Curiously Carmen

Gift Ideas for Friends Under $20

Well, it’s that time of the year again… PRESENTS! But I love posts like this and coming up with gift ideas. I decided that this post will be gift ideas under $20 for friends.

a

1. Lush bath bombs, $5-$9: Lush bath bombs are quite popular presents to give and receive, and for a good reason too. They smell nice, they look pretty, and make you feel good! They also make good stocking stuffers. Bath bombs start at $5 and go up to $9 for the really fancy ones. I don’t think I would ever purchase a $9 for myself, but I wouldn’t mind buying that for someone.

On another note, you could check out other companies that make bath bombs as well. I picked up some on my recent weekend trip to Victoria, from a local company based in Saltspring Island named Saltpring Soapworks. Compared to Lush, the prices were cheaper there! Some other stores that sell bath bombs are the Rocky Mountain Soap Company, The Body Shop, and Amazon.

unnamed (2)

2. Macarons, $1-$20: Macarons are sweet, colourful, and so cute! They also act as great decor because they brighten up a room. How can you not love macarons? Depending on your budget, you could buy a couple, or a box of them. Some delicious places for macarons in Vancouver are Bon Macaron (read my review here), Theirry, Faubourg, Lauduree, and Soirette.

ab

3. Tsum tsums, $5-$15: OMG, I am in love with tsum tsums. They are so adorable and I want them all! I normally HATE plushies because they just take up room and collect dust, but I am willing to make an exception for tsum tsums. There are so many different Disney tsum tsum characters to choose from. You’ll be sure to find one for someone!

abc

4. Funko figurines, $10-$20: Funkos are another cool gift idea for that friend who loves fictional characters. Funko has so many different kinds of characters from so many different TV shows, games, and movies! If i had the space and money, I would definitely buy a collectors shelf and just collect them all!

abcd

5. Board games, $5-$20: If your friend is a fan of board games, consider buying them a new board game! Many of my board games are under $20 and are really fun. Take a look at your local board game store and check out the clearance section or the area near the cashier, that is usually where the cheaper games are. I recently bought a card game named Poo for $10 and it’s hilarious!

Check out my holiday gift idea posts from previous years as well!

Intangible Holiday Gift Ideas

Holiday Gift Ideas for the Boyfriend (Post 2)

Holiday Gift Ideas for Parents

Holiday Gift Ideas for the Boyfriend (Post 1)

Tried & Tested Gift Ideas Under $20 (For girls) 

Christmas Gift Ideas for Friends, Under $15

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from my blog to you, my fellow reader! I hope your day will be/has been filled with fun, family, and great food!
Merry XmasI have been trying to keep busy with all the Christmas festivities thus far … Christmas movie marathon, baking Christmas treats, and going to see the beautiful city lights in my amazing city, Vancouver, in Canada. This picture above was taken in downtown by the water. I still have a few locations that I want to check out before everything is taken down!

Van dusenAndddd here is another picture of me bundled up, I call this my black marshmellow outfit because I look very puffy but it keeps me nice and warm. My toque also makes me look like a pom pom. This was taken at one of Vancouver’s big city gardens, where they have an elaborate light show every year. Probably my favourite Christmas event to go to!

Have a wonderful day and talk soon! Merry Christmas again to you all!
-Carmen

Christmas Holiday Nails!

Christmas radio playlist on repeat, planning holiday parties for work,  and some Home Alone movie nights later, it is safe to say that I am getting into the holiday spirit. Last night, when I was sick at home and watching Home Alone 2 (it never gets old), I had the sudden urge to repaint my nails. Then, I realized that I should paint them in the holiday spirit!
XmasHere is what I ended up with! Pretty simple and classic, but with a holiday twist. Depending on what angle you look at them, it can look a bit more sparkly or not 🙂 Random fact about me, whenever I watch movies, I can’t just sit still and watch the movie… I always have to be doing something, which is why I painted my nails. I’ll also be working overtime tomorrow at my company’s holiday party for our members, so might as well have pretty nails at the registration table and show some holiday spirit.
Xmas nails redI applied two coats of Revlon’s Colourstay in #130-Velvet Rope. It was my first time using it, I thought it was very pigmented and had a really deep, rich, and red colour. One coat would have been sufficient, but I normally do two coats of colour. I found that the drying time of this polish was a bit longer than I was used to, but I was just watching a movie as I was painting so I didn’t really mind.
Xmas sparkleI could have stopped there, but I love glittery and sparkly things and thought that sparkle polish would really add a Christmas twist and holiday magic to it. I used the Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Xtreme Wear in #305-Shine On. I’ve always had great experiences with Sally Hansen polishes, it’s my favourite drug store nail polish as it doesn’t chip easily, easy application, has great pigment/colours, and is very affordable.

Originally, I was debating if I should just paint the tips of my nails or just one nail for accent, but I decided to paint all of them because I love the sparkly look. The sparkles reminded me of tiny snowflakes, or little stars in the night sky. I always used to paint my nails a deep, dark blue or black, and use glitter polish on top to look like the sky so this is just a Christmas version of that. Something about the starry night sky is just so pretty to me and if I could capture a bit of that on my nails, I don’t mind at all.

I’m already thinking of the next holiday themed nails! Maybe I’ll share that too. What are your favourite holiday themed designs to do?

-Carmen