Last year I put together three Christmas Gift Guides, it was something I was a bit nervous about doing, but my readers loved them – in fact they were some of my most popular posts of the year! So I’m back again this year, with three Christmas Gift Guides and they are better than ever! Brace yourself for three HUGE gift guides, which will be perfect if you’re still looking for present ideas.
There will be a guide which focussed on gifts for her, one for gifts for him and one that looks at stocking fillers (it’s full of gifts which cost less than £15)! Today I’m talking about that latter guide, looking at some of the best gifts for if you’re on a budget or if you’re looking to fill a stocking! There is a lot to talk about so I’m not going to hang around….
Beauty Gifts
Let’s start with beauty gifts, as the stocking filler/cracker market has gone a little mad this year! I’m kicking things off with none other than Liz Earle, who always have lots of lovely gifts. However, what caught my eye is the Winter Nourishment Gift Set* (£8.00 here), inside this festive green and cream box, you get the Intensive Nourishing Treatment Mask (15ml) plus a Pure Cotton Cloth (something I can never have too many of)! The Intensive Nourishing Treatment Mask is a creamy formula which aims to combat all our winter woes, perfect for when your hungover skin needs a bit of TLC.
Beauty fans will not be surprised that Burt’s Bees have a huge collection this Christmas. Burt’s Classic Pomegranate Hanging Tree Decoration* (£6.99 here) is an absolute bargain and inside you get two popular Burt’s Bees products (a Moisturising Lip Balm with Pomegranate Oil and Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream). Plus, it comes in a festive red tin, which will look fabulous on the tree or on your desk! The A Bit Of Burt’s Pomegranate Gift Set* (£5.99 here) has the exact same products inside, but it is possibly a bit easier to wrap.
If you’re looking for an alternative to the Burt’s Bees bauble, you might like the look of the Bronnley Christmas Apple & Cinnamon Soap Bauble* (£6.50 here). As the name suggests, inside this bauble you get an apple and cinnamon, which is super festive and a little bit of luxury for when you’re washing your hands! I love this Winter Village Soap* (£2.99 here) package from the English Soap Company. It looks so festive in its box and inside you get three guest soaps which smell like cinnamon and mulled wine.
For a bauble that feels high end and luxurious, I always treat people on my gift list to Molton Brown. The Vintage Elderflower Limited Edition Bauble Gift (£11 here) is filled with Elderflower scented shower gel. It’s housed inside a pretty bauble and it comes in a silver box, so it just feels incredibly fancy! The last bauble stocking filler is the Green People Filler Indulge Gift Set* (£8.50 here), inside the box you'll find an organic night cream with a velvety texture, fragranced with a delicious Raspberry & Apple.
Want a cute beauty gift for under a fiver? You should check out the Dirty Works Beauty Stack* (£4 here). This gift aims to give you a dreamy bath time experience - each of the boxes have a different product. Start by running the caviar into warm running bath water or add the Bath Fizzer into a warm bath. After you’re finished apply the Body Butter from head to toe for silky smooth skin. If this gift doesn’t take your fancy, Dirty Works actually have 17 fabulous sets this Christmas, so you will not be stuck for choice!
KORRES are quickly becoming one of my favourite brands and they have a HUGE selection of products available this year. If you’re looking for a little gift to give, you could try one of the KORRES Lip Butters (£8.00 here), as they come in a ton of different flavours, so there really is something out there for everyone. If you’re looking for something a little more significant, you should check out The Greatest Mini Shower Gel Collection* (£12 here). Inside the gorgeous box you get six mini 40ml shower gels, each focusing on a different KORRES scent. The shower gels arrive in a gorgeous box and they just feel so premium and fancy.
For a bath that really allows your loved one to unwind, you could gift the Mandara Spa Honeymilk Dream Float Away Candles* (£6 here) and the Comfort Zone Tranquility Blend* (£12 here). Tranquility Blend can be added to pulse points or put into a bath, it smells beautiful and it leaves your skin feeling soft. The Mandara Spa Honeymilk Dream collection is inspired by Hawaii, pop in these floating candles on to the water and just soak your troubles away.
Crackers for crackers
Moving on to the more “traditional” cracker, we have a brand that I just couldn’t exclude! I always look to This Works for friends and secret santa gifts, as I feel that most people can appreciate their products. The This Works Sleep Spell Cracker* (£13.00 here) features a 15ml deep sleep pillow spray, which is one of my favourite products.
