Beauty brands don’t make it easy come Christmas time.
The sheer volume of gift sets means indecision and gifting fear can strike. Which of the stellar selection of bumper packs will suit the skincare savant, haircare connoisseur or makeup marvel in our lives? But that’s why we’re here.
We test, trial and lather on products all year long to put us in the optimal position to scout out those gift sets that offer both style and substance. Because let’s face it, at first glance, they all look the part with beautiful, vibrant packaging that giftees will delight in unwrapping under the tree. But, once the packaging is discarded and Christmas has come and gone, the contents must be used and loved.
For this reason, we have tried to steer clear of minis in our seasonal edit of the best beauty gift sets. While they are convenient for holidays in their travel-friendly size, it can often feel like you have been cheated once you strip back all the cardboard to find a 10ml formula that’s finished after one use. Instead, we’ve prioritised gift sets that give you bang for your buck.
Beauty fans will be well aware that the Christmas season offers the perfect opportunity to stock up on hero items for a fraction of the cost or with a free gift thrown in. The likes of Vieve, Victoria Beckham and more bundle together its bestsellers for a far more purse-friendly price tag than buying them individually - so they’re ripe for self-gifting to save you money in the long run. How’s that for girl math?
With all this in mind, we have selected the best sets to delight for Christmas 2024.
Best beauty gift sets for Christmas under £50
PHLUR Body Mist Trio
Body mists have had something of a revival in the last year or so and Phlur has played a huge part in that with its unveiling of delicious aromas in the subtle fragrance form.
Sample three of our favourites this Christmas season in a travel size. Vanilla Skin takes an unexpected approach to the creamy, sugary ingredient by setting it alongside a touch of spice, while Caramel Skin offers sophistication and Coconut Skin feels warming and addictive.
Buy now £26.00, Space NK
OUAI St Barts Get-A-OUAI
The St Barts collection from hairstyling icon Jen Atkin carries one of the most sumptuous scents around. The delicious, rich aroma will transport you to the Caribbean island and comes in this seasonal gift set as a scrub, shampoo and hair oil.
Ready for your next far-flung break, the Scalp & Body Scrub will prep the skin, using natural sugar crystals, coconut oil and panthenol to exfoliate while nourishing. The shampoo will leave your locks squeaky clean, while the hair oil offers shine and smoothing with a blend of AMA oil, borage oil and galanga root extract.
Buy now £32.00, Amazon
Glow Recipe Fruit Babies Routine
Korean skincare is all about plumping hydration and this is what inspired the Glow Recipe range. The brand is a TikTok and Gen-Z favourite label that has the formulations to justify the hype. The dream combination of sun and sea may be a game-changer for our mood but it can dry out the skin so this collection of five of the brand’s heroes is designed to combat this to leave your skin healthier and happier throughout your precious time off.
You will five travel sizes of the Avocado Ceramide Moisture Barrier Cleanser, Watermelon Glow PHA +BHA Pore-Tight Toner, Guava Vitamin C Bright-Eye Gel Cream, Watermelon Glow Niacinamide Dew Drops and Plum Plump Hyaluronic Cream to brighten, soothe and rehydrate with antioxidants and actives.
Buy now £32.00, Cult Beauty
Philip Kingsley Maximum Moisture Hair Care Gift Set
Famed for its multi-award-winning Elasticizer, Philip Kingsley is one of the best haircare brands in the game and always has an extensive range of gift sets no matter your concern. Maximum Moisture Hair Care Gift Set does what it says on the tin, combining the Moisture Balancing Combination Shampoo & Conditioner duo, the Frizz Fighting Gloss Smoothing Serum and the aforementioned Elasticizer - a deep conditioning mask.
Buy now £33.15, John Lewis
Trinny London Everyday Chic Makeup Gift Set
Forget paperclips and folding fish, Trinny has made the annual Christmas cracker pull tradition far more exciting. Within the seasonal tablescaping staple is £60 worth of makeup from her stackable selection.
