We are about a month away from holiday season and I wanted to share with you some of the best holiday gifts you can offer your loved ones this year… For both him AND her! I’m pretty blessed in being able to select the best gifts for holidays and events, but I realize it’s not always as easy! And let’s be honest – some people are quite picky! Listed below are a small list of items that work for both men and women and you can adjust these items for any budget. I hope you will be inspired by my version of the best holiday gifts for him and her!
All photos are links to the items in case you’d like to pick up a quick little holiday gift as you scroll. 🙂
Best Holiday Gifts: Scarves
I feel like this is a not so obvious , obvious choice for the best holiday gifts if you know what I mean. We all know that scarves are a wonderful holiday gift to give, but I never see them being given! It’s a gift that works no matter where you live and depending on the material, it can be worn year round. If you live somewhere cold, a cashmere or wool blend is the obvious choice. If the climate is more mild, perhaps a silk blend is a better choice. Or perhaps you live in a very warm climate? Go for a silk twilly! They can be worn in many different ways for both men and women.
I recommend sticking with neutral colors unless you know happen to know the recipient’s specific style or favorite color. This goes without saying but when you give a gift, you want it to be used! A beige, gray, white, or even black scarf tends to go with everything. It may be tempting to go for the glittery rainbow or heavy tartan option, but that is much harder to style and it isn’t for everyone, either. Remember, less is more!
As for brands, Gucci is a no brainer. However, I also adore Alexander McQueen, Burberry, and local cashmere stores that aren’t necessarily a name brand. The latter is an excellent option if your recipient is more discreet. Do avoid polyester blends – it’s worth spending a little more for higher quality materials, especially in scarves. Believe me, there is a difference. Nobody likes shedding, piling, or pulled threads!
Best Holiday Gifts Bracelets
Coming off from the scarves, I feel like bracelets are enormously underrated as a gift, especially for men! The amount of brands that create high quality silver or fine jewelry for men is quite impressive, but not often talked about. Accessories truly pull a look together, regardless of gender.
Gucci does excellent silver bracelets but it’s chemical-free, meaning that it will oxidize naturally. You can clean this with silver cleaning products or even toothpaste yourself. However, it is still a better option than costume jewelry as the materials aren’t typically as high of quality and in time, it will fade. You also want to avoid getting costume jewelry wet or putting products on it, such as lotion, hand sanitizer, or perfume. That is why I recommend silver or fine jewelry if it’s in the budget! That way, the recipient can wear it all the time and not worry about damaging it on accident.
If you prefer the look of costume jewelry, I do recommend Dior, Swarovski, and APM Monaco. I’ve found that pieces from them tend to be higher quality and they hold up rather well. Don’t forget about your local jewellers, too!
Best Holiday Gifts: Watches
Watches always come up on the best holiday gifts lists for men, but they’re an excellent gift for women, too! It’s no secret that a man’s watch says a lot about them, but I believe this holds true for women, too. There are so many chic and feminine watches out on the market now, it’s worth taking a look if you’re needing to find a good and meaningful gift for someone (or yourself!). For a woman, a watch truly is an additional piece of jewelry.
Of course, there are the common luxury names such as Cartier, Rolex, and Patek Philippe. While these are some of the best names in the watch market, check out some of these non-luxury brands if you’re looking for something different and more affordable. I recommend Hokzkern (mostly for men), Fossil, and Bulova.
Best Holiday Gifts: Evening Purse / Pochette
As a stylist, the amount of clients that I work with that don’t have an evening purse or pochette is astounding! Every man and woman should have at least one good quality evening purse or pochette when they go out to a nice dinner or event. The outfit can be perfect but if the accessory isn’t, it will ruin the whole look which is such a shame. Thankfully, it’s pretty easy to find a good quality evening piece at a good price.
For a woman, black is key. It goes with every outfit and will become the go-to evening bag. I recommend one with a strap that can be removed or hidden so that it can be worn as a crossbody, shoulder, or clutch moment. Versatility is key! Satin and velvet are fun materials as well, but they damage more easily. For that alone, I would stick with gifting good old fashioned leather purses. Jimmy Choo is highly underrated in the purse department and their evening bags are outstanding. Chanel’s wallet on chains are excellent, and also check out Pinko! Just about every brand does these in some way, shape, or form.
For men, I also recommend sticking with black for the same reasons listed above. However, we can play with leather and canvas prints here! Gucci does some excellent pochettes for men in their GG supreme print in grey as does Louis Vuitton in their grey monogram. However, if you want to play it safe, go for a grained black leather. They’re easy to style and harder to scratch. I recommend avoiding straps for the evenings; the look becomes too casual. However, a removable wrist strap is key! Zadig & Voltaire, Burberry, and YSL all do excellent men’s pochettes, too.
Best Holiday Gifts: Perfume and Cologne
Last but certainly not least, perfume! This is the trickiest one on my list of best holiday gifts. Perfume/cologne is a very personal item that always changes on the person who is wearing it. The way I recommend gifting this for the holidays is if:
- You already know the recipient’s favorite perfume/cologne (I once got gifted Mademoiselle by Chanel because a family member knew I was almost out at the time).
- The recipient has mentioned a brand/smell combo they love (pro-tip – go shopping at Sephora together and stop by the fragrance section and test some out! It’s innocent, but gives you valuable intel).
- You go for a gift set (this typically includes mini makeup, lotion, or even after-shave along with the mini bottle of perfume or cologne).
Personally, I prefer the last option! It’s always fun to receive a little gift set full of goodies. Plus, it allows you to discover other products from a brand you love, but may not necessarily go out and purchase yourself. I actually found one of my favorite red lipsticks this way. Plus, the packaging is always on point.
Final Thoughts
Thank you so much for reading my Best Holiday Gifts for Him and Her post! I truly hope I was able to inspire you for the holidays and that I was able to help relieve some holiday purchasing stress for you. Just remember – an actual gift is much more meaningful and impactful than cash or a gift card. However, always include a gift receipt just in case. 😉
Make sure to check out my Best Luxury Purchases of 2022 post for more gift giving inspiration (or simply to treat yourself!).
SUBSCRIBE
Make sure to subscribe in order to get a weekly email reminding you of my new blog post. 🙂 I appreciate you!
XO, Tess
**Some of the above links are affiliate links, which means I get a small commission if you buy something using my link. You don’t have to use them if you’d prefer not to. You do NOT get charged extra for using the above links.
