One of the things I love most about Christmas is shopping for presents. My family are all about meaningful gifts. I really enjoy taking the time to think about what each person would love. I try to think out of the box and buy gifts that people might not treat themselves too. Something to make my family and friends smile for months to come. Join me as I step into Christmas with Boots and find cost-effective gifts for a variety of loved ones.
This post is sponsored by Boots UK and features PR products, marked with an *. All thoughts are my own. More information can be found in my full disclaimer.
Shopping and giving presents is going to prove challenging this year. For lots of us, in store shopping isn’t going to be possible or desirable. My Christmas shopping has been done exclusively online. For logistical reasons, many of my loved ones won’t be getting their presents until after Christmas. So I want to make things extra special for them. Particularly given how hard this year has been for everyone and how long it’s been since I’ve seen many of my favourite people.
Many have been hit hard financially by the pandemic, so I’m going to share some affordable Christmas gift suggestions, which can all be ordered from the Boots website (or picked up in store if it’s safe and you feel comfortable doing so).
Boots Step Into Christmas: 3 for 2
I love a good deal. I want my money to stretch as far as possible. This is particularly important for me when it comes to Christmas, as Dan and I both have big families so there are lots of presents to be bought.
The Boots 3 for 2 mix & match with it’s green present sticker, has become synonymous with Christmas shopping for me. When I was about 14 or 15 years old, I decided to create a personalised makeup bag for three of my closest friends. They all got the same products and I chose different colours and shades to compliment each individual. It was lots of fun to put these makeup bags together. Everything I bought came from the Boots 3 for 2 mix & match gift section, which is part of why that green present sticker has such a special place in my heart.
Keep reading for my Secret Santa, Stocking Filler and Harry Potter picks to see the Boots 3 for 2 mix & match in action!
Boots Step Into Christmas: Stocking Fillers
For me, stockings have always been about small, inexpensive gifts. As a child, fun pencil sharpeners, chocolate and tissues with cute packaging were regular stocking filler gifts. And guess what? My sister and I loved them! The excitement and joy was the same as it would have been if they’d been big, expensive presents.
For a few years, Dan and I did a stocking for each other – including the Christmas he proposed. Recently, we’ve skipped stockings, because it became too expensive. I love how Boots understand that not everyone wants or can afford for each stocking gift to cost £15 or more. They have lots of great options available for £5 or less! Which is my comfortable price point for stocking filler presents.
When I spotted the Ted Baker Pretty Little Bloom Opulent Crush Body Spray*,
Next, to the Floral Bliss and Peony Spritz on the Boots website. They immediately reminded me of my teenage-makeup-bag gifts. At just £4, these are exactly the kind of thing I bought as they’re affordable and I could give a different scent to each of my friends. In the 3 for 2 mix & match, they’re just £8 for all 3! These body sprays would make great stocking fillers. You could include one or all three, depending on your recipient!
If you like the sound of the makeup bags I put together for my friends, Boots have a Create The Perfect Gift section on their website. This lets you choose four products from a specially curated products, with most being in the 3 for 2 mix & match. These come with a free tote bag. You could either wrap everything individually or wrap the bag with your chosen gifts inside!
With this year being what it is, Dan and I have decided to do stockings for each other as well as Elise. While I’ve chosen to focus on gifts for women in this post, I’ve already got a number of things in my Boots shopping bag for Dan, including the Harry Potter Lumos Maxima Heat Changing Mug, Paladone Frog Book Light and Star Wars Chewbacca Chunky Knit Socks. Check out the full Gifts For Him range for more fantastic presents from Boots!
Boots Step Into Christmas: Secret Santa – £5 Limit
I love a good Secret Santa. They minimise financial strain that buying for everyone can bring and free up time to spend with loved ones, rather than shopping. I particularly like Secret Santas that have a price limit because they remove the worry that other people will spend more on their Secret Santa gift.
While I don’t spend over the price limit on a Secret Santa gift, I do like to get more for my money. I want my recipient to feel special. That they’re being pampered and that their gift is good quality, generous and has had some thought put into it.
When I saw the Jack Wills Ladies Lip Balm Trio* for £5, I did a double take – I couldn’t believe the price! It looks like it should cost more. This is exactly the kind of gift I would choose for a £5 Secret Santa gift. Equally, it would work well split between three people, as I did with my makeup bag presents at school. Talking of splitting, you could use this lip balm trio as a stocking filler, wrapping each lip balm individually. This way, one gift becomes three! A cost effective way of getting more for your money.
