[ENG] Holiday Gift Guide 2019: 15 Great Gift Ideas from Beauty Bay!

*This article contains PR samples° and affiliate links* ‘Tis the season to be spendy – and the time to panic about what on Earth you should get your loved ones for the holidays! So, in the hopes of helping you with some great gifting ideas, here is my holiday gift guide 2019 with 15 great gift ideas you can easily order from Beauty Bay, who also happen to be currently running their awesome Black Friday Sales!

I swear, something eerily supernatural happens in late November that makes time speed up and Christmas approach much faster than it should! From early December onwards I usually start feeling aggressively angry at people who smugly post about their finished “holiday to do lists” and boast about having send all their Christmas cards and wrapped every single present by Dec 6! I mean…how?!

Among my family members, I am known to be “the late gift sender” – I honestly don’t even understand it myself, but something makes me wait until the last days before Christmas Eve with the gift shopping (we Germans celebrate on the 24th and not the 25th as you Americans and British people do). And even if I do buy my gifts early in December, I will – due to some mysterious subconscious programming – always end up sending them so late that they usually arrive after Christmas. Honestly, it is a complete mystery to me why I do this! Thankfully, online shopping has made it a lot easier for me to be on time with my holiday gifts, but I still tend to procrastinate with my gift sorting until around mid-December.

So, basically, I am the last person to judge anyone for being disorganised with their holiday gift shopping. Also, as someone who worked in retail for a long time, I know how stressful gift-shopping can be, especially if you actually don’t know the person’s preferences that well. I still remember the hectic, desperate looks on people’s faces when they would enter our bookshop and ask, panting with panic: “Quick, what do you recommend for a child, around 6 years old, loves horse and I think also glitter?!” Listen, not every family sees each other all the time, and so it can be a bit difficult to stay in the loop about current hobbies and loves.

But, you know what pretty much always works as a gift? Yep, that’s right – beauty products! Now I know what you’re going to say: “Bah, my boyfriend/ mother/ sister/ grumpy aunt” doesn’t like skincare or makeup at all!” To which I answer: “Well, then you shall nudge them towards getting into it with your thoughtful present!” Because, truly, skincare in particular is for everyone! It is (or should be) a part of every human’s daily self-care routine to take some time out and take care of their skin. Not for some unreachable ideal of a flawless, poreless, wrinkle-free face, but rather in order to feel pampered and soothed, and because your skin is your body’s largest organ and deserves loving attention for all the amazing things it does for us. So, why not give the gift of self-care this year?

In order to help you with choosing your beauty gifts, I have sorted through the pretty extensive Christmas gift offers from Beauty Bay* and compiled my Beauty Bay Holiday Gift Guide 2019 for you! Hopefully, some of my suggestions can make it easier for you to find the perfect present for all your loved ones (or yourself, ahem). The gifts I chose range from affordable to luxury. I divided them up between skincare, makeup and – since Asian beauty is my speciality – a couple of Korean beauty sets that caught my eye. Beauty Bay was also kind enough to send me two gift sets to try out, which I have of course included here, since they are both absolutely stunning. You can see them in the images throughout this holiday gift guide 2019.

Beauty Bay Holiday Gift Guide 2019: Skincare Treats for everyone!

1. Rodial Mini Booster Collection

Rodial is a brand I have been dying to try for a while now – their mix of luxury and minimalism appeals to me greatly, and I’ve also heard many great things about the product formulations. The Rodial Mini Booster Collection* is a 4-part gift set which contains five booster products in a 10ml trial size: the Retinol Booster Drops Deluxe, the Collagen Booster Drops Deluxe, Glycolic Booster Drops Deluxe, and the Soft Focus Glow Booster Drops.

Since these are boosters – highly concentrated serums which are usually meant to be mixed with other products to enhance their function, or used very sparingly directly on the face – the small vials should offer enough product to get to know the brand and their product efficacy. Also, they look darn adorable in their festive, rose gold box! The Rodial Mini Booster Collection* retails at 50.00€ but is currently on sale at Beauty Bay during Black Friday (runs until Cyber Tuesday) for only 40.00€.

