Give from the Heart | Mintd Holiday Edition

It’s almost as if I blinked and here we are: December, the last month of yet another year that has gone by and the beginning of the holiday season. Shopping lists are diligently made, deals and bargains are feverishly sought out, the hunt for that perfect gift is so ON!

I think most of us would agree that the perfect gift is that that comes from the heart. It’s thoughtful, caring and unconditional. It’s the gift that says how much someone means to you, how you feel about them and how much you appreciate everything they do. Some of the most memorable gifts of all are experiences you create for those you love, something that that will stay with them and that will be cherished forever.

Mintd is one of those brands that help translate appreciation into the perfect gift. They are a luxury subscription box that focuses on creating a meaningful experience for their customers, featuring a different theme every month and beauty products of the best and highest quality, with brands carried in beauty meccas like Sephora, Space NK, Harrod’s and Selfridges, just to name a few. I have previously covered the brand and how it works in detail here.

For this holiday season, Mintd is unveiling a festive selection of 6 full sized beauty treats (including a multi-tasking brush and my personal favorite, a calming aromatherapy candle), some of the season’s must haves, packaged in a beautiful box and ready to help you, or someone you love and appreciate, relax, pamper and get spoiled. The box is the perfect gift to make anyone feel special and to pique your interest, I have details on every product included.

Wildheart Organics Sanctuary Travel Candle

If you’ve been around my blog for a while (first of all – thank you!), then you would already know there’s always a candle burning around my house. A new discovery this year and a new personal favorite, are the Wildheart Organics candles. Wildheart Organics is brand that, like myself, believes ‘inner peace starts with wellbeing’. They use nontoxic fragrances that are handmade with 100% essential oils, and nothing else, providing real aromatherapy benefits. I was first introduced to these beautiful candles via my Mintd Essential Beauty Sleep Box featured this past October (read more here) and ever since, I’ve been looking into ways to add more of their products into my home.

The Sanctuary blend is the ultimate stress and anxiety relieving candle. The heart of the fragrance is exotic Jasmine, Chamomile and floral Geranim, while calming Rosewood and Patchouli bring soothing base notes to the blend. The 21 essential oils are selected to calm and restore harmony to the mind and spirit, making it perfect for unwinding before and after a busy holiday season. Relish in these beautiful aromas and let the sweet warm scents lift the weight of the world off your shoulders.

Anne Semonin Cream Mask and Face Brush

Anne Semonin is a luxurious Parisian line that combines essential oils with mineral and marine ingredients to create powerful and effective concoctions of active ingredients meant to help the skin detoxify and regenerate. The brand believes that any skin, regardless of age and type, can be nourished, nurtured and revitalized.

Their Cream Mask is the type of product anyone can use. It works to relieve sensitive, dry and irritated skin types and help find comfort. Formulated with White Kaolin Clay to clear the complexion, nourishing botanical oils (corn, sunflower, soybean), shea butter, jojoba, Vitamin E, mimosa wax and remineralizing marine ingredients (sea water, brown seaweed), this creamy, luscious mask works to nourish and replenish the skin. It aims to soothe the delicate complexion while guarding against the elements and slowing down the aging process. It only takes 2 short minutes for this mask to work its magic, but you can also leave it on overnight for a nourishing intensive treatment boost.

Included in the Mintd holiday edition box you will also find the perfect companion to this mask, or any other face mask for that matter: the Anne Semonin Applicator Brush. It has soft bristles that won’t fall out and a long, comfortable handle. The brush is the ideal tool to minimize the spreading of bacteria from hands to face, and I strongly recommend using this tool with any kind of face mask you might have in your beauty stash, especially those masks packaged in a jar.

IOMA Fresh Gel Eye Makeup Remover

IOMA Paris is a luxurious and very exclusive Parisian skincare brand that describe themselves as ‘evidence-based’ or skincare by evidence. That simply means they don’t make bold claims and ask you to believe in them. You try their products and see the results for yourself. Their products, all paraben-free and all dermatologically tested, are meant to enable a comprehensive and nurturing skincare regimen. In the States, most of us are not as lucky to experience this brand as their products are only available at select Saks Fifth Avenue stores and a few products are available at Saks online or FeelUnique online.

