Hello, lovely people.
Welcome to this year's Christmas Gifts Guide.
Now, a lot of you ask me for tips, whether it's for your friend or family member who really loves vintage
or you love vintage yourself
and people are asking you what to get you and you just don't know.
So here are six of my absolute favourite things
that I think will be great gifts this year.
Start with a disclaimer: None of these items are sponsored;
these are my very honest opinions;
however, some of them have been gifted to me
and sent so I can try them out and see what I think.
So I'm very much just sharing with you my own honest thoughts.
Number one:
We're going to begin with one of my absolute favourite companies!
If you follow me on Instagram - which...obviously, you should -
you will know that I wear Bésame lipstick SO MUCH.
Bésame make vintage make-up
using--either recreating historical formulas
or just the colours
using modern techniques, because let's be honest: we don't wanna put lead on our faces any more.
No, no, we don't. Nope.
And they also have this tie-in with Disney
so they will do different collections based on various Disney properties.
Like they did an Agent Carter one.
Be still my beating heart.
And Snow White.
Love Snow White.
And their latest one is Mermaid Lagoon.
So, Bésame Cosmetics have sent me complementary pieces
of the Snow White and Mermaid Lagoon series
so I can try them out and tell you what I think.
It comes in a beautiful box!
So if you're perhaps gifting to someone who doesn't live near you
and you're getting the things sent directly to them,
you know it'll be lovely when it arrives.
Now, I made a Bésame review video before,
just talking about the different products and how they work for me; the different formulas.
I think we did lipsticks, face powder, and mascara.
Put the link to that video down below and in the card above,
and I talked about different application techniques as well
for vintage make-up, because it is slightly different to how we do things today.
'The Bésame Bugle,'
which is a little vintage newspaper
that tells you all about the specific collection that you are receiving.
Bésame worked with Disney's Ink and Paint Department
to find [inaudible] and concept art that spoke to the independent and strong-willed nature of the mermaid.
So the colours are actually taken from the film itself.
I'm going to begin, however, with Snow White.
Now, every vintage girl loves a scarf.
And one of my favourite things about them is that they're a very versatile present.
It does not matter whether your friend has got hair down to her bum
or the shortest crop imaginable -
there is something that they will be able to do with a scarf.
Oh! I have a video about scarfs. I forgot about that.
I have a video about things you can do with scarfs in a vintage way.
You can watch that.
Going to be wearing that later on.
Next up, we have the Snow White's Pies, which are a variety of lip balms.
We've got gooseberry; apple; and cherry.
And one thing that's so great about Bésame
that I really love is that it makes your little dressing table look delightful.
The packaging - dear Lord, the packaging.
We've then got three lipsticks from the Snow White collection
(which is the 1937 collection).
The three colours I've got are Snow White Red, Love's First Kiss, and One Bite.
Next, moving on to Mermaid Lagoon,
which came with stickers!
Beautiful holographic packaging.
Oo, it's kind of trippy, isn't it?
This is the Treasures of the Lagoon Shadow Palette.
These are all colours that are taken from the film itself
and they're really bright and vibrant, as you're about to see.
It shows you exactly where each of the colours have come from.
We've got eight beautiful shades there;
four mattes and four shimmers.
Going to destroy my nails doing this!
This is the Pearl Shimmer Powder
It has a little magnetic opening.
Inside we have a mirror and a little powder pat.
And to match the Pearl Powder is this Golden Sand Bronzer
Again, beautifully, beautifully waved inside.
So pretty.
The non-Bésame make-up that I have always just lives in a drawer.
The Bésame make-up gets to live on the top.
And then we have three lipsticks here.
Now, these lipsticks, they are part of the 1953 collection,
but I would say they're not necessarily lipsticks that you would wear day-to-day in 1953.
The three colours we've got are Mermaid Kiss;
Waterlily Blossom Red; and Starfish Pink.
So, the Mermaid Lagoon collection is I think a bit more "out there"
than the Snow White collection.
