It’s a universal, though widely unsaid, truth that holiday shopping is a great source of anxiety. The dread that our budgets can’t accommodate our loved ones’ tastes or that we’ll fall short of buying gifts that they’ll cherish until next year pushes many into full panic buying mode. On the flipside, there are the outliers like me who dread the gifts they’ll receive. Knowing that your family misunderstands your taste and thinks staples of Parisian It Girl style can be found at big box retail or that your beau has really bad taste in jewelry dampens the girlish anticipation key to the holiday season. As someone who hasn’t received a gift I really wanted from loved ones in decades, I have a holiday mantra. “I’m hard to shop for, just get me a gift card.”
Some think gift cards are tacky and mock the holiday spirit of “it’s the idea that counts.” And that gift cards are wasteful since so many go unclaimed. My suggestion for gift givers and receivers alike: prioritize gift cards from brands that are retail goals over big box retailers. With so many niche beauty brands at various price points, these gift cards for a wide array of skin care and makeup options will not go unclaimed and will give the ultimate gift – personal choice. (Psst, these are also some of my favorite beauty brands).
If your giftee is a lover, of not just of clean beauty, but artisanal botanical skin, body and hair care so well-sourced it doubles as pagan ritual, they’ll delight in the luxuriously crafted formulations from Sangre de Fruta. In a variety of scents, Neroli Noir, Garden of Earthly Delights, and Head of Rose, there’s a perfect combo of luxurious body washes, body lotions, and hair care for everyone on your list. Bar Soap obsessives will love the Three Sirens Bar Soap Set , and not just for the packaging.
Sangre de Fruta Gift Cards start at $50.
Jordan Samuel Skin Of all the philosophies of skin care, minimalist is the road least taken. Given the difficulty of nailing a comprehensive, universal approach that allows for a variety of concerns and complexions, every product calls for ingredients that really work. Jordan Samuel Skin is one such skin care line born out of a need to deeply cleanse without over stripping.
The array of cleansers, serums, moisturizers, and anti-aging care formulated by the ex-dancer turned esthetician, Jordan Samuel Pacitti focuses on non-greasy hydration to restore and preserve the skin barrier. With a recent foray into unisex eau de toilettes, gift cards to Jordan Samuel Fragrance can be used toward the fig and cardamon-forward Ferragosto.
Jordan Samuel Skin gift cards start at $25.
Moira Beauty is a one-stop destination for affordable makeup and skincare. With foundations for all skin tones, eye shadow palettes for the latest seasonal looks, stunning baked blushes, bundles of ultra-pigmented lip liners and glosses, and color-coordinated make up sets, whether a fan of clean girl or baddie looks, makeup beginners and veterans will stock with the wide selection.
Moira Beauty gift cards start at $10
Kevyn Aucoin Makeup
Every beauty warrior should have at least a few Kevyn Aucoin items in their makeup kit. The luxury brand founded by the iconic makeup artist who put the 90s super model look on the map and showed us how to contour focuses on highly curated products to achieve a plethora of makeup looks. The Sensual Skin Enhancer, ultra-pigmented makeup that can be mixed and matched as concealer, foundation and/or CC cream will simplify everyone’s makeup bag, in addition to the Sculpt and Define Contour Book Volume IV. The mega palette includes 2 contour shades, 2 blushes, 2 highlighters and 2 translucent powders that flatter all skin tones and to yield multiple face beats.
Kevyn Aucoin Gift Cards start at $50. For an extra 15% off gift cards use code ‘LastMinute15.’
Element BrooklynFor lovers of prestige candles and body products, one could try to break the bank at Byredo and Diptique, but why? Element Brooklyn offers clean, vegan dupes for the best-selling Diptyque Baies and Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille candles with the In Full Bloom Candleand the Inner Circle Candle respectively.
The recently launched Awakening Shampoo is a stunning replacement for Oribe’s cult classic Signature Shampoo in a barback size for 75% the cost of the original. And Element Brooklyn isn’t just sustainable, they’ve been certified plastic negative.
Element Brooklyn gift cards start at $25.
