Brace yourself, Christmas is coming.

christmas, the season of giving and festivity.
but who says these are only good for gifts for others?
i find christmas to be a good time to score good deals provided you've been wanting to try certain products for a while, especially if you've been wishing for smaller sizes.

your wish is granted.

here are a few gifts i personally wouldn't mind receiving because EVERYONE needs/can use a hand cream.
i assume if these are stuff i see utility in, others will too. (totally imposing my likes and dislikes on others haha!)
instead of getting them in full sizes, you can now get to sample (several of) them at one go at a fraction of the original price.

also, this is a really good time to grab a few travel sets so you can use them when you go on a weekend getaway. there's a limit on bottled liquids (you can only bring a maximum of 1L of liquid on board, each individual container must not be more than 100ml), so miniatures will be perfect!

thanks santa!

all information and images taken from their official websites.

L'OCCITANE

Holiday Hand Cream Trio Set A | SGD40

- Cherry Blossom Hand Cream 30ml

- Shea Butter Hand Cream 30ml

- Almond Delicious Hands 30ml

about $13.3 each

Holiday Hand Cream Trio Set B | SGD40

- Cherry Blossom Hand Cream 30ml

- Shea Butter Hand Cream 30ml

- Roses et Reines Hand Cream 30ml

about $13.3 each

Holiday Hand Cream Set | SGD71

- Shea Butter Hand Cream 30ml

- Roses et Reines Hand Cream 30ml

- Cherry Blossom Hand Cream 30ml

- Lavender Hand Cream 30ml

- Almond Delicious Hand 30ml

$14.2 each 

CRABTREE & EVELYN

Hand Therapy Musical Tin (Set of Twelve) | SGD98

Avocado, Olive & Basil (25g)

Caribbean Island Wildflowers (25g)

Citron, Honey & Coriander (25g)

Gardeners (25g)

La Source (25g)

Lavender (25g)

Nantucket Briar (25g)

Pear and Pink Magnolia (25g)

Pomegranate, Argan & Grapeseed (25g)

Rosewater (25g)

Summer Hill (25g)

Verbena and Lavender (25g)

about $8.20 each

Limited Edition Hand Therapy Tin | SGD39

Frosted Rose Ultra-Moisturising Hand Therapy (25g)

Sugar & Spice Ultra-Moisturising Hand Therapy (25g)

Apple Snow Ultra-Moisturising Hand Therapy (25g)

$13 each

Classic Floral Hand Therapy Tin | SGD33

Rosewater Ultra-Moisturising Hand Therapy (25g)

Lavender Ultra-Moisturising Hand Therapy (25g)

Lily-Moisturising Hand Therapy (25g)

$11 each

THE BODY SHOP

Soft Hands, Warm Kisses (Shea) | SGD19.90

- Shea Hand Cream 30ml

- Shea Lip Butter 10ml

Seasonal Hand Cream Trio | SGD29.90

- Frosted Cranberry Hand Cream 30ml

- Frosted Plum Hand Cream 30ml

- Glazed Apple Hand Cream 30ml 

about $10 each

Fruity Body Butter Sweetheart | SGD 29.90

- Strawberry Body Butter 50ml

- Satsuma Body Butter 50ml

- Mango Body Butter 50ml

about $10 each

TRAVEL SETS

L' OCCITANE Pivoine Flora Petite Shower Set | SGD39

- Pivoine Flora Shower Gel 75ml

- Pivoine Flora Beauty Milk 75ml

- Pivoine Flora Hand Cream 30ml

- Limited Edition Holiday Mini Box 

CRABTREE & EVENLYN Pomegranate Argan & Grapeseed Traveller | $30

Pomegranate, Argan & Grapeseed Body Wash 50mL

Pomegranate, Argan & Grapeseed Body Lotion 50mL

Pomegranate, Argan & Grapeseed Hand Therapy 25g

THE BODY SHOP Strawberry Beauty Bag | SGD29.90

- Strawberry Shower Gel 60ml

- Strawberry Body Butter 50ml

- Strawberry Hand Cream 30ml

- Red Mini Crinkle Bath Lily 

EDITOR'S THOUGHT

before you say that the selection is very limited, i'd like to reiterate that these brands are those i've been keeping a lookout for throughout the years, so that's why i'm featuring them since i just so happen to know this few brands. even though they all sell roughly the same things, there's still a difference between their price points (with l'occitane being the most expensive out of all).