With the Snow White, you can still get a very kind of authentic vintage look
but it's, you know, not really stepping outside the boundaries of what people think of as vintage
But that's my favourite look. That's my every-day, go-to look.
Whereas the Mermaid Lagoon, I would say, is--we've got the colours; we have the sparkle.
It's more out there.
Pin-up rockabilly look.
So it's really just that Bésame are stepping out there and really hitting all the different markets in terms of
vintage-y.
But if you have a friend who is just straight vintage.
If she doesn't wear exciting-coloured eye shadow,
go for the Snow White collection over the Mermaid Lagoon collection
when you're giving her - or him - a present.
But if your friend is a bit more, you know, 'wacky colours - why not?'
then yes, Mermaid Lagoon.
Beautiful and it's so fun.
The prices are also really reasonable.
But I would advise you to get a number of things
so that the shipping cost is obviously reduced if you are buying from another country.
Number two: books!
And not just any books - oh, no.
These books are gorgeous.
Now, I'm quite a reader, to the extent that my attic is full of not just clothes!
It's books now, too.
My wife's unaware of these yet.
She hasn't seen them.
One of my favourite ways to give presents is to give someone a subscription to something,
so whether that's a magazine or flowers that arrive every month.
Something that really keeps the gift going.
So, Bookishly are a really small company.
They're British; they're from Northamptonshire.
And they do these great series of books.
So you can either buy the series in one lump
or you can get them delivered month by month by month,
because they have subscription boxes that come with a book and maybe it will come with a little teabag or
it will come with a book and it will come with a mug.
Not just about, 'Oh, here's the book; the object itself.'
It's also: 'How do you consume the book?'
'How do you sit down and lovingly read
whilst sipping your tea?'
The series that I decided to go for, though,
are the Jane Austin series.
Aren't these things gorgeous?
There are six books in the series.
The water colour blot design looks stunning on any shelf.
I also kept the other three wrapped up so you could see
that they come in gorgeous paper, as well.
So you can have them safely delivered to your friend, knowing that they will be very excited to open them up.
The particular Jane Austen series is £40
but they do have books that are a whole other price range -
so if you're working with a smaller budget than that,
there are still options for you.
Number three:
These two things you've previously seen.
Claud and I made a video called 'Wife Saves My Life,'
where we talk about how she has...literally saved my life.
In that video, I also mention these two lovely pieces of jewellery
from a brand called Ana Luisa,
that are now Claud's favourite go-to pieces.
And she wears them so much, I thought it was a really good idea to bring them into the gifts video,
because it's a shop that has a whole kind of range of styles
and I really think you can find something there for pretty much everyone in your life.
Especially this lovely gold bracelet,
which she wears A LOT.
She kind of wears it in a day-to-day environment,
but I think it's also a piece that you could really dress up for evening time.
And then this lovely little ring here
is going to be playing a very special role in Christmastide
All the designers at Ana Luisa have previously worked for some quite big name brands
and now they make these gorgeous limited edition pieces.
They're all really unique, because everything they make is a very limited quantity,
which again is something that's kind of special; I think that adds an extra bit to a present, doesn't it?
Number four:
Now I'm gonna talk about one of my absolute favourite companies!
[Laughing] Ow!
Beautifully done, Clara, thank you.
We don't need to do that again.
[Clara laughs] J: That was... That was wonderful.
Again, if you follow me on Instagram,
you will probably be aware that British Retro are one of my absolute favourite clothing companies.
I have so many of their dresses!
They're a really fab company; everything is made in Britain from vintage patterns.
They have four styles of dress, I believe
and then they change the different fabrics and patterns.
Some of them are super vintage-y; look like you have literally just purchased something from the 1940s
and some of them are more of the Rockabilly,
where you've got skulls and...roses and all that stuff.
I keep trying to convince Clara that she should get some.
So, my favourite look and one that you've definitely seen on Instagram
is this bardot neckline, which is just off the shoulders.
