FOR WOMEN
Jelly Belly Very Cherry lipbalm tin
I’m a sucker for anything cherry flavoured, and this in particular takes me back to childhood, when I presented my school friends with pocket money pots of Body Shop Morello Cherry lipbalm. This has added nostalgic appeal, thanks to a cheering bean-shaped tin.
Molton Brown Stocking Fillers Body Wash Collection
This is really endlessly useful. Everyone of any age or sex likes Molton Brown bath and shower gels, making a huge box of all the varieties (packed in handy travel bottles) a safe gift for couples and families. It’s also a perfect “standby pressie” for those annoying relatives who decide, last minute, to drop by for a Quality Street.
L’Occitane Shea Hand & Bodycare Duo
If I could use only one hand wash and cream for the rest of my life, I would choose L’Occitane. The wash manages that bafflingly rare feat of leaving hands immaculately clean but beautifully moisturised. The wonderfully rich but non-greasy lotion is a treat for the skin. Best of all, both smell like newborn babies.
Paul & Joe Beauty Mirror
I always think a handbag mirror makes the perfect gift, because it isn’t skintype or skintone specific and, unlike anti-ageing skincare, for example, isn’t potentially offensive. I’ve been using a black Chanel for years, but now have my eye on this retro Bakelite style for variety.
Nars Virtual Domination cheek palette
Nars makes the best powder blushers in the world, so this palette containing four of the best (plus the bestselling Laguna bronzer) represents a gifting no-brainer for anyone with a love of beauty. I’m still using last year’s version with great enthusiasm.
YSL La Lacque Couture in 01 Pop Art Rouge
I am a huge believer in buying the littlest thing your budget allows. It ensures your recipient gets something that would normally be unjustifiably extravagant. A luxury nail polish in a failsafe shade is the perfect example. YSL makes the best lacquers, in my opinion, and this jolly red is exactly right for Christmas.
Elemis Jasmine & Rose Milk Bath
Yes, there are newer, fancier and more festive smellies on sale, but Elemis’s Milk Bath wins because as well as smelling lovely, it leaves the skin in the best nick. Soothing, super-softening, extremely luxurious, contains no rubbish and doesn’t leave the bath filthy greasy. Especially treaty on dry skins.
Elegant Touch Christmas Jumper Nails
An instant sell-out last year, these seasonal falsies are back for 2014 in more plentiful stock. No glue involved – just peel off the backing and press down firmly. They will last for an entire party and very probably all the next day.
Personalised bottle of My Burberry
One of this year’s biggest fragrance launches is made more personal with the recipient’s monogram etched (free of charge) into the glass bottle, which is inspired by Burberry’s classic trenchcoat design (the cap is an oversized horn button). The scent itself is sweet, English and classic.
Nails Inc Whitechapel snowflake effect polish
This snowflake-filled clear polish may seem gimmicky, but last year it proved extremely practical. Its transparent base means that chips resulting from Sellotape gaffs and nutmeg grating disasters are barely visible. And no, I didn’t find any snowflakes in the gravy.
Lipstick Queen Silver Screen in You Kid
I swished this on when out shopping the other day, and now I’d like it for Christmas please. It is, quite simply, the perfect nude. Sexy, sophisticated, densely pigmented and yet still shiny, and packaged in the loveliest tube I have ever seen in my life.
Diorific Golden Shock Illuminating Powder
Drool. A sexy, golden, shimmery (but sophisticated) pressed powder for stroking along cheekbones, across the forehead, down the nose, on the browbone, across the clavicles – anywhere that benefits from a little glimmer.
Asos Cat Ears makeup bag
I’m old enough to know better, but I just can’t resist anything with cat ears. The black quilting brings back some mature elegance (maybe) and the interior is surprisingly capacious, accommodating all your beauty essentials.
Laura Mercier Almond Coconut Milk Honey Bath
I treat myself to this every single Christmas, because nothing feels quite so luxurious while scenting the entire house so exquisitely. Creates proper big, fat bubbles – no messing around. Add wine, book and candles.
Aromatherapy Associates The Star
Aromatherapy Associates bath oil is a great antidote to Christmas-related stress. These little decorations can be yanked off the tree and glugged into a running bath in an emergency (one vial is enough for two baths at least). Fragrant, skin-softening and luxurious.
