Gabrielle Union and Elizabeth Banks reveal their beauty gift favorites

If you want a beauty gift that feels current instead of random, start with the products Gabrielle Union and Elizabeth Banks actually spend their own money on. In Fashionista’s “Payment Processing” interview, they named Medicube skin care, Charlotte Tilbury makeup, vintage fashion finds and a luxury LED mask, which is exactly the kind of lineup that helps you buy for a birthday, a thank-you, or a self-care package without guessing. Fashionista has also been tracking the larger shift behind the buys, noting in April 2024 that TikTok and other platforms are driving major sales in high-tech beauty tools, and in March 2024 that LED face masks are among the buzziest gadgets in skin care.

Birthday gift: Medicube for the friend who likes skin care with a gadget brain

Medicube is the most obvious pick for the person who wants her routine to feel a little more engineered. The brand describes itself as a beauty-tech and derma-cosmetic pioneer, and its Booster Pro is priced at $230, which puts it firmly in splurge-but-not-insane territory for a birthday present. The device packs six functions, booster, mc, derma shot, air shot mode, sonic vibration and LED, and Medicube says, “Over three years of R&D, our team engineered six core functions into one device without compromising performance or safety.” That is the kind of pitch that matters if you are buying for someone who already owns a lot of creams and needs the tool version of a refresh.

If you want the gift to feel more complete, Medicube’s smaller skin-care pieces make easy add-ons. The PDRN Pink Collagen Glow Jelly Mist Serum is $26, the Collagen Niacinamide Jelly Cream is $27.30 for 110 ml, and Zero Pore Pads are listed at $24.80. That gives you a clean price ladder: a device for the main event, then one or two treatment products for the woman who likes her shelf to look as considered as her wardrobe.

Thank-you gift: Charlotte Tilbury for the person who never leaves the house without a polished lip

Charlotte Tilbury is the safer, prettier, less-precious gift if you know she loves makeup but you do not want to overthink shade match drama. Charlotte Tilbury Beauty says the line launched in the UK in September 2013, and Charlotte Tilbury herself is the sole founder and current President, Chairman and Chief Creative Officer, which helps explain why the brand still feels so tied to a very specific glossy, star-powered idea of glamour. On the current lip assortment, the simplest gifts sit at $26 to $37, including the Mini Pillow Talk Lip Kit at $26, Pillow Talk Blush Balm Lip Tint at $32 and core lipsticks at $37.

That price range is part of why Charlotte Tilbury works so well for gifting. A $37 lipstick feels generous without becoming a production, and a $26 mini kit is the kind of thing you can tuck into a larger present if you are building a thank-you bundle or a birthday bag with one showpiece item. It also reads as current, because these are the same polished, social-media-friendly formulas that keep turning up in celebrity makeup bags and red-carpet routines.

Self-care package: the small add-ons that make the big present feel considered

The best self-care gifts are the ones that do not require a full skin overhaul. Medicube’s $24.80 Zero Pore Pads, $26 collagen mist and $27.30 jelly cream are useful because they let you build a package around one bigger item without making the whole present feel like a single expensive gadget. This is the lane for someone who likes a routine she can finish before bed, especially if she already owns her makeup and just wants skin care that feels efficient.

The big-ticket treatment gift: LED masks

This is the splurge gift that feels most treatment-like, and the category has real clinical weight behind it. FDA records show at-home LED light therapy masks have been cleared through the 510(k) pathway as class II devices, and one cleared listing specifies use for full-face wrinkles or mild to moderate acne vulgaris. That helps explain why the category sits above ordinary beauty accessories and why it keeps showing up as a premium present for women who like devices that feel more salon than gimmick.

If you want a concrete price point, Therabody’s TheraFace Mask Glo is $379.99, while the TheraFace Mask Advanced is $649.99. CurrentBody’s LED Red Light Therapy Face Mask: Series 2 sits at $469.99. Those are not casual purchases, which is exactly why they work as milestone gifts, the kind you give when you want the present itself to signal downtime, indulgence and a little bit of future-facing vanity.

The wildcard: vintage fashion finds

Union and Banks also named vintage fashion finds, and that is the smartest reminder in the whole mix. Unlike a lipstick or a mask, vintage is less about fixed price and more about taste, which makes it the right choice when you know her style intimately and want the gift to feel handpicked rather than selected from a generic best-seller list. In a beauty story full of polished, high-tech, highly giftable products, the vintage piece is the one that says you paid attention.

The best version of this gift stack is simple: Medicube for the woman who loves a smarter skin-care routine, Charlotte Tilbury for the makeup loyalist, and an LED mask when you want to go big and make the present feel like a real occasion. That is the sweet spot here, a beauty gift that feels current because it is already sitting in the carts of women who know exactly what they like.