And here we are again – Valentine’s Day is around the corner, and it’s time to unveil our annual special gift guide for this occasion. Once again, our team personally reviewed a number of luxury products and we are happy to unveil our Top 11 below!
1) DeLonghi – La Specialista Prestigio
A gift that gives back every morning, the DeLonghi La Specialista Prestigio has everything you need to make a perfect espresso, latte, americano, traditional brew coffee or even a cup of tea. Featuring a built-in grinder with sensor grinding technology, this machine gives the perfect espresso dose every time. The one-second heating system and high-pressure steam wand ensure you don’t have to wait long for your drink. The sleek and stylish design means the machine will look great in your kitchen even when it’s not being used. It’s such a crowd-pleaser and would fit perfectly in any home (or office) – whether your décor is modern or more traditional.
La Specialista allows you to create latte art and micro-texture milk with the new My LatteArt™ system, a commercial-style steam wand for achieving the right texture for designing latte art.
There are 8 grind settings and a Smart Tamping Station that allows you to tamp the dose with the right pressure, without mistakes and mess. You can brew with single wall filters, up to 20g of coffee.
With its easy-to-follow directions and responsive interface, beginners can easily make a perfect cup. More experienced home baristas will appreciate the high degree of customizability with grinding and doses, to get the most from every variety of espresso bean. As people with far more experience ordering drinks than making them, we found the learning curve simple, and before long we were making lattes so good that working from home never felt better!
Retails for $999.99.
2) Valmont – Valentine’s Deto2x Set
If you want to really treat or impress someone with the ultimate luxury skincare set, you can’t go wrong with Valmont and its latest release: Valentine’s Deto2x Set. One of Switzerland’s ultimate gems, this high-end beauty line works perfectly for any age or skin type, and is accompanied by a stylish and elegant makeup bag.
Cleanse, hydrate and stimulate cell renewal to erase all signs of fatigue and give your skin the fresh glow of Swiss alpine air. If you are looking to glow and give your skin the ultimate boost, this is the perfect set. It is especially recommended for dull, tired-looking skin.
The set includes: 6 frothy bubble masks (which are individual shots of pure oxygen to stimulate cell renewal); a light, creamy eye contour emulsion to combat dehydration; a micro-particle exfoliant that even delicate skin can enjoy; a foamy cream to restore oxygen, remove urban pollutants and boost cell renewal; and a repairing cream to encourage cell renewal while you get your beauty sleep. Valmont’s website also includes very handy tips on how to apply each product and get the most of out of it.
Retails for $620.
3) Estée Lauder – Infinite Sky Perfume
This gorgeous fragrance is part of Estée Lauder’s Luxury Fragrance Collection that was released last fall. It features Estée Lauder’s new and exclusive ScentCapture Fragrance Extender™ technology that is specifically formulated to allow each of the scents to last up to 12 hours after a single application.
In addition, each of the 8 scents in this collection was demonstrated in independent neurosensorial testing to evoke specific emotions in those who were drawn to them. For example, Infinite Sky is meant to evoke emotions of confidence and sensuality. It features notes of Sichuan Pepper, balanced by the smoky sweetness of Madagascar Vanilla and smoldering Leatherwood.
Each fragrance is housed in an exquisite heavyweight, fluted glass bottle and a collar adorned with a gold rope detail, inspired by archival Estée Lauder packaging. The gold cap features a monogram inspired by an original Estée Lauder logo uncovered from the Leonard A. Lauder Estée Lauder Companies Archives. It is exclusive to the Luxury Collection. All of these details are a nod to key elements of the Estée Lauder brand heritage, reimagined in a modern way. Each bottle also features a plaque with a unique symbol representing the hero ingredient in each fragrance.
Retails for $238 (100 ml).
4) Belvedere Vodka
Vodka is a spirit crowd-pleaser known for its clean taste, mixable qualities and hangover-free features (when consumed neat and in appropriate quantities, that is!) – and Valentine’s Day is the perfect holiday to share a romantic cocktail with your loved one. We love gifting Belvedere Vodka – crafted by Master Rye Distillers from polish rye, purified water and a distillation process by fire.
Belvedere contains zero additives, is certified kosher, and produced in accordance with the legal regulations of Polish vodka that nothing can be added, contributing to it being one of the cleanest tasting vodkas on the market. We recommend the 750 mL bottle as the perfect host or hostess gift for your Valentine this year.
Retails for $52.30.
5) Clarins – Nutri-Lumière Revive Cream
I can attest to this as a multi-decade user of Clarins products: they revive any dull, dry, hurting skin. The company prides itself in creating its skincare out of many natural and delicate ingredients. Each product is carefully developed in a lab by some of the world’s top skincare scientists. Nutri-Lumière Revive is Clarins’ latest creation and is no exception – and as such it would make a perfect gift for Valentine’s Day.
This cream is a revitalizing, multi-function care product. It is excellent for restoring radiance, firming and plumping up undernourished mature skin – and is great for Canada’s harsh winters. It is essentially anti-aging action in a jar! Clarins Pro-Ageing Nutrition approach makes it possible to fight against any “yellowing” the skin might undergo with age and restore skin’s radiance. Developed with persimmon extract and a slightly purple-toned finish, the cream optically corrects the yellow.
With Nutri-Lumière Revive, skin is strengthened and wrinkles are smoothed. Great for all skin types, you can use this cream once or twice a day, every day.
Retails for $154.
