If you’re unlike me and don’t visit an Aesop store every chance you get (or just find scrolling through social media accounts to be an endless source of lifestyle and beauty inspiration), Aesop has announced its biggest collection of seasonal gift kits ever, containing 13 amazing products for every type of room and recipient. According to the brand, this year’s theme is “From Our Home to Your Home,” which pays homage to Aesop’s “thoughtful design and hosting expertise.” These kits depict a world where busy hands prepare miniatures for festivities, in a home where each rich, sensory product is a guest.
As a long-time fan of the brand, I was first in line to find out more about the products and pick up some items for my friends and family to enjoy this holiday season. Below, I’m sharing eight gift kits I’ve already gotten my hands on, as well as an exclusive insider scoop on the inspiration behind the launches, straight from Aesop. Sure, the clock is ticking and the holiday season is just around the corner, but we’ve got your back. Keep reading to learn more about the products hidden in each box, and discover new favorites to add to your wish list along the way (or treat yourself if you shop online or in-person?).
The inspiration behind Aesop’s gift kits
This year’s Aesop gift collection comes to you with 13 limited release gift kits, including an advent calendar with essentials behind each door. Aesop says its products include “an understatement that fills the proverbial stocking and creates a more luxurious and palatial present.” Each is designed to be relevant not just to a specific room, but to a specific moment in time. Greenhouse Party ($132) is dominated by a geranium leaf formula, while Shower Room Serenade ($65) includes Eleos Nourishing Body Cleanser ($37) and Eleos Aromatic Hand Balm ($35). Each item is packaged in a box tailored to a theme or occasion. Each sleeve design features small illustrations of various household objects.
Aesop says the colors used in the kit wisely reflect architect and artist Le Corbusier’s architectural pleochroism, or “a palette of colors chosen according to how they can be combined to produce a harmonious effect for the building’s occupants.” A trained eye will notice some of the same hues used in the store to blend earthy, sculptural elements with minimalist, natural touches. The box is made from Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) mix material and is designed to be separated in paper recycling or reused to hold keepsakes.
The brand also shares that each gift kit is designed to enliven a specific room, moment, or occasion with its unique contents. For example, in Shower Room Serenade, Eleos Aromatic Hand Balm ($35), infused with skin-softening butters and oils, and Eleos Nourishing Body Cleanser ($37), a cream-based wash, are front and center, featuring a warm, woody, herbal scent that lingers on newly revitalized skin. “More broadly, the entire collection embodies Aesop’s approach to formulation: complex, distinctive scents, proven efficacy, and ingredients, whether plant-based or made in the lab, all ethically sourced and selected with safety in mind,” says Aesop.
Breakdown of seasonal gift kits
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Too many cooks in the kitchen
product: Reverence Aromatic Hand Wash, Reverence Aromatic Hand Balm, Polish Bar Soap
Described by Aesop as a ‘sinkside staple’, this kit provides sensuous hand care for everyone, but is particularly effective for those who use the kitchen frequently. Reverence Aromatic Hand Wash uses a formula of finely ground pumice and botanical extracts to cleanse your skin, followed by a hand balm to keep it moisturized. Additionally, using bar soap will leave your skin soft and supple.
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shower room serenade
product: Eleos Aromatic Hand Balm, Eleos Nourishing Body Cleanser
Even weather-beaten skin is no match for this body care duo. Showroom Serenade comes with two Eleos formulas that share a woody, herbal scent that evokes a winter escape to a cozy mountain cabin. These two add up to $72, but with this kit you can get them for $65. Hand balms use botanical butters to soften and restore skin. The body cleanser, on the other hand, purifies and hydrates the skin with a botanical blend.
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The tranquility of the basin
product: Purifying Facial Exfoliant Paste, Blue Chamomile Facial Hydrating Mask
Aesop’s Serenity at the Basin kit boasts a skincare duo that purifies and moisturizes like a dream when used together. Purifying Facial Exfoliant Paste acts as a skin-softening facial exfoliant, removing dead skin cells and leaving the skin underneath brighter and more rejuvenated. To give your skin extra hydration, use the Blue Chamomile Facial Hydrating Mask. Formulated with niacinamide, sodium carrageenan, and bisabolol to hydrate, soften, and leave skin with a dewy finish.
