A week from today many of us will be huddled around the Christmas tree, spending time with friends and family – and opening presents. Today’s holiday gift guide goes out to the beauty queens – this list will have you lusting for every item, but remember – the holidays are about giving. Then again who am I to judge, go ahead and pick up a few of these as gifts to yourself – you deserve it!
Returning after an incredibly well received first guest post – beauty expert and number one partner in crime, Sarah shares with you her top ten buys for the holiday season. But before you read on – head over to Sarah’s twitter page and show this beauty queen some love!
With the stress of tying up loose ends before that delicious vacation auto-reply is set on your emails, the holidays are the perfect time to indulge in some overdue decadent pampering! After all, ‘tis the season for brands to merchandise the shit out of curate carefully selected gift sets. I’ve pulled together some of my cold weather purse and vanity staples, as well as a few of my own wish list items. A cozy night in with the company of some of these buys may become a habitual guilty pleasure to help get you through winter storms. But let’s be honest, there’s little guilt that I find in any pleasure. Enjoy!
1. L’Occitane en Provence Mini Hand Creams
One million times over, the French know their skincare! Mild enough for sensitive skin, and soothes chapped hands. I swear by the mini Shea Butter Hand Cream purse size, and the holiday set allows you to try two slight variations.
2. Smith’s Rosebud Mocha Rose Lip Balm
Lip care is crucial once that wind chill hits, but balms don’t have to have a medicinal scent in order to do a heavy duty job. From the maker’s of the cult favourite Rosebud Salve, it’s the perfect scent for those who enjoy a warm cup of anything sweet.
3. Voluspa Luxury Candles in Baltic Amber
How do boutique hotels and spas create that relaxing, nirvana inducing vibe? I can tell you it’s not with grocery store scents. A small splurge can help transform your space into a lavish sanctuary (you’ll just have to heat your own towels).
4. Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb Holiday Gift Set
If you’re going to buy perfume at any time of year, now’s the time to do it! Gift sets are an amazing value and allow you to layer or build your scent; using a perfumed shower gel on special occasions, and using the matching scented body lotion sparingly before you apply your perfume, will give your scent real legs to linger from day to when the ugly lights turn on at the club night.
I mean, I’d like to think I wasn’t going to blindly buy whatever was included just for the V&R signature couture bow tie in box form, but it turns out they sold me on the rollerball of fragrance.
*One caveat: if you’re buying perfume for someone else, be sure you know their signature scent or fragrances they enjoy which they have sampled. Due to skin’s natural oils, perfumes really do smell different on everyone, and even high end fragrances can smell sour on certain people. I seem to recall a certain someone [……..] having a ‘violent reaction’ – in the words of a Holt’s shop girl.
A makeup bag is usually a guaranteed good gift for the beauty addicted; we like bright, new shiny things. Plus, it’s a much more flattering addition to the beauty arsenal than the green pigmented primer, which clearly none of us use because that would be weird…(we’ll get that with a gift card).
6. Too Faced Teddy Bear Hair Brush Set
Depending on the level of “hardcoreness” of the receiver in question, they may be quite picky about their tools. What I like about this basic set is that the brand has developed a special synthetic fiber to mimic traditional animal hair – luxurious sans cruelty.
Nail Art has been a huge trend of 2012 and judging from spring runways, it’s shown no signs of stopping in ’13. Presenting the mother load of polish sets, or if we want to get festive, the non-denominational advent calendar for your digits. Likely more addictive than bath salts.
8. Urban Decay Sparkling Body Powder
A fun product with counter top appeal, a few puffs will add a beautiful shimmer where ever you’d like some highlight, and the scent is not overpowering. Although the brand touts itself as ‘beauty with an edge’, tender hearts will be happy to hear they are listed under Peta’s cruelty free companies.
While you may be tempted to rock the incognito look under a toque all season, some nights just call for big, bouncy hair. This volumizing powder helps to achieve that Nashville-esque do that’s more Hayden Panettiere than Reba (sorry Reba girl I love you but come on: http://bit.ly/12kpAzO )
10. Vintage Mirror Vanity Tray
Certain things of beauty from the past never go out of style. This is a gorgeous way to display special items and conjure up inspiration from pinups past.
A 5'3 Perspective 