Holiday 2009 Gift Guide: Best Luxury Gifts

When I think luxury, I think of products that feel like an experience–decadent, luxurious, and satisfying–and often are items I wouldn’t myself purchase but would love to receive.  In that vein, I’ve missed the price range from as low as $45 to as high as $249.  At the end of day, luxury can be incredibly personal, but these are some of my personal favorites.

Guerlain Le Rouge G de Guerlain Lipstick ($45.00 for 0.12 oz.) is a creamy, smooth, pigmented lipstick formula that applies and clings to lips without drying them. It has the most subtle, yet noticeable, shimmer that really shines without being garish. It’s really a top formula, but the price tag definitely slots it into the luxury bag.  (See some of my reviews here.)

Bliss Softening Socks ($48.00) are these awesome socks that pretty much come with this gel lining that soothes and moisturizes your feet while you wear them. Bliss says that a pair of socks lasts for up to fifty uses (not too bad!) and you wear ’em for about twenty minutes. (You can even get them in a nifty holiday gift box at Bliss.) You can also give the same technology, but for hands (gloves, rather than socks, duh!).

BURN Candles ($60.00 for ~100 hours) come in amazing, complex scents that really waft throughout the room/rooms. I’ve found that I’ll burn one in the office, and the scent will be in the living room/kitchen and even in the bedroom. The scent is just enough to enjoy without being overwhelming. For the holidays, they’ve added the following scents: Firewood Embers, Grenadine Pomegranate and Sugar Pine Balsam. (They also have candles that burn for approximately 150 hours for $95.00 a pop.) You can also find BURN at Barneys.

Chanel Les Tissages Lames de Chanel (Shimmering Tweed Highlighter) ($60.00) is a beautiful composition of a tweed patterned highlighter that’s golden and bronze without being too much.  (You can read my full review here.)

See more of my favorite luxe gifts!

Jo Malone Deluxe Soap Collection ($85.00 for 8 1.8 oz. Soaps) is a really lovely gift to give to someone that enjoys a little luxury during their day-to-day routine. I love the soaps I have from Jo Malone, both from a scent perspective as well as the quality and how moisturizing they are.  (You can read my full review here.)

Jo Malone Cologne Collection ($95.00 for 6 0.3 oz. bottles) includes Sweet Lime and Cedar, Grapefruit, Lime Basil and Mandarin, Nectarine Blossom and Honey, Pomegranate Noir, and White Jasmine and Mint scents.

Creme de la Mer ($130.00 for 1 oz.) is a rich, ultra thick moisturizing cream. It’s a bit heavy for my skin, but this is something my mom loves. My mom, for reference, is the total beauty minimalist. She doesn’t wear makeup and probably has more makeup as many times in her lifetime as I have in the past two weeks! I tell her SPF and she looks at me like I’m crazy. (Bless her for having such amazing genetics–I hope I age half as well as she has!) Anyway, my mom can’t rave enough about La Mer. I’m pretty sure I’ll be buying her a jar come Christmas myself!

Tom Ford Private Blend Eau de Parfum ($180.00 for 1.7 oz.) is an ultra elegant, so luxe gift to give (and uhh, receive? Oh, yes, please!). While I haven’t yet caved on any of Tom Ford’s amazing scents yet, I do take a sniff and test them whenever I’m at Nordstrom! Everyone I know who’s purchased a bottle hasn’t been disappointed.

Clarisonic PLUS Skincare Brush Set ($225.00) is the latest Clarisonic, with a detachable body brush in addition to the facial brush.  I also like the Mia, for a more affordable version, but that’s not really appropriate for a luxury gift guide, yeah?  (You can read my review of the Mia and original Clarisonic for reference.)

Guerlain Voyage Imperiale Meteorites Voyage Compact ($170.00) is a decadent pressed highlighter that applies subtly, softly, and looks beautiful. This is truly a luxe item–and I envy anyone who happens to receives this as a gift this year!

Kate Somerville ‘ExfoliKate’ Intensive Exfoliating Treatment ($175.00 for 5 oz.) is a gentle exfoliating treatment that works with fruit enzymes that give a little tingle when you use this product. For those with more sensitive skin, I do recommend Kate Somerville ‘ExfoliKate Gentle’ Exfoliating Treatment instead. I’ve only tried the original formula, which has worked well on my skin thus far (I use it about once or twice a week in the shower)!

MAKE UP FOR EVER Aqua Eyes Collector Set ($249.00) includes twenty-five shades of Make Up For Ever’s famous Aqua Eyes Eyeliner.  It’s a value set, even if it is a heavy investment. I love Aqua Eyes, and I can definitely tell you this set tempted me on more than one occasion (I managed to resist my staring at the dozens and dozens of liners I have sitting in a drawer already).  This is kind of the Big Daddy set of eyeliners.