Christmas Gift Guide: what to buy for the stressed out workaholic

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Christmas Gift Guide: what to buy for the stressed out workaholic in your life

If you’re looking for the perfect gift for someone who needs to sloooow down, look no further than our edit of the best de-stressing essentials to help provide a bit of balance, relaxation and restoration into their work days.

From stylish notepads certain to sort their daytime organisational woes to calming candles to come back to at night, fast beauty makeup compacts to bath time necessities, here’s the ultimate wish list for the workaholic in your life.

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A No22 Candle

For the high flying jetsetter who could do with a sweet-smelling reminder of familiar shores, or for the stressed out London commuter looking for a subtle addition to make her house a home, the new candle range created by ELLE Beauty Director, Sophie Beresiner, provides both nostalgia and relaxation in equal measure. With three scents to choose from - Bookshelf (reminiscent of old soft leather books), Centrepiece (akin to a case of plump white peonies) and Woodstove (a much more portable alternative to an inviting log fire), together with their ceramic knitted crests, they act as the perfect winter warmer in our opinion.

£38.  Buy online .

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This Works Sleep Plus Cracker

Feeling too stressed to sleep? Whether you or a loved one is feeling the tension of their day seeping into the depths of their duvet, this calming Christmas cracker’s little secret gives the usual jokes and ‘Fortune Teller Fish’ a serious run for their money. The Sleep Plus Pillow Spray hibernating within acts as a quick yet effective dose of aromatherapy, blending essential oils lavender, vetivert and camomile to help de-frazz frazzled nerves and help de-clutter a frantic mind too.

£12.  Buy online .

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Ultimate Cowshed Pedicure

Running in heels takes its toll, so to help rekindle the missing spring in yours or their step, an Ultimate Pedicure at Cowshed, Shoreditch House makes for the pampering treatment tired tootsies have been waiting for. Crooked nails are nurtured, cuticles tidied and hardened skin removed courtesy of a cocktail of soothing elixirs, lotions and potions, with a leg, foot, scalp and shoulder massage, nourishing hydration mask and shiny polish providing the perfect finishing touch while you sit back and relax, headphones on, to watch classic Sex and the City re-runs. Bliss.

£60 for 75 minutes.  Book online .

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Elemental Herbology Five Element Aromatherapy Bath and Shower Oil Collection

A treat for both body and mind, this quintet of pint-sized 100% natural oil bath and shower indulgences makes for the most therapeutic of pre-bed rituals. Based on the five elements - wood, fire, earth, metal and water - each address a particular ailment, whether you’re suffering from aches, jet-lag, stress or pain to help alleviate tension and provide extra support in the quest for mindfulness to aid sleep, clarity and overall wellbeing.

£35.  Buy online .

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Pai Perfect Balance Instant Calm Discovery Collection

For skin feeling the effects of stress or increased sensitivity, this trio of soothing skin saviours makes for the ideal skincare SOS kit and acts as a great introduction to the Pai range. One of our favourite brands for its ability to provide noticeable skincare benefits, while keeping reactions to a minimum, the collection of travel-friendly versions of its Camellia & Rose Gentle Hydrating Cleanser, Lotus & Orange BioAffinty Tonic and Rosehip Calming Day Cream make for a gentle but effective solution for redness-prone skin types, delivering results that will have you upgrading to their full sizes in the not too distant future.

£20.  Buy online .

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Jo Malone English Pear & Freesia Bath Salts

The perfect way to season your bath? Just add a dash of salt. Not just your run-of-the-mill table variety though, and forget about Himalayan - nothing says luxury quite like a Jo Malone version does. Enclosed behind the paper doors of the elegantly designed Jo Malone townhouse packaging lies three sachets of the brand’s English Pear & Freesia Bath Salts, to provide a splash of indulgence to that special someone’s bath time and provide the gift of serenity on the most stressful of working days.

£30.  Buy online .

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Sloane Stationery Softcover Set

For those who love a to-do list, look no further than this trio of luxe notepads from Sloane Stationery. Professional with a touch of tongue ‘n’ cheek thrown in too, they’re among some of our favourite pen pals around, guaranteed to make us smile, relish the opportunity to scribble and scrawl and make ticking off our tasks all the more sweeter.

£32.  Buy online .

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Laura Mercier Glam To Go Cheek, Eye & Lip Travel Case

One convenient compact, one complete look - this mini one-stop shop for colour makes for the most powerful of work to play allies. Complete with four pigmented eye colours, one cheek colour, one bronzer and a mini Lip Glace, transitioning from naked eye to smokey eye and flush to blush has never been simpler. For days when making the move from desk to dancefloor has to be made swiftly and seamlessly, she’ll be eternally grateful to have this in her bag; plus, the compartments open up in a pretty mesmorising Transformer-esque kind of way. Hugely addictive.

£35.  Buy online .