after making necessary conversions, you get the most value of of your buck (for hand creams) if you get the CRABTREE & EVELYN Hand Therapy Musical Tin (Set of 12) (at $9.84 per 30ml). 

so, one tube of hand cream for every month?

while it may be too late to be buying gifts for your friends (as christmas is in 2 day's time), here're a few items you can gift yourself this holiday because holiday sets are really good valued purchases (compared to their usual retail price). some of the products i've used personally before and would totally make use of this chance to repurchase them. some of them i've seen them floating on the internet somewhere and thought it may be a good time to try them.

so yea, this is actually just another wishlist. HAHAHA! but i'd totally gift these to my girlfriends too because i think they're crowd pleasers.

either way, hope you enjoy this little list of products i curated!



1. Crabtree and Evelyn Hand Therapy Paint Tin (USD$60)

this may seem a little over kill - 12 tubes of "ultra moisturizing" hand creams (25g each) that will probably last you for the next 12 months! but it's the only set i saw that contains my favourite scent - summer hill. it's a very light and pleasing scent that evokes a scene of english cottages surrounded by greeneries in my mind. the formula is pretty hydrating and the scent lingers throughout the day, however, i have particular dry skin so i need to reapply this if i'm in an air-conditioned place. if i ever snap this set up, my girlfriends will be getting free hand creams from me :D on a side note, the rosewater, lavender both smells heavenly too. i did use nantucket before, it's a scent that i grew to like after several uses.

2. L'occitane Shea Pampering Treat (USD$38)

i chose this set because it's the only range i've tried. the shea shower cream is a soapless bathing cream that leaves your skin silky smooth and i really love the soothing scent. somewhat reminds me of johnson's baby powder and puts me in that calming state of mind. there's also a rose scented soap and hand cream, and i do not know of one person who doesn't like the scent of rose. ok i lied. i used to really dislike the rose scent, but it's because the first rose scent i ever sniffed is artificial and was really horrible.

3. Topshop Mini Lip Bullet Duo Set (USD$20)

i saw swatches of these on a beauty blog one day and it was love at first sight - a perfect nude shade and deep wine shade. i've heard that the topshop lip products are surprisingly good! i used the word "surprising" because you wouldn't expect a clothing label to come up with decent cosmetics. too bad it's already out of stock :( $20 for 2 mini lip bullets sounds quite ok, even though i heard it contains very little product.. but, i will never run out of lipsticks anyway, i don't mind having lesser product just so i can finish it up faster! URGH i hope they release this as a part of their permanent collection some day. I WANT THESE COLOUR IN MY ARSENAL SOON!

4. Sephora Favourites Superstar (USD$75)

the deal almost sounded too good to be true, looking at the products that the box contains, their usual retail value far exceed the price tag of this combo (of course, it also goes to show the huge margin sephora is profiting)! we're looking at nars blush, fresh sugar lip treatment, bumble and bumble surf spray.. and a chloe perfume rollerball? perfect for travel!

5. TYPO A5 Daily Planner (USD$9.98)

if you prefer paper and pens over the digital planners like me, this may be suitable for you! the outer cover definitely suits my taste :D couldn't decide between the polka dot or the gold stripes. both looks amazing. the only thing i'd like to add on my own is a monthly planner because i like to see my entire month at a glance. to another organized year!

last but not least, i'd like to wish you a merry christmas in advance! it's very encouraging to see my blog being read. even though i started this blog to document stuff, it's a little bonus when you know that somewhere out there, someone bothers to give me their precious time to see what i have to say about certain things. you gave me the power to be heard, and that's very motivating. even though my skin is still recovering right now and i'm in no way to do beauty testing and reviews, i'd still try my best to update and bring you whatever i deem valuable to everyone! hope you've been enjoying these non review entries so far.