The Caudalie Body Essentials Christmas Cracker* (£10 here) is a huge cracker, finished in craft brown cardboard. It’s beautifully decorated with leafs and pretty swirls and two purple bows. When you pull open the cracker you find three products – which also match the purple colour scheme. There’s the Nourishing Body Lotion (30ml) to leave your skin soft, Thé des Vignes Shower Gel (30ml) which is a combination of ginger liqueur, orange blossom and jasmine infusion and the Lip Conditioner (4.5g) which is made with 99.5% naturally-derived ingredients.
The Roger & Gallet crackers are available in two scents – Fleur de Figuier* (£6 here) and Bois d’Orange (£6 here). Just like last year these make a delightful mini treat, perfect for stockings, secret santa and table settings. When you get inside the cracker you’ll find a handbag sized hand cream plus a little vial of fragrance.
Beauty fans young and old will love the Nuxe Prodigieuse Cracker* (£10 here) – it’s a vision in pink and gives you everything you need for a little pamper. It’s a fantastic gift whether you’re a newbie to Nuxe or a lifelong fan (who doesn’t love little minis for when they are travelling?!) When you untie the brown ribbon you are greeted by four products, which feels really generous at the £10 mark! There is: the Nuxe Mini Micellar Cleansing Water with Rose Petals (35ml), the Mini Crème Prodigieuse Anti-Fatigue Moisturising Cream - Normal to Combination Skin (15ml), the famous Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse Multi-Purpose oil and finally the Nuxe Mini Reve de Miel Hand Cream (15ml).
Gifts for nail polish fans
There’s a lot of choice out there for nail polish fans! If you’ve been reading my blog recently, you will have heard me talking a lot about Morgan Taylor. Their Glamour Holiday 2016 Collection* (£10.99 each here), is utterly beautiful and it’s perfect for this time of year. There are six new luxe lacquer shades which have everything from pretty glitter shades, to lush purple hues and classic red finishes. If you like the sound of these Morgan Taylor polishes, you can see a detailed next week.
If you missed my review on the Boutique Range from Sainsburys, you need to catch up here. It’s a fabulous line up of makeup and this year they have a cute selection of mini gifts. The Boutique Nude Mini Nail Polish Trio* (£6.50 here) features free cruelty-free polishes in a matte black box.
KIKO have an incredible Christmas Collection this year, it really is one that you can’t miss out on! So much so, that I just had to include the Colour Glitter Nail Lacquer* (£6 here) in this gift guide! They are available in three different shades, here I have a gold hue and a silver hue. These are perfect for this time of year, because you can just top any nail polish colour with these beauties and you’re good for any party!
The last gift in this section is from Essie and it’s so damn cute! The Essie Let It Snow Christmas Gift Set (£13 here) arrives in the most pretty little house. Inside the box you will find two of essie's most-loved winter shades, which actually happen to be two of my all-time favourites – hence me restocking on my favourites! There is bahama mama (a rich plum) and chinchilly (which is a granite grey).
Gifts for makeup fans
I think every makeup obsessive has heard of Too Faced and this Christmas they literally have everything from festive little ornaments to full makeup houses. I’m really excited to include the Melted Liquified Long Wear Lipstick Ornament* (£10 here) in this edit. Inside the ornament you get one of their bestselling shades ‘Melted Berry’ – it has the staying power of a stain, but the pigmentation of a liquid lipstick! If you want an alternative lip product as a gift, you have to check out the Dr.PawPaw Christmas Limited Edition Red Sparkle Balm* (£6.95 here). Inside the pretty tube you’ll find the same formula as the Ultimate Red Balm but with a touch of twinkle.
I really wanted to include some makeup brushes in this blog post and I thought The Look Good Feel Better brushes were a fantastic brand to include. Every brush or set that is sold results in a 12% donation to the Look Good Feel Better charity. Which is used to help boost the confidence of women and teenagers undergoing cancer treatment. Every brush is cut with precision and is hand-made using super soft taklon bristles. Pictured here is the Look Good Feel Better Multi Tasking Brush* (£11.99 here) which does so many things, you can use it to apply powder, bronzer or blusher. If you’re looking for a set at a smaller price point, you should check out the Eco Tools Starter Set (£12.99 here). It arrives in a pretty green and cream bag, with everything you need if you’re just starting your brush collection. It’s a fantastic set for beginners as inside you get a brush for concealer, brows, eyeshadow, eyeliner and blusher.