The limited-edition gift set includes the Eye2Eye shadow in Chariot, a smokey shade to add depth to any party season makeup look as well as Lip2Cheek in Veebee, a universally flattering shade of pink. Lip Glow in Honor rounds off the trio for a natural lip.
Buy now £34.00, John Lewis
Refy Sculpt Duo Collection
No minis in sight, Refy has set together two of its bestselling products together in this stocking filler-worthy set. It combines its lengthening Lash Sculpt with Brow Sculpt, the cult wax and brush that gave Jess Hunt’s label its stellar reputation.
Buy now £35.00, Refy
Kylie Skin Lip Oil Duo Gift Set
Kylie Jenner’s makeup label has come a long way from the lip kits that sent the internet into overdrive. Nourishing formulas such as the lip oils have become just as popular and you can get two of the bestselling flavours in this twofer Christmas set.
It includes coconut, a clear, hydrating option as well as the new Crème Brulee with a nude tint. The formulas are infused with coconut oil, raspberry and passion fruit seed oil that provides shine with no stickiness included.
Buy now £37.00, Boots
Merit The Mini Flush Balm Trio
While there are many hero products in the MERIT collection, including the brand’s newly launched Retrospect fragrance, it excels in its easy-to-apply makeup staples – as is perfectly encapsulated by this set. The trio inside includes the lip matte, lip blush and lip satin in three new and exclusive shades but what remains is the simplicity in application and the ability to stash them in your bag for on-the-go touch-ups.
Buy now £41.00, Merit
VIEVE The Icons
Stock up on two of the most lauded products in makeup artist Jamie Genevieve’s stellar offering at a fraction of the original cost. The Icons gift set stashes the VIEVE Mascara and Skin Nova inside for a limited time, giving you the chance to add the radiance-boosting primer and the long-lasting lengthening mascara to your party season makeup arsenal.
Buy now £42.00, Space NK
Dr. Jart Soothing Superstars
The party season can wreak havoc on our complexions so the gift of Dr Jart+’s Cicpair range will no doubt come very well received. The Soothing Superstars is made up of the Cicapair Tiger Grass Colour Correcting Treatment, Cicapair Intensive Soothing Repair Cream and Cicapair Sleepair Intensive Soothing Repair Mask in mini form to calm, soothe and strengthen the skin barrier. It calls on the power of Centella Asiatica to combat redness and hydrate.
Buy now £45.00, Space NK
ILIA The Party Set
There is no better excuse than the party season to transform your makeup. The playful time of year calls for more playful creations and ILIA’s collation of three of its bestsellers will get you well on your way. The Party Set contains £68 worth of products; the Mini Liquid Powder Chromatic Eye Tint in Fresco - silver taupe pearl shade, Mini Multi-Stick in Lady Bird – a neutral rose and a full-size version of the Limitless Lash Mascara.
Buy now £47.00, ILIA
SUMMER FRIDAYS The Lip Butter Balm Set
Choosing just one of the Lip Butter Balm to hydrate your parched pouts is no easy task but fear not for this Christmas SUMMER FRIDAYS has removed indecisiveness from our lip care. The brand has bundled together three flavours of its beloved balms to soothe winter-chapped lips. The silky formula is one of the best on the market; not only do the flavours make for a delicious treat but the formula infuses lips with intense moisture and shine.
Pink Sugar is our favourite, but Cherry brings with it a sheer red tint that is suitably festive. Rounding off the trio is Sweet Mint, a fresh, tingling clear balm. The Butter Balms are vegan, cruelty-free and free from parabens, synthetic dyes and sulphates.
Buy now £48.00, Cult Beauty
Best beauty gift sets for Christmas under £100
Westman Atelier Petite Fête Edition
Small but mighty, the Petite Fête Edition combines three popular Westman Atelier favourites in mini form for easy touch-ups of colour and sparkle. The trio includes the brand’s beloved cream blush, highlight and mascara. The latter, the Eye Want You Mascara, imparts a pigmented, volumising formula for fluttery lashes, while the Baby Cheeks Blush Stick and Lit Up Highlight Stick are all about glow.
