What to Give on St Nicholas Day: Gift Ideas for Loved Ones and Colleagues
St Nicholas Day marks the start of the winter holidays, and it isn't only children who look forward to it. Your mum, a friend, a colleague or you yourself deserve a morning surprise under the pillow too.
In this article, we've gathered St Nicholas Day gift ideas for loved ones, colleagues and yourself: from a hand cream that takes up very little space to scented candles and home body care sets.
When is St Nicholas Day, and what do people usually give?
In Ukraine, St Nicholas Day is celebrated on 6 December. Traditionally, gifts are placed under the pillow on the night before, so they can be found in the morning.
St Nicholas Day gifts are meant to be small and symbolic rather than expensive. What matters is the thought and the warmth behind them. That's why the best gifts are:
- small, so they fit under a pillow or by the bed;
- useful, so they get used rather than put away on a shelf;
- right for winter, when the skin suffers from cold and central heating, and the evenings grow longer.
Body care products and scented candles tick all three boxes.
Which St Nicholas Day gifts should you choose?
The best St Nicholas Day gifts for loved ones and colleagues are the ones that become part of everyday winter life: a hand cream, a body care set or a scented candle. Here are four options, from the smallest to a full gift.
A hand cream: a gift that will definitely fit under the pillow
A 30 ml hand cream is a classic St Nicholas Day gift. It's small, always comes in handy in winter and suits anyone.
- Regenerating Hand Cream with Phytoceramides and Centella Asiatica Extract — for people whose hands get very dry or start to crack in winter. Also available in a larger 200 ml size.
- Repairing Hand Cream with Jelly Bush Honey Extract and Cupuaçu Butter — softens dry skin on the hands; a great choice for anyone who loves honey in their skincare.
- Antioxidant Hand Cream with Phytoceramides and Black Spruce Bark Extract — a light everyday cream, handy to keep in a bag or on a desk.
If the person you're giving the cream to has complained about cracked fingers, share our article "Cracked Fingers in Winter" with them: it explains how to do an overnight hand treatment.
A hand care set: hand wash and hand cream
If you'd like a slightly bigger gift, choose a set with a liquid hand wash and a hand cream. Together they cover complete winter hand care: gentle cleansing and moisture.
- Set "Be Kind" — hand wash with Jelly Bush honey extract (500 ml) and a hand cream (30 ml).
- Set "Be Harmonious" — hand wash with centella asiatica extract (500 ml) and a regenerating hand cream (30 ml).
A scented candle for winter evenings
A scented soy wax candle is a gift for anyone who loves feeling cosy at home. Most to be candles are 200 ml, and many of them come in gift boxes, so there's no need to wrap them.
- SWEET WOOD in a gift box — white musk, patchouli and cedar. A soft, warm scent that most people love.
- PALO SANTO in a gift box — the woody scent of palo santo for calm evenings.
- WOODY AMBER & SMOKED WOOD candle set — two 75 ml candles in a gift box. A good choice if you're not sure which scent they'll like: WOODY AMBER combines woody amber, jasmine, lemon and moss, while SMOKED WOOD brings sandalwood, cedar, oud, flowers and pepper.
You can add a short note on how to light the candle. We covered the first burn and wick care in our article "How to Burn a Scented Candle".
A body care set: a home spa evening as a gift
For the people closest to you, choose a set that lets them enjoy a home spa evening.
- Set "Be Cozy" — shower gel with vanilla and cassia bark extracts and body & hand lotion with Jelly Bush honey extract. The most wintry set in mood.
- Set "Be Gentle" — creamy carboxy body scrub with rice powder and intensive lamellar body cream with grape melatonin: gentle exfoliation first, then moisture.
What to give your mum, friends, colleagues and yourself on St Nicholas Day?
A St Nicholas Day gift is easier to choose if you think about how the person spends their winter days and evenings.
- Your mum or grandmother — the Be Harmonious hand care set or the regenerating hand cream in the large 200 ml size. Hands that do a lot of work at home need extra care in winter.
- A friend — a scented candle in a gift box or the Be Cozy set for cosy evenings.
- Colleagues — a 30 ml hand cream: it suits anyone on the team, and identical gifts for everyone are easy to put together. If you're choosing gifts on behalf of your company, take a look at our article "What Corporate Christmas Gifts to Choose for Colleagues, Clients and Partners?".
- Yourself — the Be Gentle set for a home spa evening. St Nicholas Day is a perfectly good reason to take care of yourself too.
How do you make sure your gift arrives by 6 December?
To have your gift in time for the morning of 6 December, order it in advance: delivery services are busier than usual before the holidays.
- Order your gift by the end of November. This leaves you some extra time in case delivery is delayed.
- Choose a candle in a gift box if you don't have time to wrap. It can go straight under the pillow.
- Add a short handwritten note. A few words from "St Nicholas" turn even a small hand cream into a special gift.
Small but useful gifts are perfect for St Nicholas Day: a hand cream for the winter, a body care set or a scented candle for long evenings. Browse the to be body care range and scented candles, and choose your gifts in advance so the morning of 6 December starts with a lovely surprise.
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