10 Fab Mother’s Day Gift Ideas for Budgets under US$70

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Not everyone is looking at shelling out a few hundred dollars on a Mothers’ Day Gift, but just because you’re on a shoe-string budget doesn’t mean you can’t show your appreciation for Mom. (Or yourself!)

I sifted through a few sites to look for 10 things that have:

• Cheap/Free shipping
• Ship Internationally (only one item doesn’t)
• Cost under $100

Now everyone’s budget is different! So I also tiered it into 3 categories. (Under $30, $50, and $70.)

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Spring Flings: 10 things I’m obsessed with these past weeks

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Here’s a quick summary if you don’t want to read the full post!

1. Stila Color Balm Lipsticks in Betsey and Elle
2. 1920s scents: Shalimar and Bois des Iles
3. Light coverage: MAC Face & Body, Ginvera Green Tea Nude Cover BB Cream
4. Make Up For Ever Super Matte Loose Powder #12 (flash-back)
5. The Body Shop Colour Crush matte eyeshadows
6. Strong bright blushes
7. NYX Yellow pencil
8. LUSH Rockstar soap
9. Revlon Colorstay Concealer in 03 Light Medium
10. The art store

More details below!

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Sugar and Spice: Fun Holiday Perfumes Part 2 - Spice

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If the girl who wears sugary scents is a bit of a tease and a flirt, then the one who leaves a trail of smoky spices is the intriguing enigma.

(If you prefer the sweet side of things, the “Sugar” fragrance post is right here!)

Spices always speak of mystery and history. They smell very interesting, because they are undeniably food-like, but aren’t accessible or necessarily as easy to like as sugary vanilla and fruit notes. Most tend to be a little pungent or sharp, and depending on which part of the world you are from, they might smell outright offensive to you.

If you’re a newcomer to spicy notes, my advise is to start warm (Scents that are paired with a lot of vanilla, amber and other sweet notes) and then slowly graduate to the drier floral or woody ones. 

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Yves Saint Laurent Opium (EDT, EDP, parfum)

Price: $$$

The original Spicebomb, Opium caused an uproar when it was launched with its controversial name, and has survived several decades. If you can think of a spice, it’s probably in there somewhere.

I don’t actually wear this, though I love to spritz and smell it whenever I pass a bottle at a counter. It has a huge personality, and I just feel it wears me rather than me wearing it. The latest version is quite tame and watered-down compared to the original and I’ll leave you to decide if that’s a good or bad thing.

I just think the new bottle is to die for.

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Frederic Malle Noir Epices (EDP)

Price: $$$$$

This is a dark, dry, spice scent that is completely atypical of most orientals. It’s like a masculine cologne in reverse. Noir Epices starts warm, floral and almost sweet, becomes spicy and spiky in the heart, and then all of a sudden it evolves into a paper-dry, soapy, laundry-fresh scent that completely throws me for a loop.

Very atypical, very unisex, and probably only for trained noses. I find this absolutely intriguing and love the opening and the heart, but am undecided about that finish. I include it here because it’s just so darned different from most other spice scents that it’s worth checking out at least once.

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Hilary Duff With Love (EDP)

Price: $$

Absolute gem of a find and SO unlike how you’d imagine a celeb fragrance would smell. This scent features a blend of spices bolstered by milky-sweet mangosteen and classy woods. Comforting and unique at the same time.

This is the celeb-scent for those who DON’T like celeb scents. 

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Bvlgari Omnia (EDP)

Price $$$

The lightest and most transparent of the spice scents, this one is more a spiced tea than spices themselves. There’s a sheerness and freshness that holds everything back; despite the nutty almond and soft white chocolate notes. Don’t expect a very creamy and rich fragrance when you wear this. The interesting part for me is the leathery, herbal bite from the saffron and black tea that keeps things grown-up and interesting.

This has been discontinued but is still available at many discount stores, so check it out before it disappears!

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Lolita Lempicka Si Lolita (EDT, EDP)

Price: $$$

Unique peppery-fresh floral with a sweet-milk drydown due to elemi resin, tonka and amber. (I love milky undertones; what can I say?) There isn’t vanilla although it smells vaguely vanillic. 

