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I’ve already bought my friends this Chanel Christmas gift, and it’s only £30

Christmas will be here before you know it...

Lauren Cunningham
Tuesday 12 September 2023 13:03 EDT
Only two colours are left, so you need to move fast
Only two colours are left, so you need to move fast (The Independent)

Yes, there are more than three months to go until Christmas, and, yes, we’ve still got Halloween and Black Friday to have fun with first, but there’s something about the 25 December that brings just as much stress as it does excitement and being over-prepared is the key to staying afloat.

Sadly, despite saying this, preparation isn’t always my strong point. Friends’ birthdays are often forgotten, flights have been missed, and I’ve still not mastered the skill of having a meal’s worth of food in the fridge, continually counting on the corner shop to keep me well-fed.

So, I’ve set Christmas as a chance to be a bit better. I will have a tree up in the first week of December, I will know where I’m eating Christmas dinner more than just a few days before, I will open an advent calendar door every day instead of scoffing all the chocolates at the end, and I will give each of my friends a gift on time, so it doesn’t seem (yet again) like I’ve picked something up in the Boxing Day sales.

But it wasn’t only my want to be organised that encouraged me to start shopping so early. Firstly, the cost of Christmas can be incredibly overwhelming, so spreading out the spending makes it much more manageable. Secondly, after spotting this adorable gift – Chanel’s the nail file, £30 – I knew it would be the perfect present for each of my beauty-obsessed, luxury-loving friends, and, as it’s a limited edition, I feared it would sell out.

Now, as I sit smugly with almost all of my Christmas shopping complete, I can confirm my suspicions were correct. Seven of the nine shades available have now sold out, so, if you too think your beauty-buff friend, mum, sister or aunt would appreciate this gorgeous gift, now is the time to shop. And trust me, you get much more for your money than just a nail file, which I’ll explain below.

Chanel the nail file

Chanel the nail file

This is probably one of the “the girls that get it, get it” products, like most items from luxury beauty brands. Of course, being Chanel, it is quite costly. But while £30 is certainly steep for a nail file – especially when similar options such as this three-pack from M&S, £5, this OPI crystal nail file, £12.90, and this Tweezerman glass nail file, £8, come in at close to one-third of the price or less – when it comes to gift giving, you really do get your money’s worth.

Each fun-coloured nail file, which is crafted from glass with an interlocking C logo on top, sits inside a black velvet case before being popped into a black and gold box. Then, here’s where it gets really good when gift-giving. At the checkout, you can add a 200-word gift message for free. This comes printed on a crisp white Chanel-logoed card and sits inside a Chanel-stamped envelope, which I’ll be counting as a Christmas card.

On top of that, you can add two free samples, from a choice of a 5ml Chanel sublimage la crème lumière ultimate revitalisation and radiance (50g costs £345, so this seems like another win), a four-pan lipstick tester, three perfume testers or the no1 de Chanel rich revitalising cream sample, which come in a Chanel-branded black keepsake pouch. Plus, the whole thing comes gift-wrapped in a chic Chanel bag with tissue paper strands inside. There’s also free delivery, if you order to store.

I told you, you get a lot more for your money, and it also takes all the stress out of having to write cards or grapple with wrapping. So, if you know a beauty buff who would love to unwrap this at Christmas, best be quick, as only shades onvi and première dame are still available. Or you could always opt for another Chanel bestseller, such as the le vernis nail colours, £29, boy de Chanel lip balm, £36, or miroir double facettes, £40, and receive all the same gift-giving benefits.

  1.  £30 from Chanel.com
Prices may vary
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For more Christmas gift ideas, take a look at our gift guide for her

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