Buy now £55.00, Cult Beauty
Jones Road The City Lights Kit
Bobbi Brown’s Jones Road brand has made a name for itself with its kits – bundles that provide everything you need to recreate the beauty entrepreneur's signature natural makeup looks, and they always go down a treat.
The idea behind The City Lights Kit came from the holiday season in New York City. Inside are a quartet of products that offer a subtle pop of colour. These include the Mini Miracle Balm in new hue Chic, the Mini Miracle Balm in shimmering Magic Hour, The Mascara and Cool Gloss in Rosy.
Buy now £60.00, Jones Road
Gisou Honey Gloss Hydration Heroes Gift Set
Each product in the honey-enriched Gisou collection feels like an opulent experience with every use. This Christmas, you will find the brand’s bestsellers in a bumper pack to transform your routine with sustainable ingredients, all of which have been sourced from founder Negin Mirsalehi’s bee garden.
These include a full-size lip oil and hair perfume. The Watermelon Sugar lip oil is tinted, giving a subtle wash of colour, shine and delicious aroma, while the Hair Oil combats frizz and flyaways. The Hair Perfume is scented with the Gisou signature honey aroma and the mask is on hand for deep conditioning.
Buy now £68.00, Cult Beauty
Sol De Janeiro Hydration Celebration Body Routine
Every Christmas, Sol de Janeiro takes holiday gifting to the next level. The curated sets are housed within fun, playful and vibrant boxes that will ignite a squeal of delight for the person lucky enough to find them under their tree. There are options at every price point but for the die-hard fan of the brand or as the ultimate introduction, the Hydration Celebration Body Routine is top of our wishlist.
You will find the iconic Brazilian Bum Bum Cream, Body Scrub, Firmeza Body Oil, Cheirosa 62 Perfume Mist and the Brazilian Play Body Gel Wash inside. The definition of a cult product the Bum Bum Cream is joined by other heroes – all to provide the utmost deliciously-scented nourishment to every stage of your bodycare routine.
Buy now £77.00, Space NK
Medik8 Morning Glow Up - C-Tetra Luxe 30ml & Hydr8 B5 Intense
Streamline your morning routine with this duo from Medik8. The brand may be best known for its retinal-based serums but the Morning Glow Up is on hand to elevate your AM routine through the brand’s highly moisturising Hydr8 B5 Intense and C-Tetra Luxe.
The former is enriched with hyaluronic acid with a potent formula of the plumping ingredient, while the latter harnesses vitamin C to brighten, improve the look of pigmentation and reduce the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines.
Buy now £85.00, Amazon
MALIN+GOETZ That’s The Spirit Gift Set
One sniff of the MALIN+GOETZ dark rum fragrance and it’s clear why it’s a cult product. The addictive aroma is heady and seductive and one you’ll want to fill your home.
This gift set includes a candle and eau de parfum so you can present a new signature scent for both their personal and home scenting. Ripe for self-gifting too.
Buy now £89.00, Space NK
Aesop Screen 2 Kit: A Geranium Leaf Trilogy
The Aussie apothecary-style skin and bodycare label counts the likes of Kendall Jenner, Margot Robbie and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley among its extensive fan base. For a failsafe gift idea, you really can’t go wrong with any of the extensive genderless selection boxes.
In the ‘Screen 2’ kit, there is thrice the invigorating power with the Geranium Body Cleanser, Geranium Body Balm and Geranium Lead Body Scrub. The ingredient is included for its soothing, plumping and restorative properties.
Buy now £95.00, Aesop
Best beauty gift sets for Christmas over £100
Elemis The Pro-Collagen Perfect Partners
The Pro-Collagen products are the most well-known and revered in the Elemis offering and this Christmas, the botanical British brand has bundled the two bestsellers; the luxurious balm cleanser and the anti-ageing day cream. The Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm lifts dirt and grime from the day using a rich combination of oils that leaves skin nourished and hydrated, while the Pro-Collagen Marine Cream plumps and firms the skin with a gel-cream texture.
