Grace Magazine’s Guide to Beautiful Stocking Stuffers

Looking for that little extra something to add to your gifts or stuff into a stocking? Here are some small and inexpensive finds from Sephora.

Harajuku Lovers Love Solid Perfume

This romantic fragrance comes in the most adorable packaging. And now, it is in solid form so you can toss it in your purse without fear of spillage.
$18

Korres Jasmine Butter Duo to Go

I love all things Korres. This set includes jasmine shea body butter and lip balm in a sheer neutral pink. All natural and made out of good stuff.

$15

Too Faced Glamour to Go III

‘Tis the season to shimmer. This Too Faced pocket-sized makeup palette contains 8 eyeshadows in lovely shimmering colors, a peachy pink blush, and 4 lip glosses. The packaging is divine.
$19.50

L’Occitane Hands Celebration Set

L’Occitane are my choice for the finest hand creams in the world. This set includes three 1-oz tubes of lavender, shea butter and shea vanilla hand creams. Get a set for yourself. too.
$25

Clinique Full Potential Lips Plump and Shine Set

This set includes five dual-ended mini lip glosses by Clinique. That’s 10 colors of high-quality gloss ranging from peach tones to pinks and plums. What a bargain.
$25

Sephora Color Play Palette II

I could play with this for hours at a time. Sephora’s palette contains 36 eye colors, 12 lippies, 3 powder blushes, and a bronzer.
It’s only 6″ x 7″ so it won’t take up too much precious dressing table space.
$24

Sephora Ultimate Blockbuster

I’m a sucker for makeup palettes.

This Sephora collector’s palette will make a perfect holiday gift for a beauty lover. It contains 84 powder eye shadows in warm and cool shades, 3 blushes, 60 lip glosses, 2 lip liners, 3 eye liners, 6 cream eye liners, 6 matte eye shadows, 6 sparkling eye shadows, and a few applicators.

I have last year’s palatte and I use something from it every day. Just having all of those eye and lip colors is so comforting. No one will use the applicators. But the rest of the kit has good pigment and texture.

Shop for the beauty addict in your life, or for more fun, shop for yourself.

Available at Sephora for $48

Oh, and this, too

Because I am a makeup junkie and a shopaholic, I also bought this six-piece Bare Escentuals kit when I purchased the SPF sampler.

Reviews forthcoming.

Renegade Chic

Set includes:

0.2 oz Lip Gloss in Rose Radiance

0.02 oz BareMinerals Eye Shadow in Dove

0.02 oz BareMinerals Eye Shadow in Graphite

0.02 oz BareMinerals Face Color in Rose Radiance

Angled Face Brush

Eye Defining Brush

$39 at Sephora.

I figured it was worth it for the brushes alone. The makeup colors were a bonus.

Waiting for the Sun

Sephora has a new sampler kit that features a whole bagful of premium sun protection products.

I just purchased the kit so I can review the products for you.

100% of the net profits from the sales of this set will be donated to The Skin Cancer Foundation

Sephora Sun Safety Kit

Set includes:
0.14 oz Murad Essential-C Eye Cream SPF 15

0.23 oz DDF Protect and Correct UV Moisturizer SPF 15
0.5 oz Jack Black Double Duty Face Moisturizer SPF 20
0.25 oz Peter Thomas Roth Max Sheer All Day Defense Lotion SPF 30

1.0 oz Anthony Logistics Facial Moisturizer SPF 15

0.1 oz Clarins UV Plus Day Screen High Protection SPF 40

0.34 oz Korres Watermelon Sunscreen Face Cream SPF 30

0.33 oz Cosmedicine Medi-matte Oil Control Lotion SPF 20

0.08 oz Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Cream SPF 55 PA+++

0.25 oz Ole Henriksen Herbal Day Cream SPF 15

0.4 oz Philosophy Hope in a Jar SPF 20

0.25 oz Smashbox Photo Finish UVA/UVB SPF 15

0.01 oz Bare Escentuals BareMinerals Well-Rested for Eyes SPF 30


expandable, brightly colored beach bag made from recycled plastic.

Stay tuned for more after the kit arrives.

Beauty Stocking Stuffers

Cargo Holiday Nights Collection – $25

Get your festive holiday look in one easy kit.

Cloth box with mirror includes:
-4 sparkly eyeshadows
-1 sweet blush
-1 silver eye pencil
-all-over body sparkle

Sephora Holiday Nights Collection – $24

Lighten up with this set of 5 creamy, shimmery eye pencils.

Set includes:
-black
-copper
-khaki
-night
-silver

Stila Shine On Gift Of Glaze – $28

Get ready to be kissed with this six-pack of lip gloss pens by Stila.

Set includes:
-Vanilla (pearly nude)
-Brown Sugar (shimmering golden nude)
-Raisin (shimmering golden plum)
-Grapefruit (frosted pink)
-Apricot (melon nectarine)
-Gumdrop (vibrant pink)

All gifts available at Sephora.com

Mascara Wars: Day 3 – Sephora Atomic Volume

Sephora – Atomic Volume Mascara

Color: Black

Brush: A round brush with comblike bristles all around.

Consistency: Medium.

Application: The comb separates the lashes with each stroke. A lot of mascara goes on very quickly.

