Words by: Edie Kim
Photos by: Anna Frumenti
Modeled by: Sophie Sumner & Stephanie Retuya
All products sold at: Taste Collection*

   Happy Holidays to you and yours from Taste Collection! While this is technically the holiday pre-season, adulthood is accepting that this time of the year is a month of Christmas pre-gaming. Just ask the first of many drunk Santas stumbling about the Lower East Side all December-long. Of course, the Christmas connoisseurs that frequent Taste Collection are too classy for Santa-Con bar crawls and prefer to save their drunken blackouts for the plethora of work parties held prior to everyone leaving town and spending actual Christmas Day hungover with their disapproving family members. With December comes a month of office parties, friend’s office parties, and friend-of-a-friend’s office parties, so the following is a list of holiday hangover helpers to get you through all the binge drinking bright-eyed and clear-headed and fool your relatives out of questioning your lifestyle choices over Christmas dinner.

   #1: Face Mist by Lapcos. We are well aware that this product has already been featured as a Summer Essential, but consider it a year-long necessity as its uses adapt in accordance with the permutable weather. In the sticky summer, this face mist provides much-needed refreshment to sweat-dehydrated skin, but during the blistering winters it also provides rehydration for wind-chapped cheeks. For those of you whose faces turn white and chalky due to winter-induced dryness, this spray utilizes distilled water from Northern European healing springs that can be applied before or after makeup as the best defense against flaky skin.

   #2: Sunglasses by Raen. Yet another Summer Essential, Raen sunglasses are also a year-round staple. Whether slipping them on the beach or on the wintry streets when the snow magnifies the sun glare, Raen glasses are the best instant hangover cure when your glassy eyes betray your lack of will to live. Stubborn mascara streaks that refuse to be removed without a shower are covered up by the calm California cool of these hand-crafted lenses. Pro tip: tell your relatives you recently underwent Lasik surgery and wear them indoors for the remainder of their visit because we all know it's going to more than one hangover to get you through all the patronizing conversations this week.

   #3: Massage Oil by Province Apothecary. After hitting the open bar all night and drinking your weight in cheap wine, there’s nothing worse than that tell-tale hangover headache that won’t be appeased by any amount of water you drink.  Province Apothecary creates 100% organic and active plant ingredients to maximize the healing properties of their products, something your drugstore brand massage oil can’t guarantee. Rub some rose & cedar wood oil onto your temples and take some deep breaths as you slowly start to hear yourself think again. Repeat as needed over the holidays when your relatives take turns asking why you’re still single. Alternatively, for those of you lucky enough to be loved, this product doubles as a lover’s oil. Additional instructions regarding secondary use seem unnecessary. 

   #4: Lip Balm by Naturally European. You remembered to moisturize. You remembered to shower and put on makeup. But, lotion and foundation aside, nothing gives a hangover away faster than chapped lips. Winters call for an arsenal of lip balms in every purse and coat pocket. Naturally European create beautiful products sourced from natural ingredients so your lips are truly moisturized instead of placated with chemicals. The luxurious fragrances are an all-natural bonus from the incorporation of ingredients like ginger and pomegranate.

   #5: Face Mask by Lapcos. This skincare item is created by the same Korean beauty brand as our first recommendation: the face mist. While "oil" may initially seem like a contradictory ingredient base for a face product, the double damage from the cold chapping your skin and the extra dehydration from your festive binge-drinking creates cracks that no amount of foundation can hide. Nutrient-rich and all-natural, this face mask blankets your face in healthy moisturizers like almond and jojoba oils that your cells absorb better than a topical lotion. Take a hot shower, scrub off last night's makeup, and restore your skin's hangover-suppressed glow with a soothing mask. Remember, the younger your skin looks, the easier it is to argue that it's "too early" when your aunties demand to know why you're not married yet.

   #6: Scented Candle by Naked Princess. You go out drinking until 4am, stumble home and order enough fried food for four people from Seamless, attempt to eat it like a confused toddler, pass out on your bed with your shoes still on, then wake up too hungover to survey the mess your alter-ego made the night before. It hurts to turn the lights on, it hurts even more to bend down and start picking the trash up, it hurts to be alive. Light this soy-based, naturally fragranced candle to cleanse your environment of that old fast food and no shower smell. You are transported to a safe, clean place where cherubs bathe you in white lilies and rose petals. Take a nap and relax before you wake up in a sweaty panic and remember to blow the candle out. Luckily, these candles burn safely for up to 45 hours and come with a darling little box of matches.

 #7: Stationary Set by Giftsland. Before you go texting everyone in your phonebook “What happened last night?” in a depressant-induced panic, reach for your stationary set on your bedside table and write down all of your anxieties so you can go back to sleep and laugh about your worries once you’re clear-headed and well-rested. While the physical symptoms of hangovers are often addressed, the mental effects of alcohol are seldom raised. It’s okay to make a complete ass out of yourself sometimes as long as it’s all in good fun because the people in your life love you unconditionally. Write it all down and go back to sleep.

   #8: Beer Glass by Set Editions. We saved the best for last because this final suggestion is a cure-all if the above five items prove ineffective against a particularly potent hangover. Hair of the Dog is an adage which dates back to Shakespeare so it must be true. Our adorable glass is both a hangover cure and a friend prone to bad decisions all in one! You can start off with a queasy stomach at “Never” and keep chugging along until you reach “Irresistible” and feel better than ever! Please be advised we are not responsible for the doubled hangover you may or may not experience the day after.

*Links provided to all items sold online; all other products can be found in-store at TCNY