Chic little luxury beauty gifts like this tinted lip balm from Augustinus Bader are my idea of the perfect beauty gift. I probably couldn’t justify spending $66 on a lip balm, but would adore someone buying it for me as a gift.

The tinted balms were created in collaboration with filmmaker Sofia Coppola, who reportedly approached the brand herself to request a tinted version of her favourite lip balm. At Mecca, only the wine shade is still available (the other two have sadly sold out), but you can also shop the full range directly via Augustinus Bader and also on Cult Beauty. And if my family or friends are reading this — this is what I want for Christmas, thank you.

Available at:

• $66 at Augustinus Bader (or $168 for three shades from Augustinus Bader)
• $66 from Mecca
• $65 from Cult Beauty

Since launching in Australia in September, Merit has become a staple in our makeup bags, making us well-qualified to recommend them as a great gift this festive season. The Five Minute Morning includes a few of the brand’s best sellers, including The Minimalist foundation stick, a highlight, mascara, cream blush, tinted brow gel, lip oil, and a makeup brush (it’s brilliant). It’s a great way to help them try a good selection of products from the range.

Give the gift of glowing skin with this viral sheet mask from K-beauty favourite Biodance. Designed to be worn for at least three hours (but preferably overnight), the hydrogel mask starts white and turns transparent as the skin absorbs its highly concentrated dose of topical collagen. With four masks in this box, they’ll be thanking you for their plump, glowing skin well into the New Year.

If the words “Pillow Talk” don’t mean anything to you, just know that it’s a safe gift option for most beauty lovers. Charlotte Tilbury reliably creates some of our favourite makeup products, and this set includes a few products from its most iconic Pillow Talk range: a Lip Cheat lip liner, Pillow Talk Big Lip Plumpgasm gloss, Matte Revolution lipstick in Pillow Talk, and a Beauty Light Wand highlighter in Pillow Talk.

Available at:

• $83 from Charlotte Tilbury
• $89 from Mecca

Few beauty launches excite us more than a Dyson hair tool launch, so we were thrilled when the Airstrait finally landed in Australia earlier this year. Though it may look like your average hair straightener, it uses high-pressure air streams to dry and style the hair, rather than hot plates. If you (or your giftee) prefer a sleek blow-dried look and are trying to reduce the amount of damaging heat you inflict on your strands, this tool will be a very welcome gift.

Rare Beauty’s liquid blushes are known for their high pigment, which means a tube will last you literal years. That’s why these minis are so perfect, because while they may look small, we promise they will last a very long time. This limited edition set includes three of the brand’s best-selling cheek products, including two liquid blush shades and one highlighter.

If you’re looking for a gift for yourself or a lovely little stocking stuffer, this duo from Ouai conveniently includes two of my most-used hair products in one discounted set. The Ouai Detox Shampoo is the best clarifying shampoo I’ve used, giving the hair a deep clean without stripping it or making it feel like straw afterwards (a rarity). Meanwhile, the Leave-In Conditioner quickly detangles and hydrates the hair, while also offering heat protection from hot tools.

One thing your gift recipient deserves this summer is plump, glowing skin. This collection from Summer Fridays features gentle skincare products that won’t upset sensitive skin, plus a seriously cute mini tube of the brand’s lip balm — a glossy balm that’s hydrating and layers beautifully over other lip products.

Westman Atelier makeup products are chic, ultra-luxurious, and also some of the best performing on the market. This collection brings together a few of the brand’s cult products: the Baby Cheeks Blush Stick in Petal, Lit Up Highlighter Stick in Petal, and Squeaky Clean Liquid Lip Balm in Petal. Each product comes in a rosy-pink hue that provides the face with the perfect summer flush.

Glossier fans will be thrilled to receive one of the new fragrance releases from the brand this festive season. If they’re already a big fan of the classic You fragrance, be warned that these two are quite different. Doux is a milky, woody, and slightly floral fragrance that has a warm and musky base, and some have compared it to the cult Le Labo 33.

Meanwhile, Rêve is a rich gourmand fragrance, with notes of buttercream and toasted almond, with the same musky ambrox base as the other You fragrances. Both will be available to shop for a very limited time at Mecca from November 19, as well as on the Glossier website.

Available at:

• $129 from Mecca
• $145 from Glossier

In the lead-up to my wedding this year, this is the one new product I incorporated into my skincare routine, and I credit it for having calm, bright, and smooth skin on my big day. The gel mask is lightweight and easy to slap on, and though it’s recommended to wear for 10 minutes, I’m lazy and leave it on overnight, one night a week.

It’s extremely hydrating and I wake with glowing and plumped skin the morning after, which was a godsend for my compromised skin barrier and sensitised skin a month out from my wedding.

Opening a present and finding Rationale (anything from Rationale) within will elicit a squeal from any beauty lover. The brand’s latest launch, the Beautiful Balms, are exactly what the name suggests, a quad of balm products that deliver beautiful skin. With a cream bronzer, blush, highlight, and lip colour in the set, this is a one-way ticket to glowing skin. They’re easily blendable with the fingers or a brush, and have a natural finish on the skin — perfect for the minimalist beauty lover — plus, they’re SPF 30, adding a bit of extra protection over your usual sunscreen.

When gifting fragrance to a loved one, we always suggest picking up a discovery set, unless you know them very well. This set from Creed includes a collection of the brand’s iconic fragrances like Aventus For Her and Love in White, and we have a feeling that it will help your giftee track down their signature scent for 2025.

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GHD Duet Blowdry 2-In-1 Hair Dryer Brush

$476 at The Iconic

In my humble opinion, the GHD Duet Blowdry brush was one of the best hair tool launches of 2024. The brush is designed to take your hair from dry to straight, leaving you with styled hair in a few brief sweeps. If the Dyson Airstrait is for people who prefer a pin-straight finish, this is for people who want their hair to be bouncy and volumised.

Available at:

• $476 from The Iconic
• $484 (usually $605) from Myer
• $595 from Adore Beauty

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Revlon’s Illuminance Glow Filter is a sheer and glowy makeup product that can be used alone for a naturally radiance skin finish, or underneath foundation to give a lit from within glow. It’s pumped with skin-loving ingredients like squalane, to plump and hydrate the skin while the iridescent pigments provide a filter-like blur to the skin.

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Tronque Firming Body Butter

$130 at Tronque

For the person who is religious about their body care routine, the Firming Butter from New Zealand brand Tronque will make a gorgeous stocking stuffer. It’s formulated with a rich and hydrating blend of shea, cacao, and mango butters that will feel like a hug for dry skin, plus, it’s pumped with skincare ingredients that are designed to hydrate and calm the skin (ceramides, hyaluronic acid, and niacinamide are three), plus red maple bark to firm.

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No.7 Restore & Renew Face and Neck Multi-Action Gift Set 5 Piece

$69.00 at Priceline

The perfect gift whether your loved one is a skincare newbie or aficionado! The No.7 Restore and Renew range contains the hard-working peptide Matrixyl 3000 plus, an active designed to firm and smooth the skin. This comprehensive gift set includes the range’s famous neck cream (because your skincare routine should stop at your decollete) along with the brand’s day cream, night cream, eye cream and retinol concentrate.

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Max Factor Facefinity All Day Flawless 3 in 1 Foundation

$32.95 at Priceline

If you want an affordable foundation stocking stuffer, consider this 3-in-1 solution by Max Factor, with a built-in primer and concealer. The Vegan formula is best for youthful skin requiring a light coverage.

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