6) Smashbox – Always On Liquid Lipstick
Red lips are a Valentine’s Day staple – and a long-lasting, transfer-proof formula is a must under pandemic masks. We love the Smashbox Always On Liquid Lipstick – retailing at $29, this formula is not only as long wearing as the name implies, but it delivers bold, lightweight colour that is not drying like many other liquid lipsticks.
This liquid lip comes in a range of 41 stunning shades with varying finishes from highly pigmented mattes to shiny metallics, with hues ranging from classic nudes to bold brights, and sexy dark colours. Our favourite shades for Valentine’s Day are No Chill, Hair Flip, Maneater, Bawse and Bang-Bang.
Our 5 favourite shades retail for a total of $145.
7) Ruffino – Riserva Ducale Oro” Gran Selezione Chianti Classico ” 2016
This beautiful red wine features flavours of chocolate, spice and intense aromas of blackberry. How a propos for Valentine’s Day!
Founded in 1877, Ruffino is steeped in the tradition and history of Tuscan winemaking. Riserva Ducale Oro is the ultimate expression of the Chianti Classico region, produced only in outstanding vintages by carefully hand-picking grapes from Ruffino’s Estates. Aged for 36 months, this wine expresses distinctive characteristics of violet, cherry and plum aromas, with a well-defined structure and generous finish.
A juicy and medium-bodied Chianti, this is a blend of 85% Sangiovese, 10% Merlot and 5% Colorino. The wine is aged in a combination of oak, stainless steel and concrete. It pairs perfectly with a meat lovers’ pizza or a delicious meat-sauce pasta.
Retails for $49.95.
8) Philips – Sonicare Power Flosser 3000
Philips Sonicare Power Flosser 3000 is an important (and elegant!) addition to your healthcare routine. Most of us aren’t fans of daily flossing, but it’s an essential part of keeping your pearly whites healthy and strong. This new suite of Power Flossers from Philips Sonicare is making it easier than ever to build and maintain healthy flossing routines that would make your dentist proud.
From the #1 recommended sonic toothbrush brand by dental professionals worldwide, each Philips Sonicare Power Flosser is equipped with simple yet powerful technology that helps you get it right at every step. Key features include the proprietary Quad Stream technology and 4 X-shaped streams to help water reach deep between teeth for a gentle yet thorough clean. Philips states that this product is 180% more effective for healthier gums compared to manual floss, and it cleans up to 9 times the area with up to 99.99% plaque removal for a complete clean in just 60 seconds. It is available in two formats to suit every lifestyle: a cordless USB-C charging version and a countertop version.
Retails for $129.99 (countertop version) or $99.99 (cordless version).
9) Bobbi Brown – Extra Repair Moisture Cream Intense
Here comes the latest creation from the original queen of makeup and cosmetics: the one-and-only Bobbi Brown. This is a deeply moisturizing face cream that will do a great job of replenishing your skin in cold winter months. Revamped from the older formula, it features five times more Argireline Peptide.
A beautiful product (that comes in equally beautiful refillable and recyclable packaging), Bobbi Brown Extra Repair Moisture Cream Intense helps reduce appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Olive extract, glycerin and shea butter merge together to intensely hydrate, moisturize and condition the skin. Amino acids and peptides (the building blocks of sun) support skin’s natural collagen. Meanwhile, Vitamin C further smoothes the complexion.
Retails for $139 (50 ml).
10) Darphin – Intral Daily Rescue Serum
The Darphin Intral Daily Rescue Serum is a lovely treat for a loved one with sensitive skin. Infused with the scent of Hawthorn, Chamomile and, particularly, Peony, the floral fragrance alone sings Valentine’s Day vibes, and the beautiful-frosted glass packaging makes it an even lovelier giftable skincare collectible.
This luxury serum instantly soothes discomfort and calms down irritated, red skin. When used before moisturizer, this light scented formula softens skin leaving you with a more even-looking complexion, forming the perfect base before your makeup application.
Retails for $192 (75 ml).
11) Silk’n – Flash & Go Jewel Hair Removal Device, Titan AllWays and ReVit Prestige
These three products from Silk’n are sure to create a spa-like experience at home. Silk’n Flash&Go Jewel will prep you well for the bikini season later this year. This is an adjustable at-home hair removal tool that uses award-winning Home Pulse Light (HPL) technology and targets pigment in the hair shaft to reduce hair growth, without damaging the surrounding skin. It features “touch and glide” for effortless hair removal treatments. Plus, it’s gentle technology allows you to treat even your most sensitive areas for the beautiful, hair-free skin you’ve always wanted.
Meanwhile, the Silk’n Titan AllWays is essentially a facial at your fingertips. This anti-aging device will help reduce wrinkles and crow’s feet, and restore collagen and elastin fibres to lift the facial contours without surgery. This product’s skin technology stimulates cell renewal, making slack skin, tight and supple again. It harmonizes the benefits of three sources of energy: Bi-Polar RF energy, LED light energy and IR heat energy.
Last but certainly not least, Silk’n ReVit Prestige is a powerful microdermabrasion device. Dead skin cells are removed and the production of new skin cells is stimulated. The vacuum stimulation enhances the blood circulation for a healthy complexion.
Retails for $285, $399.99 and $199 respectively.
[…] this year, we had reviewed La Specialista Prestigio by De’Longhi in our Valentine’s Day luxury gift guide, and we are now thrilled to review a second machine […]