Valentine’s Day Gift Guide for Her

There’s nothing wrong with giving flowers or candy on valentine’s day [I mean, I would be extremely happy with getting those any day because they're two of my all time favorite things #basicprobz]. But if you’re looking for something different, the BEST kind of gifts are presents that someone would love, but would never actually want to spend the money on for themselves. So if you’re a guy looking for his girlfriend, or a girl looking for your bff [best friend eva award, ps] here’s my guide for gifts she’ll love that won’t break your bank


1. Blow Out Gift Card


Blow outs are one of my all time favorite things- I mean, someone else washes/styles your hair while you sit and sip champagne? Nothing better than taking the stress out of getting ready and turning it into a fun treat. Girls love any kind of spa treatment, and this one is simple, cheap and will definitely be appreciated!

My recommendation: I personally love drybar, but most salons offer blowout services. There are other salons specifically dedicated to just blow outs, but this one has always delivered the best experience for the best price.

Price Point: $40

2. Perfume


Perfume is one of those things all girls love, but rarely ever want to spend money on. The thought of spending around $80 never seems reasonable, even if it’s on something you use every day. Getting her a new scent will be thoughtful, actually enjoyable and something she’ll be reminded by every day.

My recommendation: Love Express for Women is the perfect scent to get in the spring mindset. It’s light, it’s fresh and the best part? It’s comparable to popular, fruity scents while being at least $20 less expensive than it’s counterparts.

Price Point: $44

3. Makeup


This may seem daunting from a male’s perspective, but this is a great gift if you’re dating a girlier girl. We love all things makeup / beauty / nails, and getting it as a gift is great because it shows you know her interests. From girl to girl, I can personally say I would love if a friend gave me this! I love my original naked palette, but don’t want to invest in buying another one when I have other expenses.

My recommendation: Naked 3 Palette from Urban Decay. You can’t go wrong with this high end set of neutrals- it can be used to create a million different looks!

Price Point: $52

4. Tiffany’s


It’s pretty obvious that any girl would die to get a little blue box as a gift. Most people think it’s extremely expensive, but there are so many great gifts for inexpensive prices! Just remember: flowers last for a week, Tiffany’s lasts forever.

My recommendation: wine glasses

This gift is literally killing six birds with one stone. You’re giving her a gift for her home, you’re giving her something that you can use together AND it’s going to come in the largest Tiffany’s box ever. These are my favorite gifts to give to my friends because nothing makes you feel more special than seeing this large, super-lux gift. You get to keep the box, and then use the wine glasses for girls nights together for years!

The New Naked?

I'm totally in love with this new 'Fade In' palette from Smashbox's 'Fade to Black' collection. 

While I adore my Urban Decay Naked and Naked 2 palettes, I have used them to death over the past year or so, so this makes a new but very welcome option in my neutral eye wardrobe...

It contains four mattes and three beautiful shimmers. As you'll notice in the pictures, the darker shades show up slightly darker than they appear in the pan, but are all beautiful. 

The formula and pigmentation of these are all really nice. I would note that the black with a tiny bit of shimmer in it is slightly less pigmented than the others, and took a little work to get the finish shown above. The addition of a gorgeous, shimmery olive green also makes this palette stand out from many others.

Apart from that, the formulas are lovely, they blend well and the staying power is really nice.

The packaging is stunning too and I think this is going to be my go-to-palette for the next few months. There is also another colour-way in this palette which contains more plummy, purple shades. They are already available in Sephora in the USA, priced at $42, but if you're UK/AU based they will be available online and on counters at the end of August, priced at £32. 

Value for money isn't quite on a par with the Urban Decay options (if you don't already own a Naked palette, I would definitely recommend getting one over this, but if you are stuck in a neutral-eye-rut with your Naked palettes and are looking for something new in a similar vein, this is my recommendation.