Charlotte Tilbury Luxury Palette in Fallen Angel
I stand firm: Tilbury’s eye palettes are the best. I haven’t been away anywhere this year without them, in the Sophisticate and the Golden Goddess colours, so I’m ready for a change for Christmas. This star-spangled special edition follows the same format as the others: a pale base for priming, a mid tone for enhancing the socket, a darker shade for smoking and a glittery shade for taking you from desk to disco.
Jo Malone Pine & Eucalyptus diffuser
I was given a Jo Malone diffuser last year and was extremely surprised to find it was still going strong in March – just keep flipping the sticks to revive fading scent. I realise this is sacrilege but I’m driven to say this has an even more satisfactory throw than the iconic scented candles.
Vaseline Queen Bee Honeylicious Lip Therapy
I love limited-edition packaging and I love stripes. I hate honey, but I seriously doubt there’s any of the real thing in here – just the classic lip-softening, brow-grooming, cuticle-treating, split-end-sealing petroleum jelly loved by millions.
FOR MEN
Shaveworks Get Smooth Duo
A neat little set from the cult shaving range, containing the excellent shave cream (it uses natural acids to smooth away dead skin) and the Cool Fix, a post-shave treatment to rid the skin of bumps.
Bayolea Moustach Wax
Britain is apparently in the grips of a facial hair revolution. Please the grandad or hipster in your life with some stylishly packaged wax for grooming, taming and treating their ‘tache.
Aesop for Mr Porter The Dapper Gentleman grooming kit
You’d be hard pushed to find lovelier grooming products than those by Australian lifestyle brand Aesop. Top-quality cleanser, serum, shaving cream, lip balm and an ingenious spray-on moisturiser, all packed in a stylish pouch.
Penfield Danbury Washbag
Men’s washbags are generally pretty ugly and shoddy, but this one, in festive Rudolph red, is cheery and durable. Big enough to fit in all the essentials and water resistant inside.
Byredo Mister Marvelous
Yes, I am perfectly aware it’s heaps of money, but this is a massive bottle of top-quality scent. It’s citrussy, warm, deep and elegant – unique but unobtrusive, and liked by even the fragrance-phobic. And it has an excellent name, admit it.
Paul Smith black toothbrush
Personally, I favour a sonic toothbrush, but for some reason only known to men, these branded toothbrushes invariably delight male recipients.
APC for Aesop Post Poo Drops, £20
Yes, you read that right. But trust me. These make a brilliant icebreaker and are a genuinely useful present. Just a couple of drops in the wash basin after using the loo (or in the kitchen sink after cooking something smelly) clears any unpleasant odours faster than any air freshener. The essential oils are pleasant-smelling, highly effective and amazingly long-lasting – expect a bottle to last until next Christmas.
FOR CHILDREN & TEENS
Mason Pearson Baby Brush
I buy one of these for every new baby in my life, simply because they are beautifully made, endlessly useful and will last the recipient well into adulthood.
Sugar Skull Nail Stickers
I missed the meeting where teenage girls became obsessed with Mexican sugar skulls, but given what a huge improvement they seem on pink princesses, I’m happy to go with it. These stickers are fun, cheap and extremely easy to apply.
Sophie La Girafe Starter Kit
This is a selection from one of my favourite children’s skincare ranges. The formulations are gentle, soothing and effective, and the lovely packaging adds great gifting appeal.
Kellogg’s Rice Krispies Lip Balm
Asos stocks a fun range of vintage-inspired mirrors and balms from the cereal brand. Yes, I suppose one shouldn’t encourage multinational megabrands in their campaign for world domination, but on the other hand, they’re great fun.
Sam Farmer the Travel Pack
I really admire what father of teens Farmer is trying to do with his gender-neutral and stylish teen skincare brand. But, most importantly, I believe the products are really good. Simple, effective creams, gels and lotions for young, sometimes problematic, skin.
ModelsOwn Five-piece Brush Set
If the teen in your life needs a starter set of decent make-up brushes, look no further than here. Models Own makes fairly priced tools that do the job well and look great on the dressing table.
Jack Wills Fabulous Weekend Essentials
The teens in my life are crazy insane obsessed with Jack Wills and, as baffling as this is to a 39 year old, I must confess that this kit is an impressive and fairly priced present. Stacks of body care products packed in a cheerful stripy sports/weekend holdall. There’s a more masculine navy version too.
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Sali Hughes is the author of Pretty Honest: The straight-talking beauty companion (4th Estate), £22, out now. Available from Guardian Bookshop for £17 with free delivery. http://bookshop.theguardian.com/pretty-honest.html
