Now look – we’re going all out on this page this week, and we’re doing it for your mammy. If Mother’s Day is a sensitive topic for you, that’s alright. Not all of us are lucky enough to have a present, loving mother to give a gift to on Sunday. If that applies to you, no one will begrudge you avoiding the topic – we’ll see you here next week for normal beauty proceedings.
If you are lucky enough to have a good (possibly underappreciated) mother whose approval you desperately need to buy as a result of a lifetime of tomfoolery and several consecutive years of bags of washing on a Saturday, you’re in the right place.
This year, I've collated some of the most obscenely delectable beauty luxuries to inspire your gifting ideas. These are the type of things that will make your mother forget the time you distressed her intensely by mistaking an image of Padre Pio for Brian Cox from Succession, or the time you never became a doctor. There are many kinds of Irish Mammy, but few who won't warm to a nice beauty product.
Aromatherapy Associates Best of Collection (€45 at Space NK) is a minor glory. A lovely washbag (who doesn’t love a washbag?) contains the brand’s bestsellers – the intensely fragranced de-stress candle, a wonderfully soothing muscle gel, plus a deep relax essential oil and a bath oil. It’s the type of indulgent gift she’d probably never buy herself but will certainly appreciate.
You can't really go wrong with her favourite perfume. The ultimate Mother's Day fragrance gift has to be Frederic Malle Editions de Parfum Portrait of a Lady (€190 for 50ml). Created by Dominique Ropion, the man behind an astonishing number of the best-known fragrances since the 1980s, each bottle of this includes Turkish rose – no fewer than400 flowers. It is silky and robust – the fragrance of French fashion editors, and potentially also your mammy.
If you've really messed up even worse than the Padre Pio thing, consider the hefty investment that is Augustinus Bader The Ultimate Soothing Cream (€240 at Brown Thomas). This brand has surpassed La Mer in the "fanciest skincare" stakes and is really the ultimate luxury beauty gift. It isn't an option for everyone. Plus, it should not be gifted to the sort of mammy who will just "keep it for good", so that it's left to curdle, euro by euro, in a cabinet as you despair.
Any lovely and more affordable moisturiser will also be gratefully received. If you'd prefer a classic product, it has to be Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair (from €69 at arnotts.ie). Every mammy knows that this is the good stuff. Millions of bottles are sold annually, it was the original overnight serum, and Liz Hurley uses it – among other things no doubt – to stave off nature itself as she apparently ages backwards. If you want to invest in a luxury gift that your mother will recognise and value, Advanced Night Repair is a sure win.
Product of the Week
Chanel Rouge Allure L'Extrait Refillable Lipstick in 812 (€55 at Chanel counters nationwide)