2. The Ordinary The Daily Set

The Ordinary and I have a somewhat tempestuous relationship: in all honesty, I find some of the products overhyped and not nearly as effective as Deciem worshippers claim, but there are also some absolutely amazing gems to be found from the brand. And, of course, you cannot beat the price point! Since The Ordinary products are also cruelty-free and have a minimalist, unisex style appearance, they offer a pretty universally appealing gift for both skincare lovers and newbies to a more elaborate routine.

Beauty Bay offers the The Ordinary The Daily Set* as a way to get to know the brand, and I think it’s the perfect budget present that still manages to impress. The set contains the new The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser, a bottle of the Hyaluronic Acid 2%+B5 serum and the Natural Moisturising Factors, so you basically get a simple but effective, three-step skincare routine suitable for most skin types. This 3-part The Ordinary Gift Set* is available at Beauty Bay for 18.00€.

3. Peter Thomas Roth Mix, Mask & Hydrate Gift Set

Look at how beautiful this luxurious mask set is! I was so excited to receive it in the mail last week and have already started to experiment with the different masks, which have blown me away with how effective they are. I had of course heard of the famous Peter Thomas Roth Pumpkin Enzyme Mask before, but was unfamiliar with the rest of the wash off masks in the set.

This gift set contains six products in total – five masks plus one moisturiser, each in a trial size, 50ml for the masks and 20ml for the moisturiser. You basically get all the cult favourites in this set, and the Pumpkin Enzyme Mask – which, guys, smells like a pumpkin spice latte! – is of course a part of it. But, you also get the Cucumber Gel Mask Extreme De-Tox Hydrator, the Irish Moor Mud Purifying Black Mask, the Rose Stem Cell Bio-Repair Gel Mask, and the oh-so-instagrammable, ultra luxurious 24K Gold Pure Luxury Lift & Firm Mask. Added to that is the Water Drench Hyaluronic Cloud Cream Hydrating Moisturiser, which feels like a wash of ultra deep hydration on my skin. I’ve basically fallen in love with its heavenly soft texture!

And you know what the best part about the Peter Thomas Roth Mix, Mask & Hydrate Gift Set* is? This luxury skincare set usually retails at 72.00€, but you can currently snatch it up for only 57.60€ during the Beauty Bay Black Friday Sale 2019! I think out of all gifts on my holiday gift guide 2019 list, this may be my favourite one. Now, this set might be out of stock by the time this article goes online, in which case, the equally lovely Mask Frenzy Kit* for 73.50€ is a great alternative, as it contains almost the same mask selection!

4. Antipodes Beauty Icons Set

You may not know this about me if you are new to this blog, but I used to live in New Zealand for many years. Back then, Antipodes – the Kiwi-made, organic skincare brand with ingredients won from ancient Maori healing plants – was still a baby, only available at select stores. Now, a good 10 years later, it has become a global success story, and for good reason: Antipodes manages to combine modern, elegant formulas with organic ethics, creating some of my all time favourite skincare products.

The Antipodes Beauty Icons Set is a small, but mighty three part set, centred around the full-sized Kiwi Seed Eye Cream, one of the best eye care products I’ve ever tried! Added to this are a 15ml travel size of the delicious Vanilla Pod Hydrating Day Cream and the new Apostle Skin-Brightening Serum in a 10ml sample size. This is a beautiful way to treat a loved one with a passion for sustainable, organic brands. And guess what? The Antipodes Beauty Icons Set*, which usually retails at 46.75€, is currently on sale during Black Friday for only 28.05€!

5. Saturday Skin No Bad Days Essentials Set

I see the soft pink packaging of the Saturday Skin products on Instagram all the time, and of course it strongly draws me to the brand! If you have a true “girly girl” in the family (or a boy who likes pink things because that is also 100% ok and wonderful), then this is a perfect, very affordable and yet luxurious-looking gift for them.

The No Bad Days Essentials Set is a four-part skincare set, which consists of the Rub-A-Dub Refining Peel Gel, the Daily Dew Hydrating Essence Mist, the Wide Awake Brightening Eye Cream and the Featherweight Daily Moisturising Cream, all four in generous travel sizes. You can purchase the Saturday Skin No Bad Days Essentials Set* at Beauty Bay for currently 24.50€ instead of the usual 35.00€.

6. ELEMIS Superfood Skin Feast Set

I’m so charmed by this four-piece gift set from ELEMIS, a British luxury skincare brand I’ve been yearning to try out for a very long time! Their Superfood skincare range in particular has been intriguing to me, since it makes use of a number of exciting plant-based extracts as well as prebiotics, known to help stabilise and strengthen our skin barrier.

