauty, a TonyMoly and Samyang collaboration displayed a cute and creative appeal. The collection was released in 2018, based on the Hot Chicken Spicy Ramen Korean noodles made by the food empire Samyang, the first company to produce ramen in Korea during times of grueling food shortages.

As for TonyMoly, the company began in 2006 with unique street fashion-inspired cosmetics. According to SnackFever, Samyang instant noodles gained worldwide recognition on social media with the Fire Noodle Challenge, taken on by anyone with an affinity for extra spicy goodies. After you've wolfed down a flaming cup of Samyang noodles, TonyMoly can give your lips a soothing break with its Hot Edition Lip Care Stick that moisturizes with a milky extract.

Meanwhile, the Hot Edition Hot Coverdak Cushion compact was inspired by the super spicy noodles and featured depictions of the brand's mascot Hochi, an adorable yet fiery chicken. The foundation refill came in a packet similar to those used for sauce and spices in the real thing — and the main product was even packaged in a ramen cup. From Nylon's report, the collection also contained two Lip Sauce Tints — a flaming hot red and an orange-based color similar to chili oil, a common mix-in condiment in ramen. And you can't ignore the Noodle Blusher packaged like sauce, in case the spicy noodles themselves didn't already turn your face crimson.

Rihanna's beauty brand Fenty Beauty worked alongside HeyTea to create a small collection of cream blush and a makeup bag exclusive to China. HeyTea is a bubble tea shop and Starbucks competitor founded in 2016 that specializes in organic and milk teas. The Chinese company is believed to be valued at over $9 billion as of 2021 and currently operates in over 60 cities across the globe (via Pandaily).

The tea company has collaborated with other well-known beauty brands including Clinique and L'Oréal, as reported by Glossy. This partnership with Fenty Beauty, as with most food and beauty partnerships, targeted a young demographic with similar interests and tastes, quite literally. Beauty brands and bubble tea match-ups have become trendy across the Asian markets, where both products are a regular part of daily life.

This little collection, which included Fenty's Cheeks Out blush, was not mass-produced or sold in stores — it could exclusively be obtained via a lottery drawing on the Chinese social media platform Weibo for a limited time (via Jing Daily).

Sally Hansen, a long-standing and well-regarded beauty brand, jumped on the foodie bandwagon in 2021 when it partnered with Mentos, the mint company that's been around since 1932. The collaboration between the two companies produced eight stunning shades of Sally Hansen's Insta-Dri nail polish. As per The Pop Insider, the limited-time collection was called Sweet Treats for Spring and introduced colors ranging from eye-catching pink to pastel yellow. A cool white polish with blue glitter — the two brand colors of the original mint Mentos — was also in the collection.

The polishes were each sold separately as well as in pairs, designed as beautiful complements. The duo sets were called Stay Fresh and Roll With It and featured a transparent base with multi-color confetti and buttery yellow (via Makeup Muddle).

Sally Hansen Insta-Dri previously teamed up with Jelly Belly, a popular brand of jelly beans. As noted by Allure, the colors were inspired by the many flavors, such as very cherry (red), bubble gum (pink), and peach (muted orange with red flecks).

For all of the beer connoisseurs out there, Duke Cannon Supply Co. has made it possible to bathe in the fermented beverage. The company pledges to supply high-quality male grooming products and even has active partnerships with the U.S. military. One of its best-selling products, the Big Ass Soap bar, was inspired by the soap issued to soldiers during the Korean War.

As for Duke Cannon's collaboration with American beer behemoth Budweiser, it was named The Great American Grooming Collection. Bestselling daily-use products such as the classic bar soap, beard oil and balm, and cologne were infused with real Budweiser beer and bold cedarwood aromas, according to Gear Moose. Duke Cannon claims that antioxidants in the beer are extra beneficial at cleaning your skin.

You may have heard from your mother or grandmother that they used to rinse their hair with flat beer back in the day. According to Healthline, the malt and hops are considered to have the ideal balance of nutrients to strengthen hair and make it shine. While there's no definitive proof that this trick actually improves your hair's health, there's no harm in trying it on your head, or on your skin with Duke Cannon's help.

Guac isn't extra in this Chipotle offering. Around spring of 2021, e.l.f. Cosmetics launched a partnership with Chipotle to create one of the most unique and savory makeup lines we've ever seen. Food & Wine reported that this makeup collab featured four (non-edible) delicious beauty products inspired by the fast-food chain's menu. Among the selection was an eyeshadow palette with colors named as an ode to their food counterparts — guac, pinto beans, brown rice, and hot salsa. The other products were a red plumping lip gloss, an application sponge set dubbed extra guac shaped like an avocado with a pit, and a makeup bag identical to Chiptole's tortilla chip brown bag.

According to Green Queen, the makeup collection included a special treat with the purchase — a promotional offer of (real) free chips and guacamole to snag at the restaurant. At the counter, a limited menu offering that paired with the collab was up for grabs: the Eyes. Chips. Face. Bowl. The vegan entree was inspired by beauty and drag queen artists Trixie Mattel and Kim Chi and consisted of white rice with beans, corn, salsa, guac, and a side of chips.

I Heart Revolution paired up with childhood-favorite cereals Fruity Pebbles and Cocoa Pebbles to create one of the most daring and colorful eyeshadow palettes of any food-inspired cosmetic. The collection didn't stop with just eyeshadow; there were a total of 22 products ranging from lip glosses, highlighters, accessories, and even bath crystals, as per Penn Live. The fun vibrant cereal colors were an inspiration that just made sense when it came to designing cosmetics for consumers to play with. 

Most of the cosmetics were delightfully scented accordingly with the cereal flavors, both fruity and chocolatey. In addition, the packaging for the palettes looked like the actual boxes of cereal. As Musings of a Muse noted, just glancing at the product would make anyone nostalgic for the sweet childhood cereal. But if you're mindful of calories and sugar these days, then you could simply apply some of these cosmetics to your face. The products are loud, bold, and all-around one of the prettiest collabs on the list.