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Your ultimate gift guide for makeup, skin care and wellness gifts
The holidays are going to look a bit different this year, but shopping for loved ones can still help add a joyful spirit to the season. If 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that we don’t have to be physically together to be close. Let these beauty and wellness gifts help spread the joy you feel, whether they’re being unwrapped near or far. We’ve selected items that range in price from stocking stuffers to splurge-worthy, perfect for everyone from your BFF to the neighbour who did a Costco run for you this fall, so close out 2020 with generosity and kindness.
Browse our top 20 gifts to help you share love and warmth…
These limited edition soaps will give you the kind of luxurious scrub you want when you’re looking for a fresh start. Made with glycerin (a humectant to help retain moisture and soften skin) and jojoba seed powder (to gently exfoliate), these sudsy, scrubby bars gently cleanse and refresh without over-stripping, to perfectly prep your body for moisturizer. Available in three scents (grapefruit, coriander and lavender), the bars are wrapped in whimsical, seasonal designs created in collaboration with Lyon-based illustrator Maïté Franchi.Available online
Deceptively small but packed with 10 grams of pure lip succulence, these limited edition lip tints will keep your lips feeling as good as they look throughout winter… and beyond. As always, these are vegan-friendly, cruelty-free and gluten-free. Formulated with agave nectar and cocoa butter, these offer serious hydration, while imparting a pretty tint of colour on your lips. There are five shades, ranging from soft sheers to bold pops, with three in a pearl finish.Available online
For many, an annual holiday set from Burt’s Bees is the skincare equivalent to getting a fancy pair of socks—it’s something we desperately need and will use every day, but just special enough that we wouldn’t buy it for ourselves. This three-piece honey-packed set includes a milk and honey body lotion, a honey and grapeseed hand cream and their iconic honey moisturizing lip balm.Available online
This is the perfect gift for anyone dreaming of soft, smooth lips. This contains Laneige’s cult Lip Sleeping Mask in a full-sized berry flavour and two minis in holiday-themed limited edition flavours, lemon sorbet and the fan-favourite from last year, mint choco.Available online
For anyone missing their facials, this kit provides an at-home medi-spa experience perfect for a self-care night at home. Start with the Glycolic Microdermabrasion Polish to gently remove surface debris, then follow with the Hydra Filling Cream to plump fine lines and wrinkles. Then one to three times a week, treat with the Dual Acid Brightening Peel for fresh, glowing skin. This peel is especially good for anyone struggling with ‘mask-ne’.Available online
Inspired by 19th-century apothecary practices, Belif is a Korean brand that has helped shape the evolution of the country’s dedicated skin care regimen. Combining modern skin science and traditional herb-processing methods, belif excels at hydration products and this holiday set showcases what they do best, with four ultra-moisturizing products that keep skin plump and hydrated all day and night.Available online
For many, it just isn’t the holidays without Lush’s joyous, bubblegummy Snow Fairy. Combine this much-loved vanilla confectionary fragrance with their year-round runaway best-selling Sleepy scent, and this gift will set you up for the coziest winter. Whether you prefer your bubbles in the shower or bath, you’ll be surrounded by a cloud of indulgence and calm. Take your pick of a pampering treat: this gift includes a shower gel, a soap, a bubble bar, two bath bombs and a body lotion.Available online
Guerlain’s new hand balm is made with honey concentrate, blanketing over-washed, over-parched hands with intense hydration and comfort. The luxurious texture is more like a soft pomade that absorbs quickly, so hands are never left feeling sticky or greasy—just beautifully nourished and soothed. Think of this advanced formula as skin care for your hands (and nails and cuticles), giving them the special treat they deserve.Available online
Colognes are much softer and lighter than traditional perfumes, but that doesn’t mean they’re any less sophisticated or complex. Atelier Cologne is a master at designing scents that are largely gender neutral, making them refreshingly unique and built for layering. This set contains five of their most popular colognes: Pacific Lime, Love Osmanthus, Orange Sanguine, Vanille Insensée, Clémentine California and Cèdre Atlas.Available online
Vancouver-based Brüush has added a limited edition red toothbrush to its collection just in time for the holidays. It’s a vibrant, fiery orange-red that will definitely put a smile on your face… before and after brushing. These toothbrushes look sleek and chic, but they’re workhorses, with six different cleaning modes, built-in two-minute timer, extra soft bristles and a four-week battery life. Subscribe to their refill plan and this will be the gift that keeps on giving throughout the year as three replacement brush heads are delivered every six months.Available online
Lise Watier loves the holidays and always celebrates with sparkle. This year, their three-piece gift set is all about adding lustrous shades to eyes, cheeks and lips. It includes a blush and highlighter palette, a nine-colour eyeshadow palette and their high-shine translucent universal lip gloss. The exterior packaging comes with glamorous faceted cases that mimic the powders inside, which are embossed with the same beautifully faceted texture.Available online
New this year is Rose Calisson, a scent designed to transport you to springtime in Provence when roses are in bloom. Tender floral notes are balanced with sparkling orange blossom and earthy sweet almond. The culmination is a happy, bright fragrance that will leave you feeling pampered and even optimistic. This collection includes Rose Calisson eau de toilette, hand cream, shower gel and body lotion.