How It Looks: They’re not kidding when they say this mascara has atomic volume. My lashes mushroomed to theatrical lengths.

Removal: I had to wash twice to get it all off.

Reaction: Wowed.

Notes: Get in and get out. This mascara goes on quickly. It’s easy to apply too much. I wouldn’t want to miss and hit my eye with that spiky comb. But the effect is dramatic.

5 Beauty Trends for Spring

Colored Eye Shadow
A bold eye look is hot for spring. 1960s-inspired colors mixed with a smoky eye are the key look for the upcoming warm weather.

Try Sephora’s eye shadow duo #3, a peacock blue/azure blue shimmery pair. Each shadow is enriched with green tea to soothe the eye area. Finish the eye with a black or charcoal liner and lots of black mascara for the latest hot look straight off the runway.

Stained Lips
That just-bitten look is in for spring — glossy and with just a hint of strong color underneath.

Try Stila’s Cherry Crush Lip Stain. It’s sort of a “mood” product that adapts to each person’s pH levels to create a unique look just for you. Scented and flavored like a cherry, Stila’s lip stain also contains pomegranate extracts and vitamins A, C and E for their antioxidant benefits.

If you’d rather create the look with makeup that you already own. Try coating your lips with clear lip gloss, then dabbing on a little plum colored lip stick to create a sheer but glossy stained look.

Rosy Cheeks
Flushed cheeks can be so sexy. Try Cargo’s SuedeBlush in Montebello, a mix of three cheek colors pressed together in one compact. Montebello contains light pink, rose, and neutral beige. So pretty.

Be sure to balance this trend with the others mentioned above. You don’t want to mix all of these tips into one look or you’ll be flashing back to the 1980s.

Strong Brows
We’ve seen strong brows all over the fall runways and now they are carrying over to spring. Fuller brows can give a face a more youthful look. Celebrity brow artist Anastasia Soare has created her own line of brow-care products.

Try her Tweezers Anonymous kit, a 12-step kit for serious brows. It’s perfect for over-pluckers. The kit contains everything you need to fill in sparse areas and create fuller, richer brows.

Frizz-Free Hair
Whether you like your hair straight and sleek or with soft shiny curls, the key word for spring is control. Frizz is out and shiny, smooth hair is definitely in.

Try T3’s mini flat iron. It’s a compact ceramic iron that is small enough for travel and durable enough for everyday use. Use it to smooth the hair shaft, then give a little twist to perk up the ends. You’ll look fun and feminine.

All products available at Sephora.

Sephora Multi-Action Nail Polish

Have you ever tried Sephora nail color?

Sunday night I painted my nails with Sephora Multi-Action Nail Polish and they are still going strong. After several days of wear and tear, they still look shiny, smooth and chip-free.

I’m wearing number 01 Grenat. It’s similar to Chanel’s vamp, a deep dark winey brown.

Sephora Multi-Action Nail Polish

Whether you prefer your nails light and delicate or drenched in a deep, rich, lacquered finish, Sephora’s Multi-Action Nail Polish creates the look you desire while strengthen your nails in the process. The unique fortifying formula reduces nail weakness (which also keeps color from chipping) and fills in ridges, leaving you with a smooth, strong, and even finish.

What’s your favorite nail polish?

Beauty All Day and All Night

Did you ever think you’d find more eye shadow than you’d ever need?

Meet 24 shades of loveliness.

Pop Beauty Day to Play Wallet – $42 at Sephora

What it is:
A makeup artist-inspired palette of 24 eyeshadow shades.

What it does:
This collection of dreamy eye colors takes you from daytime to playtime. Apply a light swash of color for day, then layer color with darker shades for a nighttime of debauchery.

What else you need to know:
The limited-edition palette includes a professional duo brush for convenient application. All 24 shades are triple milled for foolproof blending.

Just look at all those delicious colors. One side is subtle for a pretty day face. The other side is intense for dramatic evenings.

Beauty Stocking Stuffers

Here are some tiny-sized luxury treats to give as sets or divide into individual stocking stuffers.

Bourjois Kisses From Paris Set – $18

A set of 4 mini lip glosses and a keychain so you can clip them to your cell phone or house keys.

Set comes with 4 colors: Beige Elastic 1 (nude beige), Brun Galactic 2 (beige shimmer), Rose Idyllic 3 (frosty pink), and Rose Symphonic 20 (pink pearl with glitter).

Prada Coffret – $50

A set of four mini Prada fragrances. Set includes three scents for women and one for men.

Women: Intense Eau de Parfume, Prada Eau de Parfum, and Tendre Eau de Parfum

Men: Prada Pour Homme Eau de Toilette

Little Luxuries Coffret Set – $45

There is also a mini Dior fragrance set, which includes 4 feminine scents:
Miss Dior Cherie, J’adore, Pure Poison, and Dior Addict.

Sephora Nail Polish – $4 each

Sixty (yes, 60!) glossy shades in a range of classic to funky colors.

Grace Magazine favorites include 07 (red with gold shimmer), 10 (iridescent deep red), 12 (black), 18 (iridescent pink-gold), 37 (rose with silver shimmer), and 58 (clear fuchsia).

My advice is buy yourself everything. Tee hee.

All products available at Sephora.com