Very versatile because it’s nice, fresh, and sweet; not heavy. Kinda reminds me of Omnia in a way, due to the translucence of the whole composition. A big departure from the other sweet and foody Lolita Lempickas.

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Victor & Rolfe Spicebomb (EDT)

Price: $$$

Who cares that this is a men’s scent?? I love it!!

Spicebomb isn’t what you’d imagine something of that name to smell. It’s very creamy and smooth, with a spicy sweetness to it that works for both genders. The tobacco and leather doesn’t stand out too much, which is perfect for me.

There’s also that elemi resin and saffron, which makes me think of Si Lolita and Omnia, which both smell vaguely similar to this, although Spicebomb is stronger and lasts better than either of those 2. One of my absolute favorites for Fall.

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Chanel Coco (EDT, EDP, parfum)

Price: $$$$

Another grande dame, Coco was created referencing YSL Opium, although it’s sweeter (fruits, flowers, cinnamon and cloves). If you like a dash of powdered sugar to your spices, you should probably check out Coco. 

P.S. Coco Mademoiselle is a top seller but really has no resemblance to original Coco as far as spices are concerned. It contains none. Coco Noir is also more a flacon of fuzzy sweetness.

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Serge Lutens Five O’clock au Gingembre (EDP)

Price: $$$$

Serge Lutens was imagining luxurious English tea-time indulgence when he came up with the brief for Five O’clock au Gingembre.

Imagine heaps of zingy pepper and candied ginger, steaming Earl Grey tea, and just a trace of chocolate ganache, cinnamon sugar, and honey for sweetness. Despite the notes, I discovered Five O’clock au Gingembre was not the very sweet and morish scent I was imagining.

It’s sharp, rich, aromatic, and strong. Definitely an acquired taste if you are ambivalent about ginger, but absolutely beautiful if you like it. This one took me awhile, but it’s definitely one of my favorite Serge Lutens. 

Sugar and Spice: Fun Holiday Perfumes Part 1 - Sugar

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Nope this is not a post about food! Sorry!

If you’re like me, and the influence of your sweet tooth extends to more than just your taste in food, you might also enjoy candy-colored makeup, clothes, accessories AND scents.

With the creation of more and more aromachemicals, perfumers have been able to capture an expanding range of smells and experiences that previous generations wouldn’t have ever been able to. Brands like Demeter have turned it into a huge business, and increasingly, modern fragrances have started to incorporate food-like accords, from the caramel popcorn in Miss Dior Cherie to Turkish Delight in niche brands like Keiko Mecheri and Serge Lutens. 

Here are a list of the more unmistakably food-like and a little more accessible options for the girly-girls among us who love teasing the boys by smelling like a piece of walking confectionary.

P.S. If you’re testing in the shops, remember sweet scents smell sweeter on paper, so always test on your skin and let it settle for a bit before buying!

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For Beginners

Prada Candy

This very simple and linear scent is centered around one main thing. Caramel. But it’s not a super-sugary version. The musk and benzoin pull it away from outright edible territory, and it’s really more refined than anything else.

L’occitane Delice des Fleurs

I mentioned this in a previous post, and those of you who enjoy the slightly more exotic and old-school European treats would recognize the powdery-sweet crystallized violets and roses from French confectionaries. This scent is feminine and delicious but not too sugary, so if you happen to like florals this is a good starter scent for getting into the gourmand game.

Fresh Brown Sugar

This citrus scent starts off bright as a glass of sweet, ice-cold lemonade and then warms up into lemon candy as caramel and brown sugar tones start coming in. If you love lemon-tarts or just sparkling citruses, this is a PERFECT scent for getting into the sweeter side of things. The added bonus is that it lasts longer than the typical aquatic fresh citrus fragrance.

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Intermediate 

Katy Perry Meow

Sweet, warm, creamy, Meow is like a pear cobbler that’s still slightly warm. Heavy on the vanilla and creamy to the point of smelling almost like coconut, I once had a colleague exclaim “OMG something smells REALLY good” when I walked past.

If you’re used to celeb fragrances, this isn’t going to be a big change because a lot of them fall right into this category and share the same level of sweetness.