This year, L’Occitane has partnered with One Tree Planted, and for every purchase of one of their qualifying collections (until December 25th), L’Occitane will donate $1 to One Tree Planted to help preserve biodiversity by planting trees in regions across North America including British Columbia, Quebec and Ontario.Available online
Packaged exquisitely in a presentation box that exudes an intoxicating fragrance comprised of a blend of the 12 Voluspa candles contained within, this is a gift that will be hard to let go of. Keep every corner of your home softly illuminated and fragranced this holiday season with these mini candles. Made from a pesticide-free, proprietary, clean-burning coconut wax blend and featuring natural hand-set wicks, these candles leave no detail overlooked. For a truly extravagant experience, cluster a few of them together and let their scents layer and meld.Available online
Just thinking about Fresh’s products can bring on a sense of bliss, so imagine what four of their best-selling face masks can do. This set contains their Sugar Face Polish (exfoliating), Rose Face Mask (hydrating), Black Tea Firming Overnight Mask (moisturizing) and Black Tea Instant Perfecting Mask (smoothing). And, to bookend your mask treatments, dive into the mini Soy Face Cleanser and Kombucha Facial Treatment Essence. Emerge from the holidays with smooth, luminous skin.Available online
This set not only features a trio of Dermalogica’s all-time best sellers, but these are all full sizes. Every item in here is a superstar, and you’ve got generous amounts that will keep skin clear and smooth well into spring. Their Pre-cleanse is a rich and cushion-y oil that gently melts away makeup, excess sebum (oil) and sunscreen. The Special Cleaning Gel is a lightweight, soap-free foaming gel that removes impurities without destroying the moisture barrier, while the iconic Daily Microfoliant is a rice-based powder that activates with water, releasing enzymes and salicylic acid to gently polish skin.Available online
Scent is a powerful force, perhaps more so during the holidays than any other time. Vitruvi’s new cordless diffuser allows you to bring the fragrance of fresh cut spruce branches into your home, or help end your day wrapped in notes of smoke and cedarwood. Even though the Move diffuser can scent up to 500-square-feet, it’s a luxury to be able to take the diffuser with you from the bathtub to living room to bedroom, seamlessly anchoring your scent journey. And, as a design-forward company, this diffuser with its matte exterior and elegantly curved lines, is thoughtfully designed and can easily double as home decor. Even the box it’s packaged in is artfully constructed. This is perfect for someone who appreciates details and design.Available online
After avoiding the hair salon for longer than you’d like to admit, isn’t it time to pamper your tresses? Oribe’s ultimate holiday kit includes 12 items, everything from their coveted Dry Texturizing Spray to their Grandiose Hair Plumping Mousse to their Gold Lust Repair and Restore Shampoo. Their 2020 holiday packaging is designed by Native American visual artist Rowan Harrison of Two Tribes Pottery, who developed six limited edition, original works of art using traditional Southwestern Indigenous motifs.Available online
This stunning set will make any Charlotte Tilbury fan weep with joy. Even if you already have some or most of these products, the packaging alone will quickly entice you to justify needing backups of all your favourite Pillow Talk items.
Pillow Talk has become a runaway best seller for Charlotte Tilbury. What started as a single shade has evolved into a its own world, with products ranging from the now iconic lip liner to blush to eyeshadow. Three Pillow Talk products are sold every minute around the world. This treasure trove includes 14 full-size products housed in a beautiful rose gold vanity case.Available online
It’s amazing how you never knew you needed a cordless hair straightener until you’ve tried one. Getting to every angle suddenly becomes a non-issue when you don’t have to wrangle a cord. Beyond the convenience, the performance is unbelievably efficient while imparting only half the damage of traditional heat styling tools. The flexing copper plates actually help keep your hair gathered while sliding through, so the end results look done with just one pass. This also means you need a lot less pressure when holding the tool. Straight, wavy or curly, this will do them all, while leaving your hair in healthier condition.Available online
For the person who truly loves their skincare routine and considers this regimen a vital part of their self-care, this collection is the ultimate in pampering. Sulwhasoo is a premium Korean brand, whose core DNA centres around ancient traditions of Asian herbal medicines. Combining this with advanced research, they’ve created holistic luxury products that restore skin’s inner and outer vitality. This year’s limited edition holiday collection was created in partnership with renowned Thai artist Phannapast Taychamaythakool. The fairytale-inspired designs bridge Eastern and Western elements in playful, surrealistic depictions.
The Timetreasure Collection includes the full range of Sulwhasoo’s premium anti-aging collection, formulated with highly concentrated Upright Korean Red Pine for visible skin vitality and improved resilience.Available online
