By Andi Douglas, nwaMotherlode.com beauty editor
As soon as I could drive, I started assisting Santa in filling my sisters and my stockings for Christmas morning. I would head up to the nearest drug store and fill a basket with eye shadows, lipsticks and anything else I thought would look good on them.
They started looking forward to seeing what I picked and I loved spending time thinking about what they would like and then getting to experiment with them later. Eventually, the mantel was filled with the stockings of nieces and nephews and the tradition I started fell to the wayside, but I still find myself drawn to the make-up aisles during the holiday season. Here are a few things I saw that would make great gifts:
Origins Sensory Therapy Peace of Mind On-the-Spot Relief ($10, Dillard’s)
“Apply just two dabs of this Origins mind-clearing formula on the back of your neck, temples and earlobes and you’ll feel a tingling sensation as pressure, tension and tightness begin to melt away.” Well, I’m sold! This makes a great teachers’ gift (unless your child happens to be in my kid’s class, then I call dibs) or a gift for anyone who has toddlers, has teenagers, watches the news, reads the paper, puts off shopping until the 24th…the list goes on.
Estee Lauder Mascara Traveler Gift Set ($25, Dillard’s)
When I was perusing the makeup counters at the mall I saw a lot of gift sets and baskets filled with products that I’m not sure I would ever use…it was very daunting! However, this simple set caught my eye with its cute gold clutch. Not only does it have my favorite eyeliner, but a full size mascara and dual-ended lash primer and concealer. Even though I was only supposed to be looking for “research purposes” this is definitely going in my letter to Santa.
Harajuku Lovers Fragrance Snow Bunnies
This reminds me of my Debbie Gibson electric youth perfume and a time when the look of the bottle mattered more than the actual scent. Luckily, Gwen Stefani’s Harajuku collection both looks adorable sitting on your vanity and smells great. For a really special gift, the full collection can be purchased as a set for $100 at Sephora or can be purchased separately starting at $30.
I asked my husband for his opinion on something that a man would like to receive and he said, “I don’t know, something for grooming.” He clearly put a lot of thought into it. So, instead of getting him another nail-clipper and tweezers set, buy yourself something pretty and consider it a gift to the man that gets to look at you!
