

10 Affordable Gift Ideas For The Friend With Expensive Taste
It's officially the time of year that we have to put together our Christmas shopping lists and come up with unique gifts to give everyone on our lists.
As if shopping for christmas gifts wasn't stressful enough, when you add your friends with expensive taste into the mix along with your budget, things can get pretty tricky. However, buying gifts for your friends with expensive taste doesn't necessarily mean you have to spend all of the coins in your piggy bank. This year, make it your personal goal to find amazing gifts that look expensive but are affordable 'AF'.
If you have friends that love the nicer things in life, here are 10 affordable gifts that will make them feel like a million bucks.
1.For The Champagne Papi/Mami: Beaudroix Crystal Champagne Flute Set, $19.97
Have a friend that loves to sip bubbly? Have them drinking in style with this luxe champagne flute and crystal glass stopper set. The satin lining is just an extra splash of fancy. (Shop Here.)
2.For The Beauty Guru: Funtouch Large Vanity Makeup Mirror, $33.99
Your friend will think about you every time she uses this fancy LED vanity mirror to slay her face for the day. (Shop Here.)
3.For The Apple Aficionado: Keeplus Apple Watch, Airpod, Apple Pen And iPhone Stand, $20.99
This 4-in-1 stand is the perfect home for all things Apple. Your techie friend will love this gift of convenience and endless battery power. (Shop Here.)
4.For The Glamour Girl: Kate Spade Mini Small Square Stud Earrings, $32.00
These super cute sparkly studs is the subtle glitz that any glamour queen will appreciate. (Shop Here.)
5.For The Fly Girl That Always Has Her Nails Did: SkinnyDip Bliss Purple + Gold Manicure Set, $23
This luxe gold manicure is the perfect on the go companion for the woman that has to keep her nails in tip top shape. The glittery case is also a great touch. (Shop Here.)
6.For The Hostess With The Mostest: Nordstrom At Home Recipe Cocktail Shaker, $39
The entertainer of your crew would love this gold shaker for all her hosting needs. The outer portion has recipes for popular drinks so get ready to be a taste tester. (Shop Here.)
7.For The Beauty Queen: YSL Lips & Lashes Duo, $32
This limited edition set includes two of YSL's most coveted beauty products, a dramatizing mascara and bold red lippie. Any beauty lover will be grateful for this luxurious beauty experience. (Shop Here.)
8.For The Woman Always On The Go: SkinnyDip Bliss Glitter Set, $25
This glittery makeup case and mirror will have your on the go beauty lover traveling with her essentials in style. Trust us, you'll never find her without it. (Shop Here.)
9.For The Ultimate Diva: Trouve Faux Fur Long Scarf, $39
Fur is a simple way to bring any outfit from drab to fab and faux fur is an affordable and conscious option. This long versatile scarf will have the diva in your life slaying all winter. (Shop Here.)
10. For The Fashionista: Topshop Black Charm Beret, $26
Usually giving hats as gifts is a bit boring but this beautiful beret is anything but basic. Have your trendsetting friend getting compliments everywhere she goes with this edgy twist on a beret. (Shop Here.)
'Tis the season! Check out xoNecole's other Christmas gift guides here.
Disclosure: If you purchase something through one of our links, xoNecole may earn a small affiliate commission.
Featured image by Getty Images
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Smile, Sis! These Five Improvements Can Upgrade Your Oral Hygiene Instantly
This article is in partnership with Sensodyne.
Our teeth are connected to so many things - our nutrition, our confidence, and our overall mood. We often take for granted how important healthy teeth are, until issues like tooth sensitivity or gum recession come to remind us. Like most things related to our bodies, prevention is the best medicine. Here are five things you can do immediately to improve your oral hygiene, prevent tooth sensitivity, and avoid dental issues down the road.
1) Go Easy On the Rough Brushing: Brushing your teeth is and always will be priority number one in the oral hygiene department. No surprises there! However, there is such a thing as applying too much pressure when brushing…and that can lead to problems over time. Use a toothbrush with soft bristles and brush in smooth, circular motions. It may seem counterintuitive, but a gentle approach to brushing is the most effective way to clean those pearly whites without wearing away enamel and exposing sensitive areas of the teeth.
2) Use A Desensitizing Toothpaste: As everyone knows, mouth pain can be highly uncomfortable; but tooth sensitivity is a whole different beast. Hot weather favorites like ice cream and popsicles have the ability to trigger tooth sensitivity, which might make you want to stay away from icy foods altogether. But as always, prevention is the best medicine here. Switching to a toothpaste like Sensodyne’s Sensitivity & Gum toothpaste specifically designed for sensitive teeth will help build a protective layer over sensitive areas of the tooth. Over time, those sharp sensations that occur with extremely cold foods will subside, and you’ll be back to treating yourself to your icy faves like this one!