As usual Paul & Joe Beauty have an amazing Christmas collection out for the festive season - here I have two pieces which I think will make beautiful gifts! The Limited Edition Marché de Noël Lip Gloss in 004* (£15 here), is a happy orange shade. It’s designed to give strong pigmentation and a pretty lustre, formulated with Orange Flower Water and White Lily Extract to moisturise and prevent irritation. Marché de Noël Holiday 2016 Nail Polish in 017* (£12 here) is a warm navy, inspired by winter in Paris. It’s actually scented and it’s created with Jojoba Seed Oil, Olive Oil and Safflower Seed Oil, to nourish and strengthen nails. Both these pretty Paul & Joe products are housed in gorgeous custom illustrated boxes, which look so gorgeous you don’t need wrapping paper!
I can’t get over how appropriate the COLLECTION Glam Crystals Dazzling Gel Liners* (£2.99 each here) are for this time of year! They have a high impact formula and an intense staying power! Better still, there are a whopping 14 on-trend shades to choose from! Why not pop a couple of these into someone’s stocking this year? That way they can rock glitter for New Year’s Eve and beyond!
The last gift in this beautiful makeup section is the Tanya Burr 12 Days of Christmas Advent Calendar* (£15 here). I actually think the makeup collection from Tanya Burr is great quality. I think it’s fantastic that the teen market can get inspired by makeup, without using the cheap and tacky makeup that I had to endure in the 90’s! The 12 Days of Christmas Beauty Calendar offers a limited edition treat behind every door, so the recipient can shimmer and sparkle on every occasion.
Pretty haircare gifts
The TONI&GUY Ashley Williams Limited Edition Washbag Gift Set* (£12 here) is a vision in it’s pretty hot pink bag! TONI&GUY proudly sponsor fashion designer Ashley Williams and she designed this beauty bag to live beyond the bathroom. Ashley is one of London’s hottest up-and-coming designers, so don’t miss your chance to buy someone a limited edition washbag! Inside the bag you get a travel size Volume Addiction Shampoo & Conditioner and full size 3D Volumiser.
The INDULGE range from Umberto Giannini is brand new and it’s fancy packaging makes it ideal for stocking fillers this year. The Indulge Wash Nourishing Shampoo* (£7 here) and Indulge Care Nourishing Conditioner* (£7 here) are made to work together, mixing luxury with salon quality formulations. They are packaged in white bottles, decorated with gold lines and gorgeous scent with moisturising properties that leave your hair silky smooth.
Lifestyle gifts which don't break the bank
My favourite gift here is the Prosecco Scented Candle* (£14.99 here), I’m not sure what I expected this candle to smell of but it’s gorgeous! The candle comes in a very pretty gold tin and the scent is light and fruity – enjoy Prosecco with none of the calories! Quick disclaimer: sadly this gift is just inspired by food, it's not safe to eat, even if you’re tempted!
I’ve seen a lot of chocolate pizzas in my time, but I love this Belgian Chocolate Digger the Dog Pizza* (£14.99 here). The Belgian Chocolate base isn’t topped with ham and pineapple, instead it’s topped with lashings of vanilla fudge, chocolate brownie cookie chunks and hundreds of thousands of white chocolate curls, finished with an exclusive Digger the Dog chocolate disc. It’s such a clever idea for both pizza fans and chocolate lovers, every time I look at it I have to have a little chuckle!
Zoella recently released a new brand, aptly named 'Zoella Lifestyle'. The range includes everything a new home owner could dream of - from pretty candles, to chic plant pots. Although the Zoella range is pitched at an audience much younger than me, I actually think the whole range is gorgeous and I would love to find some of her items in my stocking! My two favourite items are the Write On Point Pencils* (£5 here) and The Key To Inspiration Keyring* (£6 here). I think they are both are unbelievably cute and would make fantastic gifts.
Fragrance options which don’t break the bank
The Bronnley England Eclectic Elements collection is now available in stunning travel-size roller balls. Not only are they a convenient size for traveling and for popping in your handbag. They are also perfect for popping into a stocking at Christmas time. They are the perfect gift for someone who is always on the go, as these can be in their bag and ready to apply at a moments notice. The COSMIC BLOOM Rollerball* (£10 here) is scented with Bergamot, Cloudberry, Rhubarb, Black Violet, Freesia, Rose, Musk, Sandalwood and Vanilla.
I just had to include The Library of Fragrance Gin & Tonic Cologne* (£15 here) as the last gift in this section. Fans of this brand will know that they have TONS of food themed scents and this one is perfect for fans of a good old G&T. It’s a light fragrance with a crisp detail, as with all Library Of Fragrance scents, it’s done to perfection and it’s also unisex!
Let me know which of these beauties is your favourite in the comments below!