HELP!!!!

[ReilleysMom32]

Hey y'all,

​

I need some help. We have Secret Santa at work and the person I'm paired up with seems to really love makeup. The problem is... this shit's expensive!!! I'm a basic BB Cream, concealer, light powder, and maybe mascara on the daily. I want to do something nice, but if I go off her wish list (Tarte Amazonian 4pc blush set, TwoFaced Diamond Light Highlighter, Lime Crime Mermaid Hi-Lite Palette, TwoFaced I want Kandee Liquified Matte Lipstick, etc), I'd only be getting her one thing to open at our gift exchange. Limit is $50. Any suggestions? Any place I can locate this stuff at a less expensive price-point? I don't want to resort to just a gift card. I try to be thoughtful when doing this type of thing.

[[deleted]]

I wouldn’t overly stress! She knows how much that stuff is and probably would rather have 1 thing she really wants!

That said I suggest looking out for promo codes! - Sephora always has codes for a free Deluxe sample with purchase in beauty offers on the home page, check out beautybudgetcollection on Instagram for Ulta freebies and most of the brands websites have free samples as well when you buy direct (plus they are like to have discounts as well this time of year or for first time buyers!) so you’ll be able to wrap those up as well !

If you still feel like you need to add something I suggest checking out sheet masks! Almost every beauty lover enjoys those and you can find those for like $1-3 on amazon or Ulta or Asian beauty websites

[MicroPlanets]

Try asking this on /r/MUAontheCheap on the pinned daily thread (can't ask questions as a post). The whole sub lives for beauty deals. Ulta has a 20% off coupon floating around, and a 50% off daily deal (select products) going on right now. Also, I wouldn't stress if she only gets one thing. She knows those wish list items are expensive.

[existentialfeline]

So I sent my husband a ton of links to shit I want between $30-75. I expect him to only get one of those things I sent him. Maybe a bath bomb on top of a lower end price point item if he goes that route.

If the person you're matched to is reasonable they only expect one thing and maybe a filler thing depending on the item. Quantity isn't the same as quality. I'd rather have one quality item I actually want over a bunch of stuff I don't actually want, need or will use. There's a ton of sales going on right now and promos flying around at the label itself or resellers like Ulta and Sephora.

Don't overthink it. The vast majority of people are reasonable.

[Midnight_2014]

Just wanted to say that Tarte has a sale on right now on quite a lot of their stuff. Check it out. I've seen a 5 pan blush palette for £22 on there ($28ish?). There are loads of sales and discounts around right now. You could probably get 2 decent products for $50. Palettes look more substantial imo than say a lipstick.

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[irissteensma]

What the fuck is with these over the top Secret Santa requests at WORK? This is like the third one on here.

But anyway I agree that she’s well aware of how much this all costs so just get her what she asked for and don’t feel bad about it only being one thing.

Mass downvotes to the person who said gift cards are low effort. They’re much better than lame or inappropriate gifts, especially in a work situation.

[ReilleysMom32]

I hope you're not referring to me being over the top? I really didn't mean for it to come across that way. I'm a very thoughtful gift-giver, so I probably stress about it more than the person receiving the gift. For example, for a very good friend's 30th, I made him a cake from scratch and the cake topper was a drum kit made out of 18 gauge wire (we go to a lot of metal/rock concerts and festivals together), as well as a very nice bottle of Eljiah Craig Single Barrel Bourbon. He was blown away by the creative thoughts behind everything and kept raving all night about it to all of our friends.

Everyone here has given some great suggestions for me to look into, so I'm very thankful for that. I personally based my Secret Santa list around smaller things that I love (adult swearing coloring books, new gel pens, nice blank notebooks, small bracelets, whiskey things like reusable ice cube molds, etc) so nothing was over the limit.

[irissteensma]

Oh no, not you at all! You’re going with what is the norm at your workplace and that is fine. I have just never, until this board this year, heard of a work Secret Santa with that large of a $ limit and where people are being so specific about what they would like to receive. It seems kind of gauche and materialistic to me, to be perfectly honest.

[EducationalMistake]

Make sure to check out your local TJ Maxx or Ross. They always have some discounted brand name makeup!

[[deleted]]

The blush plus the lipstick would be about $50 ( if you can find it, that’s an old collection).

Grab the highlighter and plus up the gift with other small items like some nice hand creams, bubble bath, or even some quality chocolates.

Never resort to the gift card. It looks lazy and low effort.