For me, lip balm is essential during the colder months. Having a nice lip balm acts as a quick little bit of self care, which makes them great gifts!
Boots Step Into Christmas: Secret Santa – £10 Limit
With a £10 Secret Santa, I would immediately be taking advantage of Boot’s 3 for 2 offer, to make my money go further and to allow me to really tailor my gift to it’s recipient.
Costing just £8 for all three scents, the Ted Baker Body Sprays would be a great £10 Secret Santa gift. Particularly for someone who enjoys experimenting with fragrance, a teen who is new to fragrance or someone who does a lot of travelling.
If you’re looking to cover a wider range of bases with your £10 Secret Santa gift, you could buy the Jack Wills Lip Balm Trio, a Ted Baker Body Spray and get the Paxton + Pepper Journal* (worth £4) free in the 3 for 2 mix and match. This combination would cost just £9! Choosing a few different gifts for your Secret Santa can be particularly helpful if you don’t know the person you’re buying for well.
A journal can be a great gift, as they can be used for so many different things. Whether it’s a place to pour out thoughts, somewhere to keep track of a to-do list or for some aimless doodling, having this dedicated space can be really helpful, particularly in stressful times. The ‘Take A Moment’ sleeve on this journal is a wonderful reminder to pause. Something we all need, particularly at the moment. While the sleeve will likely be removed when this journal is first used, you could always write a little note to your Secret Santa recipient – a lovely way to personalise the gift.
I love that the fabric spine adds a contrasting texture to the smooth cover of this journal. I find touch to be one of the most helpful things to keep me grounded and in-the-moment. The sensory feedback I get from the two textures is really nice. I’ll be using this journal to quench my wanderlust – to collate all the places I’d like to visit and what we’d like to do, when we’re able to.
Secret Santa Top Tip: If you have time, labelling your Secret Santa present(s) using cut out newspaper letters adds an extra level of thought and mystery. I did this for my last Secret Santa (a few years ago now) and it was the talk of the staff room! You could also do this instead of have writing a message in the Paxton + Pepper Journal.
Boots Step Into Christmas: For The Harry Potter Fan
I am so excited about the Wizarding World – Harry Potter products in Boots’ gift range! This is the type of Christmas gift that I LOVE to give. The products in this line are beautifully packaged and presented, well thought out and different. Product ranges like this generally only come out at Christmas time. This makes them the kind of gift that someone wouldn’t buy for themselves, as a lot of people will be focussing their energy (and money!) on Christmas related expenses, including gifts for other people.
My niece is fan of Harry Potter and as soon as I saw the Wizarding World range, I knew her Christmas present was sorted. The only difficulty was that there are so many great products in the range to choose from!
If I didn’t love my niece as much as I do, I’d be keeping the Harry Potter Swish And Flick Makeup Brushes* (£20) for myself. Each of these five eye and face brushes have been created based on a the wand of a main character. The beautiful gold coloured metal wand handles hold soft synthetic hair bristles and have their owner’s name etched on the ferrule. Presented in a beautiful Hogwarts suitcase tin, this is one of the Christmas presents I’m most excited to give this year.
Not knowing what makeup my niece already owns, I decided to get her the Harry Potter Chocolate Frog Eyeshadow Palette* (£12.50), to make sure she has something to use her new wand brushes with. First appearing in Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone, the packaging of this popular confectionary from the Honeydukes sweet shop, is a beautiful setting for the white frog highlighter which takes centre stage, surrounded by five eyeshadows embossed with frogs.
A bonus of this eyeshadow palette is that when the eyeshadows are used up, the Honeydukes tin can be used to store jewellery or other small items! Which adds an extra value for money element.
As the Wizarding World – Harry Potter products are part of the 3 for 2 mix and match, I chose my niece one more present from the range – the Harry Potter Quill Shimmer Eyeliner* (£6). My niece might be a bit young for eyeliner (I checked that she’s allowed to wear makeup). But, I just could’t resist the packaging. I mean, who wouldn’t want to put their eyeliner on with an ink pot and quill?! With her being an aerial performer and fancy dress fan, I figured that my niece could use this as part of a costume (e.g. to create tiger stripes) if she doesn’t want to wear eyeliner.