3) Floss, Rinse, Brush. (And In That Order!): Have you ever heard the saying, “It’s not what you do, but how you do it”? Well, the same thing applies to taking care of your teeth. Even if you are flossing and brushing religiously, you could be missing out on some of the benefits simply because you aren’t doing so in the right order. Flossing is best to do before brushing because it removes food particles and plaque from places your toothbrush can’t reach. After a proper flossing sesh, it is important to rinse out your mouth with water after. Finally, you can whip out your toothbrush and get to brushing. Though many of us commonly rinse with water after brushing to remove excess toothpaste, it may not be the best thing for our teeth. That’s because fluoride, the active ingredient in toothpaste that protects your enamel, works best when it gets to sit on the teeth and continue working its magic. Rinsing with water after brushing doesn’t let the toothpaste go to work like it really can. Changing up your order may take some getting used to, but over time, you’ll see the difference.
4) Stay Hydrated: Upping your water supply is a no-fail way to level up your health overall, and your teeth are no exception to this rule. Drinking water not only helps maintain a healthy pH balance in your mouth, but it also washes away residue and acids that can cause enamel erosion. It also helps you steer clear of dry mouth, which is a gateway to bad breath. And who needs that?
5) Show Your Gums Some Love: When it comes to improving your smile, you may be laser-focused on getting your teeth whiter, straighter, and overall healthier. Rightfully so, as these are all attributes of a megawatt smile; but you certainly don’t want to leave gum health out of the equation. If you neglect your gums, you’ll start to notice the effects of plaque buildup, which can irritate the gums and cause gingivitis, the earliest stage of gum disease. Seeing blood while brushing and flossing is a tell-tale sign that your gums are suffering. You may also experience gum recession — a condition where the gum tissue surrounding your teeth pulls back, exposing more of your tooth. Brushing at least twice a day with a gum-protecting toothpaste like Sensodyne Sensitivity and Gum, coupled with regular dentist visits, will keep your gums shining as bright as those pearly whites.
Megan Thee Stallion Shares The 'Intense' Workout Routine That’s Got Her Snatched
One thing about Megan Thee Stallion is that she’s going to motivate you to stay active. From afar, she seems like the perfect gym bestie, and up close, it looks like her workouts would have us gasping for air. But hey, she doesn’t call her routines “bootcamp” for nothing.
After an extended break from social media and the public eye, the Houston Hottie is back sharing the high-energy workouts that are keeping her lean and she’s happy to report that “the results have been resulting."
The 28-year-old rapper dropped an Instagram Reel, detailing the workout routine that’s putting her endurance to the test. With the help of her personal trainer, Megan has one word in mind when it comes to her progress and that’s: “Consistency.”
The “Savage” artist has been traveling, making “hot girl moves," and after returning from a trip to New York, she expressed that her trainer is pushing her to keep the same energy back in the gym.
“I had just gotten back from New York and I told my trainer, ‘Look, friend, I was having a time. Can you please take it easy?’” Megan said. “He said, ‘Hmm, I’ve seen you doing all that hot girl s—, so what you need to do is get in that gym and have that same energy.’”
Her trainer then instructed her to do jumping squats with an exercise ball and resistance band around her legs for an extra burn. “I put my thing down, flipped it, and reversed it and that’s what happened. This sh– burned like a motherf—,” she teased in the video’s voiceover while executing both forward and backward jumping squats.
It’s clear that when it comes to Megan’s fitness, her trainer doesn’t play around about pushing her to her limits. In the next set of her cardio moves, we see the Grammy-winning artist jumping rope and moving on to a combination of mountain climbers and lateral jumps over a speed hurdle.
“Right here, that’s when I realized: I’ve been saying my trainer’s crazy but I know he’s really, really crazy because he must think that I’m trying out for the Houston Texans or something,” she joked.
To finish her workout, Meg hit two more barbell exercises, one being a set of cleans with 10-pound weight plates on the barbell. She then closed out by doing lunges with the barbell racked on her shoulders.
Of course, the best way to close out a workout is to nourish yourself with a balanced meal. Meg showed off her delicious post-workout plate with salmon, a sweet potato, and assorted veggies.
With so much of her public life being shared on the internet, it’s nice to see her letting us in on her progress in a fun and motivating way. “I just want to be transparent with y'all. Working out hurts, but it’s really a mental thang, so go do it!”
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Featured image by Taylor Hill/Getty Images