Look at this check!
This is the version with a very large skirt,
but they also have some really good pencil skirt varieties.
It's pretty chilly nowadays and that's where...this comes in!
Ah...
OK.
Now, don't worry, it's faux fur.
They have these fabulous dresses; I also have this one in red.
And in grey.
And in black.
They're really good dresses, OK?
Although the others have a bit of boning in them
and that can be really nice to wear; you don't have to wear a bra with them.
Always good to find a dress you don't have to wear a bra with,
especially if you're, like, a bit larger in the...up here.
These are very stretchy,
so if you don't like incredibly tight clothes,
you don't have to worry when it comes to this particular style.
It's really great, although it's also a little thicker, so it's quite forgiving
if you wanna, you know, hide anything underneath there.
Dresses come in a range of prices, and there's always a sale tab!
So you might be able to find something that particularly tickles your fancy.
I think it's a really good first time buy, as well, if you're just looking into
vintage and retro and dressing in that kind of way
because the styles are
pretty much great for absolutely everyone, it's really just the fabrics that you're choosing from.
They also sell other things that you need to go with them,
like petticoats and accessories - I think they have accessories that are even starting at about the £4...mark.
So if you're looking for a really great present...
why don't you order yourself a dress?
And get some accessories for your friends.
Number five:
Moving on from treating yourself
to treating your entire family.
Oh yeah.
I got a personalised wreath.
Of course I did!
I originally saw these wreaths on notonthehighstreet,
which has like a whole range of different little personalised gifts
but then I looked into the actual company that makes them themselves,
and they're called Twenty-Seven and they're based in England
They make these--ah, I just love this wreath!
I just love it so much.
You get the backing plate in either silver or gold
and it comes with a little personalised family name
so mine says, "The Kellgren-Fozard Family Christmas."
One thing that I think's really, really great about this
and works as a really great family...
I was gonna say heirloom,
but something that you can really kind of pass on and use for various Christmases
is that because the plate is separate
when this wreath does inevitably start to look a little older from being kept in the loft,
you can then still use the backing plate, but with an entirely new wreath.
It's also such a reasonable price;
it's only £45.
It would be a great joint present as well.
A married couple or...someone who's just had a baby.
That type of thing.
Number six:
Ahhh!
Um, yeah. This is another 'treat yourself' present.
You saw this hat the other day in my Quaker Childhood video.
I got some comments on it.
The hat's from Orit [struggling to pronounce] Aviezer
Makes really beautiful, handmade, one-of-a-kind pieces.
She has hats for the day-time;
cocktail hats for a party;
beautiful fascinators.
Lovely things for weddings, as well.
I found her on Instagram; absolutely loved her stuff.
Thank you, by the way, for the person who suggested her to me in my little Instagram post about,
'Help me, I like hats.'
'Who should I go to for hats?'
Fun fact: Orit uses the best materials and really likes to stay as authentic as possible,
so the veil of this hat is actually a vintage veil
and she got it from an old millinery shop in New York!
Totally warms my soul,
and I'm really, really proud that I can now put this on my shelf.
Orit said she's really drawn to the 20s and 50s,
so I think, again, she's a really safe bet if you want to get your vintage friend something,
but you're really not sure what.
I would suggest maybe take a picture of your vintage friend
and send it to Orit;
be like [whispering] 'Hey, Orit, I don't know what decade my friend is.'
[Softly spoken] 'Can you tell me? Point me towards the right hat?'
[Normal voice] And she's amazingly helpful and I'm sure she could definitely
pick you the perfect thing.
So there you go - there are six ideas for what I think will be wonderful gifts for the vintage lover in your life.
Quick challenge for you all: I want you all to write in the comments down below
what is the best, but slightly off-the-wall, present you've ever received for Christmas?
I am very much looking forward to reading through them all.
Hope you've enjoyed the video. Subscribe if you're new here, and I shall see you very soon.
Mwah!
[Instrumental 'Deck the Halls']