Buy now £100.00, Space NK
K18 Biomimetic Hairscience Next-Level Hair Repair Set
What better excuse than the festive season to transform your haircare regime? Investing in K18 is the first step in revising your mane-stressing routine, incorporating powerful formulas that fortify the vitality of the strands.
The brand is known and loved for its Peptide Prep Detox Shampoo which effectively cleanses locks. This is included in the Next Level Repair Trio gift set alongside its other hero, the Leave-In Molecular Repair Hair Mask which infuses a signature blend of amino acids. Last but not least, the Molecular Repair Hair Oil enhances shine and tames.
Buy now £109.00, Cult Beauty
Oribe Holiday Collection
Transform hair wash days into a luxurious, mindful practice with a gift set from Oribe. Before you even get to the products, the exteriors of the seasonal bumper packs exude opulence with their design inspired by Ancient Egypt: think flowing hair figures and intricately detailed columns.
For 2024, the brand has created sets ranging in price from £33 to £295 with options to suit all hair types. Overwhelmed by the choice? Our top pick is the Gold Lust Collection. It contains products that everyone needs; the Gold Lust Shampoo, Gold Lust Conditioner and Gold Lust Oil in a travel-ready size.
Buy now £110.00, Selfridges
Diptyque Holiday Candle Set, 3 x 70g
Nestle this combination of scented candles under your Christmas tree for failsafe delight come December 25. The French fragrance house has launched three limited-edition candles for the festive season and you can opt for all three in mini form to set the ambience and ensure that it truly is the most magical time of the year.
Sapin takes inspiration from pine trees with its addictive forestry aroma, while Sweet Treat mimics the scent of sugary seasonal goodies. Etoile is light and bright with floral touches.
Shop more Christmas-inspired scented candles here
Buy now £120.00, John Lewis
Augustinus Bader Winter Radiance System
There is an array of gift sets available at Augustinus Bader and if your budget will allow, you really can’t go wrong with any of them. The brand has a celebrity clientele that includes Victoria Beckham, Kim Kardashian and Jennifer Aniston and is known for its trademarked complex TFC8 which is at the heart of the product line-up and was created to encourage cellular renewal.
The Revitalising Essentials (£145) is the seasonal reset that our skin has been looking for. It contains the award-winning The Cream, a cult formula that plumps and conditions skin as well as The Serum to bring hydration and nourishment. There are also The Eye Patches to counteract dark circles, earned from wrapping presents into the early hours. The trio will work in tandem to hydrate, smooth and give skin a radiant glow.
The holiday sets - like the Supreme Collection (£1,355) pictured - are presented in signature Bader-blue gift boxes.
Buy now £170.00, Augustinus Bader
Victoria Beckham Beauty Satin Kajal Liner Greatest Hits
The Victoria Beckham Beauty Satin Kajal Liner is a cult buy. The former Spice Girls has created an eye product unlike any other on the market with a silky soft texture that glides across lids effortlessly. The colours are intriguing yet wearable and you’ll find eight of the bestsellers housed in this luxe travel cylinder case – the icing on the cake.
Within you’ll find the traditional black hue, Sequin Green, Bronze, Cocoa, Sea Grey, Olive and Sequin Green. There is also Cinnamon - a warm brown shimmer.
Buy now £195.00, Victoria Beckham Beauty
ghd Chronos & Helios Deluxe Set, Ice Luxe Blue
ghd is channelling the iconic marketing from How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days and is encouraging us all to frost ourselves this Christmas. Its Iced gift set sees the Chronos and Helios hair tools given a wintery makeover.
The Chronos, newly launched into the range, transforms the straightening and styling process. In ES Best tests, we found it massively shortened the time taken to achieve sleek locks – one pass is all that was required. Helios is the brand’s beloved hair dryer that you’ll find used in professional salons around the world. It’s all about retaining shine and putting the control in your hands. It’s stashed in a luxury vanity case.
Buy now £428.00, John Lewis
