Give the gift of self-care to your nearest and dearest this holiday season, because everyone needs love, attention and coziness.
Real talk: men require very few things in life. They’re pretty simple beings, but one non-negotiable is that they absolutely need to be found super-hot by their partner. (I express this in a much more vulgar way to my girlfriends, but this is a public forum, so I’m trying to be circumspect.)
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Jean Paul Gaultier’s Le Male Le Parfum ($98) is a clever reworking of the 1995 original, with amped up spicy and woody notes surrounded by lavender and iris and a quiet but compelling vanilla that highlight a man’s allure.
There are too many black puffer coats in the world and I say this as a black puffer owner. But here’s a secret: even if they’re not fashiony peacocks, many men love colour. This citrusy slice of joy is a sunny hug for your significant other. The Parajumpers Bold Parka, $1198, will give them a jolt of pure happy when they pull it on to head outside into the biting cold.
Why should women get all the gorgeous Taschen coffee table books? The History of EC Comics$260, The Beguiling Books & Art, is a tour through childhood (Mad Magazine), teenhood (Tales of the Crypt) and beyond. It’s available through Toronto’s own legendary The Beguiling bookstore, because if you ‘shop local’ you’ll get stellar customer service while ensuring your city stays vibrant and people are employed.
Tokyo Smoke Cannabis Infused Dark Milk Chocolate was invented for times like these. I can’t really come up with a caption other than it’s delicious chocolate that contains 2 mg of THC, because literally everyone needs help chilling out right now.
Because you can’t sit around eating THC chocolate all day long to relieve tension, there’s the Theragun Prime, ($299 on sale) which uses percussive motion for a deep muscle massage. Whether or not you work out, we all have super tight neck muscles and ‘traps’ right now from sitting hunched at our computers. And incipient carpal tunnel hand pain from too much phone and keyboard time. Buy one for your guy and then just use it yourself. I would kill for one.
Carrying little bottles of sanitizer around can be a nuisance (especially if, as a man, society has seen fit to deprive you of carrying a purse) so these flat, one ounce Nudestix antibacterial hand gel packs, $10 for five, Sephora, are perfect to stash in a pocket without feeling uncomfortably bulky or ruining the line of a garment
How to get men to use moisturizer in the winter: the Ultimate Hemp Power Big Gift Sack from The Body Shop, $65, has a faintly illicit vibe, uses hemp seed oil (rich in soothing fatty acids) to moisturize even the driest skin and the signature scent is fantastic.
And if an Overnight Nourishing Rescue Mask is one beauty product too far, then just steal it back for yourself. (Or do as a friend did when she told her husband that using moisturizer after drinking prevents hangovers the next day.)
After mastering sourdough last April, many of use because de facto barbers, giving desperate male family members haircuts with varying degrees of success.
The Conair Barbershop Pro Series cordless clippers, $70, are easy to use and come with many attachments to help create exactly the style that your haircut guinea pigs desire. These clippers are practically idiot-proof (and I say this as a certified idiot.)