Only a few short weeks until Christmas! The weekend after Thanksgiving, my roommates and I immediately went out and got decorations for our apartment - lights to line along the ceiling, a small (fake) tree, wreath, and garlands to make the place festive, I love it! This week, my holiday checklist included booking trips back home to California (so excited) and dreaming up cute gifts for stocking stuffers, white elephant exchanges, and secret santas. Here are some beauty-related ideas for gifts ranging from $25-50...
1) anything from LUSH! From Michelle's post here, there are many yummy smelling goodies to pamper a lucky person on your list. For a newbie, I'd give the famous bathbombs (there are so many varieties to choose from) or bubble bars, both would make shower/bath time rock. Bath bombs are $5-6 and bubble bars are $6-7 , so while it's not cheap to enjoy regularly, these would make great gifts. Lush skincare also consistently receives raves but they're harder to pick for somebody else since you don't really know their skin type/concerns (so feel free to self-gift!). If there's a store close by you, I'd recommend taking a walk, soaking up the smells, and choosing several to try.
2) Urban Decay 24/7 eyeliner sets - holiday sets are AWESOME. Not only do they often offer a brand's best selling products, but they give the recipient choices, and they're economic to boot! I like this set of eyeliners from UD - quality is tops with super smooth and soft drawing ease, doesn't smudge (hence the "24/7"), and a rainbow of colors to experiment with! These are perfect for nights out, since who really needs a full-size bright green eyeliner?! It'd just sit sadly in my traincase. And I try to love all my makeup by rotating and using them fairly regularly. This particular set is $36, and comes with 9 mini pencils, but there are two other sets I like also, with 4 larger pencils + a glitter liner.
3) Perfume sampers - still think these are a genius idea. Hook, line and sinker - the sample vials of Sephora's best smelling fragrances let you try each scent without the $$ commitment, and later you can exchange for a full size bottle of your favorite pick. Easy peasy.
Other quick ideas:
- cult favorite items if the recipient doesn't already have them: NARS blush (Orgasm is the ubiquitous shade, but I like Deep Throat better), Shu Uemura eyelash curler, YSL Touche Eclat pen.
- beauty books: Making Faces by Kevyn Aucoin for a lover of dramatic and bold makeup, Bobbi Brown's manuals for the girl who enjoys simple and basic makeup. Not beauty related, but I've also purchased Nina Garcia's The One Hundred on pieces that every girl should have in her wardrobe. This was a great book for when I first started working and wanted to build my closet with timeless items.
