At First Blush, An Unexpected Pairing

NYX Professional Makeup announced this month that it was working with chef Gordon Ramsay and his daughter, beauty and lifestyle influencer Holly Ramsay, to create a cake recipe inspired by NYX’s new introduction, Buttermelt Blush. The exclusive recipe—which includes ingredients found in the beauty product, such as shea and almond butters, and results in a cake that is frosted with the 12 different hues in the blush assortment—is available at the brand’s website and on its social channels. As part of the promotion, other chefs and creators are baking the cake and posting their versions on their social platforms.

Chefs and beauty companies seem to represent somewhat unexpected bedfellows. But they can be a logical fit, given that makeup, fragrances, and other beauty items are often inspired by food and can contain or take cues from some of the same ingredients, such as butters and oils, chocolate, fruits and nuts, spices, and seeds. 

While not common, partnerships between chefs and beauty brands have popped up from time to time over the past decade, not just for promotions but for collaborative products as well: 

• In May of this year, Ofra Cosmetics paired with chef Omi Hopper of Cooking Con Omi for a Be the Light Collection of face makeup, lip gloss, and eye shadow. Hopper had a professional makeup studio before the pandemic, when her career took a turn after she started posting cooking content featuring Puerto Rican recipes on social media. The beauty collection features colors inspired by Hopper’s Latina heritage.    

• Pastry chef Sadaharu Aoki paired with makeup brand Shu Uemura in 2021 for a pâtisserie-inspired collection of lipsticks and eyeshadow palettes featuring sweet scents and the hues of the pink azuki beans, green matcha tea, and other ingredients Aoki uses in her baking. Shiny packaging in the same shades, with streaked highlights, suggested the look of the Paris-based Japanese chef’s treats. Brushes, eyebrow pencils, and cleansing oil were also part of the capsule. 

• Padma Lakshmi paired with M.A.C. for a capsule collection of makeup in 2018, including blush, eyeshadow, eye pencils, highlighter, and lipstick. A standout from the collection, according to reviewers at the time, was a range of red lipsticks formulated for different skin tones. Lakshmi is a model and actress as well as being a cookbook author and former host of Top Chef.  

• Crissy Teigen, a model, influencer, and TV personality, paired with Becca Cosmetics in 2017 and 2018 for several collections of highlighters and lip glosses, many of which were inspired by desserts and baked goods and featured scents such as vanilla and cinnamon rolls. Teigen has a cooking website, Cravings by Crissy Teigen, with the brand name appearing on cookbooks and licensed foods and kitchen products, including a cookware line with Target that ended in 2021. She has also been involved in other beauty collections, including an Ipsy Icon Box with her husband John Legend, who has a men’s skincare line himself.   

• Jason Atherton, a British Michelin-starred chef and a host and frequent guest on cooking shows in the U.K. and elsewhere, partnered with luxury publication Four Magazine and fragrance brand Boadicea the Victorious back in 2015 for a fragrance called Vetiver Imperiale. The scent, which was sold at Harrod’s and Nieman Marcus, included pink pepper, cardamom, and rhubarb, as well as a hint of citrus. The product highlighted a new technology from CPL Aromas that allowed ingredients not previously used in the fragrance industry to be incorporated into scents. 

It should be noted that the chefs participating in products and promotions like these are likely to have a connection with the fashion and/or beauty category, in addition to their expertise in food or cooking. Many have a reputation for personal beauty or as a style icon, for example, or have a current or past career connection with the beauty or fashion industry. However, the fact that they are chefs or food experts is the differentiator and creates a range of collaborative products that surprise while also making perfect sense.