When did fashion and beauty trends get so… yummy? 🍓🍒🫐

In 2023, there's been no shortage of food-themed trends infiltrating fashion and beauty spaces.

From ‘blueberry milk nails’ to ‘glazed donut skin’ to ‘cinnamon cookie butter hair’ and ‘latte makeup’, beauty is taking direct cues from the snack aisle.

And over in the world of fashion, ‘tomato girl summer’, ‘vanilla girl summer’ and ‘lemon girl summer’ also borrowed aesthetic cues from the grocery store this year.

The obsession with food trends goes far beyond the social media realm, however, as it aligns with people's desire for novelty and experimentation in understanding the world around them and expressing their personal points of view through trends.

In a digital age where everyone and anyone can be a content creator, food-themed trends provide a relatable canvas for people to showcase their creativity and cultural influences through something we all consume – food.

Food has been infiltrating fashion for a while now through collaborations such as Lays handbag and Balenciaga, along with fast-food giant McDonald’s teaming up with Palace on a streetwear-inspired release.

And when the worlds of fashion and food collide; the limited edition ‘drops’ that have become synonymous with hyped streetwear and luxury brands spill over into the food space.

Look no further than Bibigo partnering with Postmates to create Mandu Monday and build hype around their Korean dumplings, and Ekiben restaurant in Baltimore tapping into drop culture mentalities through carefully curated Instagram posts that have fans drooling.

This is especially interesting at a time when over two in five young consumers have purchased a limited-release item from a brand and a third of young consumers would pay more for a limited-edition product.

Whether it’s a marketing ploy, a nod at rising food prices or a return to childhood nostalgia and simpler times, it’s clear that trends are hungry for more.

And our food, fashion and beauty choices say a lot about us – however trend-led they may be.