I admit that even though this blog is mostly about food, I am obsessed with beauty how-to videos on YouTube, my Beauty board on Pinterest, and owning a million different nail polish colors. This drives my boyfriend crazy because we live together and my nail polish and beauty supply collection has kind of taken over our tiny condo bathroom. Bless his heart, he humors me and lets me keep my goodies and has even gotten used to my monthly Birchbox arriving in the mail. All that said, there are some awesome gifts you can get for your like-minded beauty buff friends, girlfriends, sisters, and moms. Here are my top ten ideas, in all sorts of price ranges:

1) Beauty Store Gift Card: $10 and up

Okay, okay, I know. Gift cards are boring as all hell, but the thing with women who love beauty products is that they also love to shop for them. Or maybe they are more attached to their foundation than they are to their religion. A gift card gives your favorite beauty queen the opportunity to get lost in Ulta or Sephora for hours and decide what they need or want. For example, I really could use some new red lip gloss because Too Faced stopped carrying my perfect red color (seriously, this crisis has been on my mind for almost a year)  and a gift card to Ulta would be just what I need to go spend some time trying on samples to find the perfect new red lip color.

2) Massage Envy Membership: $39 initial month and $59 per month after (may vary based on location)

The great thing about Massage Envy is that they are located everywhere, so you hopefully won’t have to worry about location being an issue. It’s not really a pampering spa like the local boutique, but they offer massages and facials and they get the job done. I think this is also a great gift for yourself this holiday. I love the holidays, but apparently they stress a lot of people out. Don’t let that build up in your shoulders; get a massage. Or, if you don’t want to commit to a membership, you can always purchase a gift card for the initial massage appointment. Your recipient will be grateful. I promise.

3) Upscale Spa Day: $99-516 (plus tax and gratuity)

I have had a spa day at the Red Door Spa in Short Pump once in my life (I won a $250 gift card at a company party) and I felt like a princess – a very relaxed princess. If you want to keep it budget-friendly or if you want to splurge, this is a fantastic gift for your loved one. The Red Door Spas offer spa day packages ranging from $99 (Time Saver Facial or Massage, Warm Cream Manicure, Makeup Refresher) to the indulgent extreme at $516 (Ultimate Arden Facial, Hot Stone Massage, Olive Oil Manicure, Olive Oil Pedicure, Shampoo, Blow Dry and Finish, Makeup Refresher, and Spa Lunch). My personal favorite is the Red Door Debut package at $246-294 and they even offer a spa day for men ranging from $258-285. See the Richmond, VA price list here.

4) Birchbox Subscription: $10 and up

For just $10 a month, you can sign your beauty lover up to receive a small gift box full of hand-selected beauty samples based on their preferences. It’s something I’ve been subscribed to for about a year and a bunch of my friends receive it as well. It’s a lot of fun to compare your samples and I love that I almost always receive a small sample perfume (my favorites so far have been Prada and something from Taylor Swift) that I carry in my purse or leave in my desk at work.

5) Soaps and lotions: $8.50 – $238

Depending on your budget, I have a few options. Bear with me:

• 5.1) Lafco Soap Set: $238 (or $17 each)

A complete set of 14 bath bars in all of LAFCO’s House & Home Bath Soap scents. The set includes, Cilantro Orange / Fresh Cut Gardenia / Rosemary Eucalyptus / Champagne / French Lilac / Duchess Peony / Feu de Bois / Marine / Sea and Dune / Chamomile Lavender / Redwood / Celery Thyme / Marseilles Fig / Daffodil. Plus, the packaging is fabulous.

• 5.2) Shisheido Honey Cakes: $8.50 each

Luxurious French-milled soaps made from honey to moisturize without drying out skin. These would make great stocking stuffers and when you buy them for your beauty lover, pick some up for me too, okay? Thanks!

• 5.3) Burt’s Bees Grab Bag: $25

Young or old, everyone under the sun loves Burt’s Bees products (except for vegans, don’t buy this for vegans!) and their lip balm is out of this world amazeballs. This is a great, limited time deal for the holidays and would make a great gift for a friend, mom, girlfriend, wife, niece, aunt, or even for your “White Elephant” gift exchange at work.

6) Jemma Kidd Makeup Secrets: Solutions to Every Woman’s Beauty Issues and Make-Up Dilemmas (Hardcover, 2012): $16.50

From Amazon.com: “Jemma Kidd’s philosophy is that makeup should be used cleverly and sparingly to bring out a woman’s natural beauty, enhancing her best features and disguising any perceived imperfections.  In Jemma Kidd Make-Up Secrets, she shows you how. In Part 1: Making Makeup Work for You, Jemma demystifies the new wonder products in the market, and shows how to use and apply them. She demonstrates how to achieve a flawless complexion and bring out the best in every face shape, and how to make up eyes and lips depending on your face and eye shape, age, coloring, and overall style. In Part 2: The Problem Solver, Jemma addresses all the main beauty concerns of every woman—how to take care of your skin, how to look younger, how to keep your makeup up-to-date, and how to cope with environmental onslaughts like the damaging effects of the sun and cold weather.” (This is a follow-up to the Jemma Kidd Make-up Masterclass: Beauty Bible of Professional Techniques and Wearable Looks, $16.50. They would be great together as a set.)

7) Julep Favorite Things 2012 Nail Color Jewelry Box: $84 (with Promo Code OPRAH; normally $168)

Julep makes awesome nail polishes in beautiful colors. The company rocks because these polishes are toxin free! This set includes 12 gorgeous polishes that were hand-picked by Oprah and this set appears on her 2012 Favorite Things list. Also, a percentage of the proceeds is donated to organizations that support women through Julep’s Powered by Girlfriends program.

8) Sephora Color Daze Blockbuster Collection: $49.50

Imagine all the fun you could have on holidays, makeover nights, or at impromptu photo shoots with friends if you have this case full of 148 Hollywood-inspired formulas, finishes, and textures! Gimme, gimme!

9) T|Studio Pearl Ceramic Professional Styling Wand by Remington: $25

You can find this awesome clipless curling iron at Target, Ulta, WalMart, etc. I use it at least once a week and often it’s my go-to hair tool as opposed to the classic curling iron every woman owns. This styling wand from Remington creates natural looking curls and waves and gives you tons of control over your style. I get compliments all the time and some of my friends who have borrowed it have gone out to buy their own. It takes a little time to become an expert, but once your beauty queen masters the technique, she’ll be taking this styling wand with her everywhere. In fact, I used it this morning and got a nice, beachy wave in under 3 minutes. (Not joking!)

PS – In doing a little online research, it appears this is a popular gift. It is sold out a lot of places online, but I’ve seen it in Target recently.

10) Bare Minerals Get Started Kit: 

Okay, so I don’t normally suggest buying someone actual makeup unless it’s a huge smorgasbord and you know they are going to use it to play with their look and dress up their friends (i.e. Gift #8). There is just something about choosing someone else’s colors that feels wrong to me, like I’m overstepping my boundaries. BUT, Bare Minerals came into my life a couple years ago and I’ve been hooked ever since. I would buy the “Get Started Kit” for someone just to convert them into the crazy cult of Bare Minerals fanatics.

So there you have it – another easy peasy gift list. Anything I missed?