Britney Spears Fantasy

How can we list foody fragrances and not name this magenta gem? This is white chocolate buttercream frosting with a spritz of fruit juice over the top and a single fresh-cut orchid by the plate. I don’t actually find it all that sweet once the fruits at the top fade off. Just buttery and smooth, with a strong orchid tone so it’s not 100% food-like.

Britney Spears In Control Curious

Do NOT like the name and I prefer a bottle that’s easier to hold and use, BUT this is a soft, dark creme brulee scent that’s really pretty and surprisingly soft. The kind of creme brulee that’s not sickly sweet, but made with real fresh vanilla bean scraped from the pod. 

Sweet, but it won’t be likely to make your teeth ache.

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Sugar-rush Level

Britney Spears Midnight Fantasy

I think I’m getting tired of listing Britney scents, but this is a fragrance that my MOM, of all people, raved about when I wore it. It’s intensely berry-like and creamy-sweet. EXTREMELY fun to smell.

If you’re from Asia, you will know what I mean when I say “Grape Hi-Chew Candy” and “Grape Yakult”. Take a sniff next time you get a chance. This doesn’t contain any grape; OR blueberries as so many people like to imagine.

It’s actually made of black cherries and framboise (Belgian raspberry beer), but the combination of musky sweet notes at the base turn the whole thing into a darker, more blueberry-like scent.

Parfums de Coeur Cotton Candy Fantasy

Image by Asher Socrate

This is what this body splash makes me think of. Floating in cotton candy land. Cotton Candy splash is VERY affordable (you can get it from Fragrancex.com at around $6+ for a whopping 8oz and DOUSE yourself in it), and accessible if you’re in the US.

Totally a cheap-thrill.

Tip for body splashes: They don’t last as long as perfume on the skin, but spray on your clothes, and you’ll smell it well into the next day.

L de Lolita Lempicka

This is an interesting one. This blue oceanic gem is a very rich, very sweet, very natural vanilla, tinged with a little bitter orange zest, a hint of cinnamony spice, a buttery almost-saltiness, and an underlying vein of woody-muskiness that keeps it “adult”. Think of an orange cupcake from an expensive French patisserie. It’s not just sugar and flour and fats. It’s flavorful, exotic, slightly spicy.

Created by (AND resembling) the very niche, very expensive Musc Ravageur by Frederic Malle because it was created by the same legendary perfumer, Maurice Roucel, L is a much more affordable way to enjoy this bitter-sweet treat.

It can border on too sweet for many people or too musky, though I know guys who collect niche gourmand scents wear it too.

Jessica Simpson Fancy

Apricot-almond tart all the way. This is one of my favorites because the apricot is strong and almost smells juicy. It’s not completely caramelized and mushy yet. 

Unlike Comptoir Sud Pacifique Vanille Abricot, this is also a lot more complex, with some soft florals, woods and musks to keep it from being too flat and syrupy. I especially love the rich toasted almond note.

VERY delicious, even for someone like me who doesn’t usually like fruity-sweet scents. (I can’t stand most Escadas for some odd reason.)

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INSANELY SWEET

Only one scent takes the crown for this.

Pink Sugar by Aquolina.

Sure, they market themselves as cotton candy, and you DEFINITELY smell that. But that’s on top of the caramel fudge, the rainbow sprinkles, the toasted marshmallows, strawberry pancake syrup, graham crackers AND the layer-cake. (At least that’s what it smells like to me.)

It’s also insanely popular in the US. Very much an acquired taste for anyone who doesn’t have a well-honed sweet tooth, and a potential bio-weapon in the heat. I felt like I would put on 10 pounds just smelling it the other day. BUT - I’m up for the challenge as soon as my bottle arrives.

Plus, it’s so sweet and so strong it pretty much kills any sugar craving I might have, so who knows if that might turn out to be a good thing in the end?

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Note: I did not list other gourmands like Thierry Mugler Angel, Paco Rabanne Black XS etc because they contain strong notes of woods, florals, or herbs that add up to something that isn’t straight-up edible smelling (to me).

Definitely let me know what YOUR favorites are!