The ELEMIS Superfood Skin Feast Set consists of four products: the Nourishing Omega Rich-Cleansing Oil and the Superfood Kefir Tea Mist, both full-sized, plus the travel-sized Superfood Vital Veggie Mask and Superfood Day Cream. I especially love the sturdy, beautifully decorated box this comes in – a great gift for mums with a discerning taste! The ELEMIS Superfood Skin Feast Set is currently unavailable at Beauty Bay, but you can find it at Feelunique for 66.00€. The set has a value of 97.00€!

Beauty Bay Holiday Gift Guide 2019: Gorgeous Makeup Sets and Tools

7. ZOEVA Opulence Vegan Brush Set

ZOEVA, a German cosmetics company, is known to make some of the best affordable and cruelty-free brushes out there! I’ve been lusting after one of their brush sets for ages, and have heard only good things about them given the comparably low price point. The ZOEVA Opulence Vegan Brush Set contains 10 vegan makeup brushes in a gorgeous burgundy and black colour scheme, plus a burgundy-coloured brush pouch.

The 10 brushes in the set are: 104 Buffer, 110 Face Shape, 135 Petit Face Definer, 137 Petit Fan, 142 Concealer Buffer, 223 Petit Eye Blender, 227 Soft Definer, 233 Cream Shader, 317 Wing Liner, 331 Precision Lip. This is a great gift for makeup lovers, especially those just starting out and in need of a good set of must-buy brushes for the face and eyes. You can get the ZOEVA Opulence Vegan Brush Set* at Beautybay for currently 71.96€ instead of the regular 89.95€.

8. Jouer Cosmetics Rose Cut Gems Blush & Cheek Topper Palette

This one is for people who love to try out colour and shimmery highlighters on their cheeks, and who adore anything pink and sparkly! The Jouer Rose Cut Gems Blush & Cheek Topper Palette is part of Jouer’s holiday collection inspired by gemstones, with all the sparkles and glimmer you would want for the festive season. The palette contains 6 blush shades and one cheek topper, which is Jouer speak for “highlighter.”

The 7 shades are: Royal Jewel Blush (bubble gum pink), Garnet Blush (rich red), Peach Quartz Blush (light peach), Crystalline Blush (rose pink), Kiss Me Blush (warm pink), Tease Me Blush (light pink), and Diamond In The Rough Cheek Topper (champagne gold shimmer). It’s a really, really pretty little palette! The Jouer Cosmetics Rose Cut Gems Blush & Cheek Topper Palette* is on sale at the moment for only 27.65€, the normal price is 39.50€.

9. Stila The Fourth Dimension Liquid Eyeshadow Set

Stila is such an underrated, beautiful cruelty-free makeup brand! From their lip glazes to their super sparkly liquid eyeshadows, I feel they offer so many unique makeup products, and of course their kitten eyeshadow is such a classic of the early 2000s! So, the Stila The Fourth Dimension Liquid Eyeshadow Set was really one of the first holiday gifts on Beauty Bay that caught my eye – it is just so glittery, sparkly and beautiful! This set contains four limited-edition, full-sized shades, one prettier than the other, and for such a good price too.

The four shades in the set are: Opal Ice (Glitter & Glow effect), Lilac Ice (Glitter & Glow effect), Vivid Smoky Quartz (Shimmer & Glow effect), and Vivid Labradorite (Shimmer & Glow effect). This one comes highly recommended because I really trust the quality of Stila makeup, and personally would be super happy to receive this as a present. You can get the Stila The Fourth Dimension Liquid Eyeshadow Set* at Beauty Bay for currently only 40.46€ instead of the regular 53.95€.

10. Anastasia Beverly Hills Eyeshadow Palette Vault

If you have a true makeup lover in your family or among your friends and otherwise important heart people, then they will probably do a happy dance when you gift them this set of two cult palettes from ABH. The Eyeshadow Palette Vault consists of the Soft Glam and the Modern Renaissance palette, both of course known for their super pigmented, high quality eyeshadows, presented in a lovely limited edition collector’s case. And guess what: you can get the Anastasia Beverly Hills Eyeshadow Palette Vault* at Beauty Bay for only 64.00€, a great price for two full palettes from the brand!

