I love finding the perfect gifts for my friends and family over the holidays. I made a gift guide last year for the “twenty-everything,” and I’m back again this year with FIVE gift guides to give you ideas for everyone on your list! This guide is all about what to give your hostess friends for the holidays. Keep scrolling to see my picks, and stay tuned for the upcoming gift guides in the coming days!
I love pumpkin spice as much as the next #basic girl, I truly do. It's the perfect fall flavor and I love when it comes back in season. However, nothing can ever beat the peppermint craze that surrounds the holidays. It's everything from candy canes to peppermint bark, and I can't get enough of it.
Over here on the east coast, it's been insanely warm this year. It hit 70 degrees yesterday—in the middle of December! I love the cold, so it has definitely not been feeling like the Christmas season so far. Today, I decided it was peppermint to the rescue! I've created a boozy peppermint milkshake so you too can enjoy the flavor of the holidays while staying cool.
Ingredients:
2 large scoops peppermint ice cream
1.5 oz peppermint schnapps
crushed candy canes or peppermints for garnish
To Make:
Dip the rim of your glass in simple syrup and then in the crushed candy.
Blend the ice cream and the schnapps together in a blender. I like to keep an eye on it while blending; I like still having a few lumps of ice cream in my cup. It doesn't make for the prettiest presentation, but it's definitely yummy!
Pour into glass and serve immediately.
This recipe makes one drink, but it's easily multiplied and easily eyeballed–just throw a bunch of ice cream in the blender with some schnapps and you're good to go! Mini candy canes make great additional garnishes for your glasses too.
The holiday season is a great time to try something new with your makeup. This sparkly time of year allows for bold lips and bright eyeshadows, and the party scene is the perfect place to test the waters.
The two looks I'm showing you today are perfect opposites–one plays up the lips, and the other focuses on dramatic eyes.
For this look, I start out with my normal primer and foundation. Add some bright white/silver eyeshadow all over the lid, and line the top lid with a heavy, dramatic wing.
Add blush and highlighter, and finish with a bold lip. I'm using Maybelline's Red Revolution–it's the perfect Christmas red!
For the second look, I keep the foundation and blush the same.
To get the smoky eye, layer a few dark gray eye shadows in the crease and outer corner of the lid. Sweep a little of the gray under the eye–don't be scared! It's intimidating, because you definitely don't want to look like a raccoon or a panda bear, but adding a little of the gray underneath really helps blend out the eyeshadow and prevents it from having a sharp line. Then add black on the outer half of the lid, and a lighter silver on the inner half. Blend it all out with a fluffy brush, and add a little white to the inner corners to brighten them up.
Add a pink or a nude lip to balance out the drama of the eyes. And don't forget the mascara!
Are you planning on trying out either of these looks this holiday season? Let me know if you'd be interested in a more detailed tutorial in the future!
Y'all already know that gift guides have been one of my favorite things this past month, so you knew I couldn't get away without doing one of my own! Now, to be honest with you, I haaate the term "20-something." It's so often used derogatorily, and as a 20-something myself, I don't like being belittled or underestimated. TODAY, however, I present to you a gift guide for the 20-everything! These gifts can apply to women in all the stages of our 20s, and you know what? I think we deserve to be celebrated. It's hard out here for us girls. I'm sure any and all of these gifts would be appreciated by the 20-everythings in your life.
KATE SPADE 'ALL IN GOOD TASTE' | $28
This book promises to transform you into the hostess everyone wants an invitation from with its numerous how-tos, essays, recipes, and more. Have you ever seen a cuter coffee table book?
THE SPRINKLE CARRY ON COCKTAIL KIT | $24
This kit provides everything you need to make two sprinkle vodka & tonics mid-flight - all you need to add is the hard stuff.
HAVE A CUP OF CHEER HAND STAMPED SPOON | $17
Each letter on this spoon is stamped by hand on a vintage spoon, so each one has a perfect handmade touch. Paired with a mug and some marshmallows, this would be a perfect gift!
2016 GARANCE DORÉ | $26
This gorgeous calendar doubles as wall art with its gorgeous illustrations with French illustrator, author and photographer Garance Doré. Check out Rifle Paper Co.'s other calendars too.
FESTIVE PHRASES PILLOW | $68
The beautiful embroidery and sequins on these pillows make them stand out against your standard holiday decor. Check out all five options!
OVERSIZED GRID CHECK SQUARE SCARF | $33
I've been lusting over this scarf for months now. It sold out and recently was brought back, so I'd snap it up now before it sells out again!
PINK BELLINI BIJOU CANDLE | $32
Candles can transform the feel of a space so quickly. This one mixes floral, citrus, and musky scents, and the container couldn't be prettier.
Happy December 1st–or as I like to call it, Christmas 1st! The holiday season is my absolute favorite time of year. Everything is sparkly and exciting, everyone is generally in a great mood, and cheesy holiday movies are abundant.
Those predictable Christmas movies aren’t for everyone, but my family loves them. I mean, loves them. The storylines are all so similar, and they all wrap up within a neat hour and a half (or two hours, if you’re watching with commercials). They’re always a reliable choice to put me in a spirited mood, and nothing is better than cozying up with a mug of hot chocolate, a blanket, and your closest friends with one of these “classics.”
My mom and I have been working on a list of events that make an uncanny number of appearances throughout these movies over the past couple years, and I finally made them into bingo cards! Now you can host a Holiday Movie Bingo party and laugh your way through the predictability of these movies too. There are 8 different cards, so you can invite over as many friends as can fit in your living room. Play along by tagging @xheightment and #HolidayMovieBingo on Instagram! (Bonus: they can also double as a fun drinking game, if you so choose!)
Some of my favorite movies are the ones that come on the Hallmark channel and Lifetime, but Netflix has some great options too! Check out Christmas Crush, 12 Dates of Christmas, Holiday Engagement, Holidaze, A Christmas Kiss, The Mistletones, and All I Want for Christmas—and once if you've watched all of those, Netflix will just keep recommending Christmas movies to you until the end of time. Or at least until the end of the year!
Now I know you’re going to want to play this more than once, so instead of using traditional bingo daubers, try using Hershey’s Kisses or peppermints as markers! I found these adorable Kisses that look like Santa hats—how cute are they???
And of course, don’t forget to have prizes for the winners!
What are some of your favorite holiday movies? Are you a more traditional, Miracle on 34th Street and It's a Wonderful Life type? Or will you be playing #HolidayMovieBingo with me this year and watching all the cheesy romances?
