Holiday Gift Picks $30 & Up

Tuesday, December 16, 2014







The holiday season doesn’t only consist of tree decorating, sugar cookie decorating, and get-togethers with loved ones. It also brings out the pretty shiny and festive gift sets onto the shelves everywhere. Shops like Sephora and Nordstrom become winter wonderlands full of gifts and twinkly with decorations from wall to wall. I clearly am a big fan of Christmas and the holiday season in general. The Christmas List makes an appearance on my mother’s desk while I shop for her and my other loved ones for their special gifts. These gift set picks of mine are a bit on the expensive side, but not too shabby at all…


Benefit Cosmetics Cheeky Sweet Spot Box O’Blushes $36.00

Another great set from Benefit housed in the cutest packaging. I am a massive fan of buying sets or kits to try out everything, rather than just buying one product at a time. This set contains five of Benefit’s most popular blushes, Watt’s Up highlighter, Hoola bronzer, and a brush to help apply on the go. The blushes are a wide range of colors from Coralista, Bella Bamba, Rockateur, Sugarbomb, and Dandelion. This would be a good set to throw in a travel bag for on the go.

NARS The NARSissit Eyeshadow Palette $79.00

While it may be one of the most swoon-worthy palettes on the block, it is one of the most expensive ones, too. But with 15 signature shades, there are unlimited possibilities to mix and match on your lids. This palette is a smaller one as well, so it is ideal for traveling. Ranging from lights to darks, matte to shimmer, the colors are a great and safe pick for a NARS newbie and the NARS expert. Among the 15 shadows, my favorites are Madrague II (a matte caramel), Brousse II (black violet), Mekong (espresso with gold shimmer), and Lhasa (lavender grey). NARS makes brilliant products and this one is worth the money rather than buying 15 individual shadows over time.

LUSH Jolly Holidays $49.95

If you’ve read my $25 gifts post you’ll see that Lush has already snuck into my picks. Another giftset that I’m in love is wrapped and tied beautifully with hunter green ribbon. Inside, however, is the good stuff. One favorite of mine is the Ocean Salt Cleanser. I actually own the full size; this smells like a margarita and exfoliates like a dream. Another favorite is the Hot Toddy shower gel, which is made up of a blend of spices with a touch of red sparkle. With these two other items comes the Baked Alaska soap (a citrusy soap made up of fun colors), Wiccy Magic Muscles massage bar (perfect for soothing sore muscles), Ultrabalm Body Balm, and Atomic Toothy Tabs (which is foaming toothpaste!). This gift set is full to the brim with goodness and could even been split up between gifts.

MAC Keepsakes Brown Eye Bag $39.50

It’s the season of beautifully designed gift sets and MAC went all out with its holiday collection. From eyes to lips, there is a great selection suited for anyone. The MAC Keepsakes Brown Eye Bag is my favorite out of the three colors to select from. Encased in a sparkly black bag, there is an extra dimensional Eyeshadow duo in Just Gleaming, Extreme Dimension Lash in Stolen Moment, and an Eye Pencil in Stubborn Brown. I love my extra dimension Eyeshadow from this year’s Alluring Aquatics collection and these holiday ones are just as phenomenal. The eye pencil is a lovely shade of dark chocolate brown. It is darker than my Teddy eyeliner from MAC, which I like to use to amp up my eyes. I’ve never tried MAC mascara but this gift set is a good opportunity to give it a go.


LUSH Happy Christmas $49.95

Lush really knows how to do Christmas right, and they did it again with another gift set filled to the brim with fun items. This one has the same Baked Alaska soap mentioned above, Each Peach (And Two’s a Pair) massage bar made of avocado and mango, So White shower gel (an apple, rose water, bergamot blend of goodness), Rub Rub Rub shower scrub (a must have from me), Santa’s Lip Scrub which is coca-cola flavored (it’s a lot better once you try it, trust me), and lastly the Celebrate Hand and Body Lotion, a citrusy, champagne body lotion that is quite oily so a dime size of this is enough.


Molton Brown London Bathing Treasures Collection $50.00

This set of 12 body washes is perfect for anyone in your life. This brand makes amazing body products that smell divine and unique. There’s absolutely nothing out on the market that smells the way these products do (to me anyway).  This set presents the opportunity to try out basically all Molton Brown scents in the shower. I know Pink Pepperpod is my favorite; it has that masculine spice but touch of femininity that leaves my skin smelling wonderful after my shower. Black Peppercorn is a big fan favorite, but I also enjoy White Sandalwood and Japanese Orange. This would be a great set to split up amongst other gifts you may not have completed before giving it to a loved one.


Aside from all of these wonderful gift sets, which are available either at Sephora, Nordstrom, or your local department store, there are tons of other gift ideas out there. Nordstrom is full of gift sets, and Crate & Barrel also has lovely home gifts. Neiman Marcus always pulls out all the stops for the holiday from ornaments to desserts. Hopefully you find something useful out of these recommendations or even something for yourself this holiday season!

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