11. Beautyblender Dripping in Diamonds Set

Beautyblender has brought out a number of really cute gift sets for Christmas, and I think they would all make for great stocking fillers. The Dripping in Diamonds Set offers two Beautyblender makeup sponges in the original pink colour and in a limited edition blue topaz, as well as two limited edition gemstone cleansers in a pink diamond and blue topaz design. This set would also work so well in combination with the Jouer cheek palette, since they are both gemstone-themed! And you know the best thing about this makeup tool set? You can currently find the Beautyblender Dripping in Diamonds Set* for a particularly great price of only 24.60€ instead of the regular price of 41.00€!

12. RMS Beauty Signature Set

I keep seeing this organic makeup set on Instagram and have to admit, I’m slightly obsessed with their clean, minimalist all-white packaging and the simple, yet chic colour palette. And speaking of palettes, a great way to get to know this brand’s vegan and organic makeup is through their Signature Set, a small palette with five face and lip colours in both cream and powder textures. I particularly adore the “pop” version, with its golden and bronze-brown shades, and that stunning dusky rose lip and cheek colour! The RMS Beauty Signature Set “pop”* is available at Beauty Bay for currently 39.60€ instead of 44.00€. The equally stunning RMS Signature Set “mod”* is also a great gift option!

Beauty Bay Holiday Gift Guide 2019: For K-Beauty Lovers

13. TONYMOLY The Holiday Edition Chok Chok Green Tea Kit

TONYMOLY is basically the ideal brand to gift to anyone new to K-beauty and/or obsessed with K-pop and everything else connected to Korean popular culture. It is cute and straight-forward, with a great mix of easy to love, basic hydrating products. As a K-beauty blogger, I see their products more as an entry-way into the big world of Asian beauty, but I have heard many good things about their Chok-Chok Green Tea skincare range.

This four-part set with a cute and festive holiday look features the following full-sized products: the Chok Chok Green Tea Intense Cream, the Chok Chok Green Tea Watery Eye Cream, the Chok Chok Green Tea Watery Mask Sheet, and the Chok Chok Green Tea Foam Cleanser. So, this is basically a full skincare routine with everything you need to start your K-beauty journey (well, except you totally should also add a sunscreen!). You can get the TONYMOLY The Holiday Edition Chok Chok Green Tea Kit* at Beauty Bay for 54.00€.

14. Too Cool For School My Skin-Licious Pantry

This is another classic Korean brand, known for both their excellent makeup products as well as their often food-inspired skincare. Their EGG skincare range is an all-time favourite of mine, and the sheet masks in particular totally won me over. If you know someone who is obsessed with sheet masks – and truly, who isn’t these days? – then the Too Cool For School My Skin-Licious Pantry set will make them very happy indeed.

This set contains five sheet masks in a cute box: two EGG Cream Masks Hydration, the EGG Cream Mask Firming (my favourite!), the EGG Cream Mask Pore Tightening, and the Coconut Ceramide Mask. Trust me, these are great masks, with the softest sheet material you’ll ever try, and they make for such a fun gift! Buy the Too Cool For School My Skin-Licious Pantry set* at Beauty Bay for currently only 18.66€ instead of the regular 31.95€!

15. Holika Holika Jeju Aloe Face and Bodycare Travel Set

Last but not least, another K-beauty classic for my holiday gift guide 2019: Holika Holika makes some of my favourite basic skincare, and I had great experiences with their aloe vera range, especially the aloe vera gel. The Holika Holika Jeju Aloe Face and Bodycare Travel Set is a small, but mighty gift option for a smaller budget. It contains three travel-sized products holding 55ml each: the aforementioned Aloe 99% Soothing Gel, the Aloe 92% Shower Gel, and the Aloe 99% Cleansing Foam.

The packaging design is so cute and fresh, and the products work great as a unisex gift for everyone! The Holika Holika Jeju Aloe Face and Bodycare Travel Set* retails at 14.50€ at Beauty Bay.

So, let me know in the comments: Are you a late gift shopper or are you super organised with your gift-giving? Any beauty gifts on your own holiday wish list for this year?

Take care guys!
Sugarpeaches

°PR Sample, kindly provided by the brand – I am not obligated to write this blog review, and my opinions are entirely my own.
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