These three Wizarding World – Harry Potter products cost £32.50 in the 3 for 3 mix and match, with the eyeliner being free!
Not shopping for a makeup lover? Boots also have Harry Potter hand cream, bath fizzers, mugs and more! If Harry Potter isn’t your thing, there are some great Star Wars, Marvel and Disney gifts.
Boots Step Into Christmas: For The Makeup Lover
I am really excited about all the recent beauty brand additions to Boots. I love that I can now shop for my favourite products, like the Laura Mercer Secret Brightening Powder AND collect points on my Advantage Card! If you don’t have an Advantage Card, why not?! It’s free. I’ve had mine since I was a teenage.
With lots of amazing premium cosmetics available from Boots, you’re bound to find an amazing gift for the beauty lover in your life. As I’m all about being cost-effective, I’ve got two great options to show you. I’ll also touch upon some other, more expensive items, incase you have a little flexibility in your budget.
Boots Step Into Christmas: For The Lipstick Lover/Gift Set
Gift sets can be a great option for Christmas presents. They provide value for money and variety. With my multiple allergies, I gravitate towards gift sets that contain multiple shades of the same products, like the Kat Von D Greatest Hits Liquid Lipstick Trio* (£36). In previous years, I’ve bought myself Stila Glitter And Glow Liquid Eyeshadow and Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick gift sets from Boots. I find these a cost effective way of having a few different shades at my disposal.
This Kat Von D Trio contains three bestselling shades from the liquid lipstick line. Double Dare is a warm toned shade with tiny glitter particles. Lolita is a cool mauve which suits me best when applied in a light layer. Outlaw is a beautiful bright red. They’re very comfortable to wear on my dry, eczema prone lips as they contain natural moisturisers vitamins E and sunflower seed wax. Plus, they’re cruelty free and vegan!
Each of theses liquid lipsticks is full-sized, which surprised me. I expected them to be minis, but I’m not sure why. This gift set is great value – as well as being full sized liquid lipsticks, you getting 3 for the price of 2! As well as being a lovely gift set, these lipsticks could be split among friends. Like with the personalised makeup bags I put together as a teenager.
Check out the Gifts For Her section on the Boots website for more great makeup gift sets, along with other brilliant gift options.
Boots Step Into Christmas: For The Eyeshadow Lover
Eyeshadow palettes are some of my favourite makeup items. I particularly enjoy Too Faced and Urban Decay’s palettes. I get very excited about limited edition Christmas releases and this year, Too Faced have come out with some lovely options!
If you’re looking to gift a limited edition eyeshadow palette, the Two Faced Salted Caramel Palette* is a fantastic option! At £22, it’s significantly more affordable than larger palettes, while still being the high quality you’d expect from a brand like Too Faced.
With 4 mattes, 3 shimmers and a glitter eyeshadow in a variety of shades, this is an extremely versatile palette.
I find that small palettes, with fewer eyeshadows are great for those starting out with makeup, as well as people who don’t have much time. I’ve been thinking about wearing makeup on a regular basis, now that Lissie is older. But, the thought of reaching for my larger palettes for the school run next year feels overwhelming. A smaller palette like the Too Faced Salted Caramel palette is going to be perfect for me as a quick, every day product. For me, fewer eyeshadows shadows means less indecisiveness!
Remember, bigger and more expensive doesn’t always mean better!
If the person you’re shopping for likes the colours in the Salted Caramel palette, but prefers matte shadows, the Urban Decay Naked Petite Heat (£26) is a lovely alternative. If you want to give a larger palette with similar colours, the Urban Decay Naked Heat palette (£43) has some beautiful shades. Or, if you want to a larger limited edition palette for a loved one this Christmas, the Too Faced Pumpkin Spice Warm & Spicy palette (£40), is a great option.
Whether you’re looking for a Christmas release eyeshadow palette or a permanent product, Boots have a fantastic range to choose from. With prices starting at just £4.99 for the Collection Eyes Uncovered Palettes, you’re sure to find something for every budget. You can view them all on the Boots website.
Not sure what to buy? Boots have you covered with their Christmas Gift Guide!
How are you approaching Christmas shopping this year?
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