The fist category is of course beauty (high-end) so lets begin...
which does not contain any of their iconic shades, including Laguna - because I’m sure we all have at least one of those! It has Casino which is the ideal bronzer for medium/dark skintones a deeper highlight shade (satalite of love) as well as two limited edition blusher shades AND A MINI ITA BRUSH! Yes I do blame it on the NARS, cause mine arrived in the post today and I am overall very impressed. Whether for yourself or a loved one this is seriously one of the best gift anyone could give that's make-up related.
I would always recommend Too Faced for their eyeshadow palettes, they are creamy and pigmented, plus the colours work together really well. I love both the Chocolate Bar (£39 normally £45) and the Natural Eyes (£32) palettes. Similarly I think anything from The Balm cosmetics always makes for a wonderful gift, the packaging is adorable and the products are well worth the price, with exceptional quality. The California driver licence palette (£16.50) is one of my favourites, it’s about the size of a debit card so it's super travel friendly and it contains brilliant shades - I treated myself to this when I passed my driving test and it’s like a little keepsake from that milestone, so if any of your loved ones are planning on doing their test this could be the perfect little encouragement hehe.
I think makeup brushes always make for wonderful gifts because anyone who wears makeup needs brushes, especially those who think they don't. Brushes can change a girl's life for real. The Zoeva Rose Gold Brush Kits (£56.95) are so beautiful and the quality is on par with all the top brush brands. I don’t personally own it but I know it would be an amazing gift which would last a long time too! Also each brush technically costs £7 each which is generally cheaper than buying it individually plus you get a study clutch to keep them safe in. If Zoeva isn’t in your budget I really recommend picking up one or two of the Real Techniques brush kits which are great value for money. My personal favourite is Real Techniques Sam’s picks (£29.99)- reviewed here which contains 90% of brushes anyone could need. Also the iconic Beautyblender (£13.95 normally £16.00) - to those who have not tried this, you may think it is just a sponge, but no, no no no no it’s not. This is the queen of tools for makeup application, you’ll find it hard to get a more flawless application with any other brush and I truly believe every woman needs at least one in her collection.
Anything Charlotte Tilbury looks swoonworthy, but it’s quite a high end brand, so I recommend picking up some of her Lip Cheats (£16) to give as gifts because they're somewhat affordable, at least in comparison to other high-end gifts. Pillow talk and Iconic Nude are the two that catch my eye.
Okay now on to the drugstore/highstreet and more budget alternatives because I know some of you are thinking...errr Iqra, the above is great and all but I'm a student and I do not have the budget for giving those out at gifts! Don't worry guys... I did try to spread out the cost from around £16+ but fear not, the below are cheaper yet still good quality makeup gifts that would make awesome presents!
I love the Barry M Chisel Cheeks Contour Kit (£6.49) which I reviewed here and I think its perfect for anyone starting out in contouring, or anyone who's looking for an affordable kit! It truly is a gem from the drugstore and affordable enough to buy a couple and spread the chiselled love tehe. Eyeshadow palettes always make great gifts and from the high-street I think Sleek Palettes (£7.99) and Makeup Revolution (£4-£8) have the absolute BEST quality that you could get for a budget price. Especially the I heart chocolate palette reviewed here which is a great dupe to the chocolate bar one mentioned above! Barry M also make awesome Nail polishes (£3-£4) with so many shades and formulas to choose from and buying a trio with perhaps a neutral shade, bright shade and a dark shade would make a really nice gift. Sleek are also fantastic for blushers, have a browse of their blush-by-3s and single ones too! Very affordable compared to high-end, but without compromising on the quality so I'm certain Sleek items would be highly appreciated!
I wouldn't recommend buying anyone foundations and concealers, because they're very easy to get wrong due to the different undertones and finishes, but I think lip products make great gifts. Some of the best you can get are the Rimmel Lipliners (£3-£4), Rimmel Lipsticks (£5-6) and Sleek Matte Me's (£5) they're affordable, generally comfortable to wear and come in a decent range of colours. Also with each of these brands, boots has little special offers such as free gifts when you spend over £10 or buy one get one half price making it the idea time to stock up for yourself and for gifts!
I always have a browse of the ASOS Beauty section because they normally have sales on and they also sell great little gift sets too. A good example is of this REN Glow and Go (£12) which has the 1 minute facial mask mask and the Glycolactic Radiance Mask, both of which work well with all skintypes and are from a brand that contains no parabens and are made from as natural ingredients as possible.
Another good idea is picking up a makeup bag and then filling it with a couple of things mentioned above. I think this is one of the best gifts you can give a girl - it's somewhat personalised gift and so useful too!
That is part 1 of my gift guide - all
the beauty bits that I think your female family members and friends would love
to receive! Keep an eye out for part 2 and 3 coming up later today!
Thank-you for reading ♥
