Holiday Gift Guide: Personal Favorites

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While Holiday gift guides focused on one area [haircare, skincare, fragrance, etc] are definitely more popular, today I wanted to give you all something different. Maybe you want to get some inspiration for gifting a special something something to a dear friend, or maybe you might want to forward this to your better half, followed by a wink emoji. Enjoy my last curated assortment of this year’s favorites!

NAIL CARE: Beautiful nails begin with beautiful hands, and nothing moisturizes mine better than FarmHouse Fresh Hand Creams. These delightfully-scented lotions are hands down some of the best I have tried, and I am currently using them non-stop. For my nail colors I adore seasonal shades from Londontown lakur, côte, Zoya, and SquareHue. Why those three, you might ask? All of them feature vibrant pigments, unparalleled longevity, and fantastic 5-free formulations, making them a safer choice for my nails and the environment. 

My personal picks:

• From côte – 110 & 112
• From Zoya – Rocha, Sansa & Rayne
• From SquareHue – Mambo 1948 & Idol 2002
• From lakur – To The Queen With Love & Ring Me

BODY CARE: My skin goes through a lot of stress during Winter months. You’d think I’d be accustomed to bitter cold, being from Russia and everything, but nope, my body decided that anything close to and below freezing point is too much to handle and manifests its displeasure with redness and dry painful flakes. Thank goodness for beauty products that come in to save the day! I can’t imagine my life without a jar of TATCHA INDIGO Body Butter or a hefty glass bottle of Farmhouse Fresh Marshmallow Body Lotion. Both are intensely moisturizing and really repair the skin, not just say they do. And Molton Brown Gingerlily is quickly becoming one of my favorites as well, due to its heavenly fragrance and non-sticky moisturizing formula.

SKIN CARE: You all know I’m a skincare maniac and always love trying new lotions and potions. These days I’m obsessing over LJH Tea Tree 90 Essence to combat excess oil production and breakouts [it’s so good, I bought a spare, with three more still on the way from Korea], and TATCHA Camellia One Step Cleansing Oil that is gentle enough to cleanse even irritated skin without making it even angrier.

LIP CARE: It’s a tie between TATCHA Camellia Nourishing Lip Balm, NUXE Reve de Miel, and Farmacy Lip Bloom! I love them for different reasons, but their ability to instantly restore even the most hopelessly chapped lips is consistent among these three formulations.

MAKEUP: I thought long and hard which of my makeup discoveries were the most exciting, and couldn’t narrow down the list to just a couple of picks no matter how hard I tried. Oh well, that means you all have more to choose from, right? 😉 First things first, my latest Sephora purchase – Viseart Eyeshadow Palette in Neutral Matte turned out to be the best matte eye shadow formula I’ve ever used. Honestly, I kind of feel spoiled now, because I used to like Tarte and MUFE mattes, but now I just want to reach for Viseart over and over again.

Another favorite is the new Bobbi Brown Luxe Lip Color lipsticks. I just couldn’t stop thinking of them after I swatched one on my trip to NYC a few weeks ago. So far I bought one in Pink Nude, and plan to also pick up Neutral Rose. Gorgeous colors and the best lipstick formula I’ve tried: creamy, nourishing, and long-lasting!

And of course how could I forget to mention Urban Decay x Gwen Palette! The packaging alone makes it gift-worthy, and there’s a nice mix of matte, metal, and satin colors inside. I’d say that it’s mostly a neutral palette with a few unexpected pops of color. It’s the perfect pick for someone who isn’t overly adventurous but still wants to try bold colors from time to time.

FRAGRANCE: Just like Marilyn Monroe, I never feel fully dressed without a drop of perfume. I’ve been really into spicy, sultry fragrances lately, and my picks totally reflect that! Oscar de la Renta Oriental Lace is my latest acquisition, but before I got the full-sized bottle I’ve been living off tiny sample vials. There’s something familiar yet exotic about this luxurious scent, and it reminds me a lot of Tom Ford’s Black Orchid. P.S.: Get Oriental Lace with a huge discount at FragranceNet.com while it lasts.

My other favorite is Zents Fig, a delicious and almost masculine fragrance with unexpected sugary notes, that makes me feel empowered and strong. I really feel like I can move mountains when I wear it.

And finally, I’ve been bringing Lisa Hoffman Serenity Trio with me everywhere lately. It includes fresh & crisp French Clary Sage, warm & cozy Tuscan Fig, and zesty Japanese Agarwood mini perfume sprays. The company is actually famous for their fragrance jewelry, and I have one of their bracelets on my wishlist, too 🙂

LOOKING FOR MORE HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDES?

• Holiday Gift Guide: Hair Care
• Holiday Gift Guide: For BFF
• Holiday Gift Guide: Vitamins & Supplements
• Holiday Gift Guide: Subscription Boxes
• Holiday Gift Guide: Discount Shopping
• Holiday Gift Guide: Lovely Gifts from PAPYRUS

So tell me, ladies and gents, which products did you love enough to put into a gift guide this year? Have you tried anything from my list? Let me know in the comments below!

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