I had the immense pleasure of sampling some IOMA Paris products with my Mintd Skin Rehab box (read about it here), so I was pleasantly surprised to see that a full size of the IOMA Fresh Gel Eye Makeup Remover had made it in their holiday edition box. What I like about this eye makeup remover is that it’s gentle enough not to irritate my sensitive eye area, yet it’s effective enough to remove even the most stubborn traces of mascara without tugging at the skin. It glides softly around the undereyes and does an excellent job dissolving my eye makeup while soothing and refreshing the delicate skin around the eyes.  In fact, it goes beyond being just an eye makeup remover. Based on an exclusive IOMA Paris formula, this product works to help condition the lashes and increase their length, volume and strength. Yes, please! I simply can’t get enough of this multi-tasker!

Siskyn Organic Night Facial Oil with Frankincense and Jasmine

Another star product in this Mintd limited edition holiday box is the Siskyn Organic Night Facial Oil with Frankincense and Jasmine. Siskyn, a British luxury, clean skincare brand created by two very inspiring women, was first introduced to me back in October with my Mintd Essential Beauty Sleep box (more here). The more I learned about them, the more I realized we happen to share the same beliefs. We believe that natural, organic botanical oils, often times sidelined for being old-fashioned or hippy, hold the answer for healing, nourishing and maintaining a healthy skin. Siskyn products are highly effective, 100% natural, luxury vegan skincare using only the finest botanical oils and nothing else (not even water). Just pure oils.

The Siskyn Organic Night Facial Oil with Frankincense and Jasmine is an intensive overnight skin boosting treatment formulated with a blend of 17 certified organic, highly active, botanical oils. This oil truly is superfood for your skin and the ingredients attest to that: vitamin- and antioxidant-rich Organic Rosehip to increase collagen production and combat free radical damage, Organic Calendula to soothe and calm, Organic Baobab to aid skin maintenance, Frankincense to regenerate, Jasmine to hydrate and Lemon to brighten and lighten dark spots and age spots.  The oil is very rich and highly effective, thus a little goes a long way, and can be used nightly on clean skin after cleansing.  According to Siskyn, this blend has the highest linoleic acid content of all their face oils, thus making it suitable for all skin types, and an excellent treat for more mature, or dryer skin.

Ellis Faas Milky Lips (in the color L202)

Last, but certainly not least, the Mintd holiday edition box includes a sophisticated liquid lipstick by Ellis Faas from their Milky Lips collection. Personally, I feel the Ellis Faas Milky Lips is an excellent alternative especially for those who dislike the feeling of wearing something on their lips. Blended with Vitamin E, Candelilla Wax and Prune Seed Extract, the formula feels light and comfortable on the lips, while working to plump, smooth and hydrate. The Ellis Faas design team has really outdone themselves with the brilliantly designed pen-like applicator and slender tube. A simple twist of the body dispenses product onto the brush tip. Use it to first outline the contour of the lips and then fully load the applicator to fill them in. No need to mess with any lip liners! The slim and thoughtful packaging will fit perfectly in any makeup collection and is also perfect for on the go as well.

I will say the formula has a bit more slip to it than most liquid lipsticks I’ve tried, more similar to that of a gloss, but unlike a gloss it doesn’t feel sticky and lasts on my lips for about 5 hours. It takes about 3 swipes to get a rich, opaque look. The finish is a very elegant and flattering glossy shine that gently plumps up my lips. The formula is free from parabens, fragrances and flavors, which means this lipstick is suitable for even the most sensitive of skin types.

On the Mintd website right now there is an exciting campaign where you can save 10% on the first box with promo code 10OFF1STD. They ship to the UK, W. Europe, North America and Australia.

What are some of the items on your wish list this holiday season? Please share in the comments down below, I’d love to know.