Valentine's Day Gift Guide: Part 1

​Alright, people, Valentine's Day is around the corner. I've been trying to get this guide together but there was so much stuff that I'm going to split it into two parts. This part will be accessories, tried and true traditional gifts, etc.

​So let's start with traditional gifts. Flowers and treats. I absolutely love Valentine's Day. I always have. I give gifts to everyone. I give candy bouquets to my dad, I get my momma some flowers and her favorite Dove Chocolate Truffles. I used to get my grandparent's boxes of chocolate. I usually make my husband a "Valentine's Day basket" full of his favorite things: candy, drinks, etc. So I dig the traditional gifts. I love making chocolate-covered strawberries for people or receiving them. Lately, my favorite thing is getting cake pops or cakesicles, the breakable chocolate hearts that are filled with candy, and macarons. They're a little different and, to me, it feels a little more special. As for flowers, I still love fresh flowers. I always go in person to pick them out. Sometimes I make my own arrangement. A much cooler option, and my personal favorite, is the forever roses or year-long roses". I've got some and I've also given them as gifts and I must say I love them. I usually get mine from Rose Forever.

​Next up, jewelry. I've been sticking with just two brands lately. That is Miranda Frye and Ettika. I get to pick out pieces from Ettika sometimes and they rarely disappoint. Especially, when you're picking out "everyday" pieces. This leads me to Miranda Frye, they have the best "everyday" pieces that range from delicate to a little heavier. Mostly all the designs are simplistic and can be worn on their own or layered which is my personal choice. I also really love bracelets and watches stacked. More importantly, I like simple gold cuffs. I'd been looking for some hammered cuffs for a while and I've still not found a good set yet. However, I do have a set of simple gold ones from Moon Magic that I do love entirely. They're lightweight, they don't rattle around, and they go with everything. As always, I'm a big fan of sentimental or personalized jewelry. I've talked about it many times so I won't bore you but Etsy does have some of the best personalized jewelry options out there. I'm still in love with my "saddle/flip ring" that has my grandparent's initials on either side. 

​I've come across some bags that I really love and would love to share. My favorite right now is the Senreve Maestra Bag. It's so multi-purpose, in how you can wear it. These were designed specifically to be "work bags" I believe so you can fit your electronics in it. It also has plenty of room and is super durable. I LOVE camera bags. That's been my obsession for the past year. I never thought I could pull them off but they're my favorite size right now, I've shown them before so I'm trying not to be too redundant. Tory Burch bags I love and in general, that's in my top three brands for bags. I also came across a Kate Spade purse I'd been looking for, for over 5 years. Literally, it had been on my Pinterest board for 5 freaking years and I love it. I finally found it on eBay one day. Now I usually get my bags "preloved" from Poshmark. I've never had an issue with it, my friend J got me into it. I like it way better than eBay. Especially when looking for bags that have been discontinued like the Tory Burch one I'm gonna show you.

​Some other cool items that I think make fantastic gifts are crystals. I get mine from Southern Leigh Essentials. She has some beautiful points, towers, and palm stones. She also usually has sage bundles, palo santo sticks, and dried flower packets to make your own rollerballs or body oils with. Very cool.

​Lastly, I'm obsessed with Sunglasses. I have two favorite pairs out of my collection and that is a pair of tortoise Gucci ones and then a pair of Miu Miu Stardust sunglasses. 

I realize that if you're giving a gift to someone that it can be hard to figure out what would suit them, especially when it comes to bags, sunglasses, or even jewelry. This is where I give you my main tip and that's: check out Pinterest, man. Especially, their Pinterest boards because there is often a board of "fashion" or "accessories", or something of that nature. My other tip is to check out their Instagram to see what they like (for instance: books, or things they collect) and what type of jewelry or accessories they wear. Although you can't go wrong with a "Valentine's Day basket" or candy bouquets of their favorite treats and drinks. 

That's it for part one. Next, will be a very long post of skincare and makeup in the whole "treat yourself" realm.