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party in the greenhouse
product: Geranium Leaf Body Cleanser, Geranium Leaf Body Scrub, Geranium Leaf Body Balm
Every energizing product in this seasonal gift kit is fresh, vibrant, and green. Party in the Greenhouse includes three skin-nourishing, energizing, and subtly scented formulas from the Geranium Leaf Series in a recycled cardboard gift box designed to be reusable. The Revitalizing Body Cleanser removes dry skin with a lightweight exfoliating formula, while the Body Cleanser cleanses the skin with gentle ingredients. The body balm locks in moisture with nourishing nut oils and bright scents of geranium leaf, red mandarin, and bergamot peel.
product: Resurrection Aromatic Hand Wash, Resurrection Aromatic Hand Balm, Nurture Bar Soap, Orous Aromatic Room Spray
Every space needs a luxuriously scented hand and body ensemble that will make you feel luxurious. The kit also includes a refreshing room spray and gentle bar soap for $155 (purchased separately for a total of $175). Designed for the sink, Resurrection Aromatic Hand Wash and Hand Balm deliver citrus, herbaceous, and woody scents, while Nurture Bar Soap provides effective yet gentle cleansing. Olous Aromatique Room Spray combines notes of cedar, citrus, and cardamom to evoke the Mediterranean.
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Greetings in the guest room
product: Geranium Reed Body Cleanser, Resurrection Aromatic Hand Balm
This hand and body care set includes two of Aesop’s most popular products: Geranium Leaf Body Cleanser and Resurrection Aromatic Hand Balm. If purchased individually, these two items would add up to $56, but you can purchase them both for $52 in a kit (and save even more!). Aesop’s Geranium Leaf Body Cleanser lathers beautifully while cleansing the skin, while Resurrection Aromatic Hand Balm treats and softens dry hands with woody, herbal ingredients.
product: Resurrection Aromatic Hand Balm, Reverence Aromatic Hand Balm, Eros Aromatic Hand Balm
Not sure which Aesop gift kit to give? Consider trying Helping Hands. It includes three rich hand balms to protect your skin from the cold, dry winter weather and keep your hands supple, hydrated, and lightly scented. Resurrection leaves you with citrus, woody, and grassy notes, while Reverance explores woody, earthy, and smoky notes. Eros includes everything herbaceous, woody, and spicy.
Currently available for in-store purchase only.
product: Marrakech Intense Parfum, Refresh Bar Soap, Damascan Rose Facial Treatment, Aurus Aromatic Room Spray and more
Of all the beauty and health-focused advent calendars on the market today, Aesop Abode is at the top of my list to gift to friends and family. Beyond the 13 doors (normally counting to 25, but odd numbers only) are some of Aesop’s favorite home, body, skin, and decorative essentials. That’s the biggest thing self-care enthusiasts should receive this year. Please act quickly! It is sold only in stores.
Discover more Aesop favorites
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Above Us, Steora Eau de Parfum
Fragrance type: aromatic spices
Note: Cardamom, Bergamot, Elemi, Frankincense, Labdanum, Cypriol Heart, Vanilla Bean, Cinnamon
Aesop’s Above Us Steorra is a luminous fragrance that combines constellations and the universe in a bottle. A bright blend of aromatic spices, it features a base of frankincense, labdanum, and smooth vanilla bean, with hints of sparkling amber and searing cardamom. Every time I spray it, I take off into the starry sky, and when the clock strikes 12 o’clock on New Year’s Eve, I can see myself wearing it.
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owner eau de parfum
Fragrance type: woody floral
Note: Roman chamomile, cardamom, pink pepper, magnolia leaf, geranium leaf, cardamom, sandalwood, cedar heart, cypriol heart
If you’ve written several love letters to powdery white florals featuring notes of magnolia, why wouldn’t you dedicate another one to its owner Eau de Parfum?Described by Aesop as a “rebellious floral scent with unexpected contrasts”, this perfume fuses pungent green grassy spices. Fresh magnolia leaves complete the woody note. The scent behind the scent is Aesop’s long-time collaborator Celine Barrel.
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Murasaki Aromatic Incense
Fragrance type: resin wood
Note: Cypress, cinnamon, clove
This earthy, aromatic blend is composed of a blend of fresh woody cypress resin and warm spices (cinnamon and cloves) that gently smolder and release ribbons of aroma. Includes 33 sticks with a burn time of approximately 30 minutes and a Kuma pumice incense holder.
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Eleos Nourishing Body Cleanser
There’s no better way to improve your bathing habits than by adding this moisturizing body cleanser to your lineup. Its creamy texture is enhanced by a unique blend of botanicals renowned for their purifying abilities to revitalize dry, dehydrated skin. Combining cedar atlas, patchouli, and clove bud, this scent is soft, supple, and lightly scented.
But before you reach for your body cleanser, use this mild bar soap to cleanse your skin without stripping it of moisture. Combining cedar atlas, lavender stems, and rosemary leaves, this blend of woody, herbal scents nourishes the skin. Designed for use in the bath or sink, use with your favorite hand or body hydrator.
Choosing your favorite hand soap or cream at Aesop isn’t easy (there are too many types to choose from). had If there’s one aromatic duo that I keep coming back to, it’s “Resurrection Duet.” The hand wash and balm contain two remarkable formulations that boast soothing citrus, woody, and herbal scents that can transform any bathroom into a spa retreat.
Source: Latest from Who What Wear – www.whowhatwear.com
