13 care packages for friends guaranteed to make them smile, starting from just £8.49

Show your love, in gift form, with thoughtful gift bundles from Papier, Bloom & Wild, Neom, and more.

Care packages for friends: A woman opens a care package
(Image credit: Getty Images/EyeEm)

Show your love, in gift form, with thoughtful gift bundles from Papier, Bloom & Wild, Neom, and more.

Lockdown may have put a spanner in, well, all of your plans, but fear not - you can still show your best mates, colleagues and family that you care in a myriad of ways. You can drop them a text, call them on your lunch break, even book in a virtual run. Or, if you've got a little money to spend, you could scroll our edit of the best care packages for friends currently available to buy online and send something sweet via post.

The way we show affection has changed in the past year. Thanks to COVID-19, hugs and kisses have been off the cards for a while now, as has physically visiting someone. But that doesn't mean you can't show your love. Sometimes, just letting someone know that you're thinking of them - and have taken time out of your day to send them something special - is enough to make their day.

So, at a time where the world has realised that it really is the little things that matter the most, we thought we'd bring you the best post-able gifts. Send your Grandma a hug in parcel form, or make your best mate laugh out loud with a care package that reminds them of one of your inside jokes. We've got you.

Birthdays, weddings and celebrations in general on hold until June - when the UK government has marked a provisional return to normality - so it can feel like there's not an awful lot to look forward to at current. But these care packages are packed full of self-care ideas, pamper products and treats to let your loved one know they're in your thoughts.

While you're here, don't miss our guides to the best luxury candles, eye creams and ethical jewellery - all of which make excellent gifts, may we add.

Keep scrolling to shop the most luxurious (but affordable) pamper packages currently available to buy.

13 care packages for friends to *add to basket* 

Care packages for friends under £15

£8.95

Mini Spa Day Letterbox Gift, Etsy, £8.95
This mini spa box from independent retailers CosyGiftCo fits neatly through UK letterboxes At just £8.95, your recipient will get a sheet mask, under eye masks, an organic relaxing Pukka teabag, a lavender tea-light and two mini Green and Black's chocolate bars. Cute.

£9

Thinking Of You Cookie Gram, Not On The High Street, £9
There's nothing quite like letting someone know you're thinking of them on a cookie, right? Enter stage right, Message Muffin's personalised cookies. Sweet.

£12.95 

Hotel Chocolat The Everything H-Box, Amazon, £12.95 
One thing's for sure: send anyone this Hotel Chocolat gift box, complete with 14 of their bestselling chocolate recipes, and you'll shoot right up their favourites list. Deeeelish.

£12.99 

Burt's Bees Essential Gift Set with 5 Travel Size Products, Amazon,£12.99 
A purse-friendly pamper kit packed full of products your friend will actually use? Winner, winner.

£13.99 

Pukka Herbs Tea Selection Gift Box, Amazon, £13.99 
Got a pal who's a tea lover? This one's for them, with 45 different blends of tea to try. Mmmm.

Care packages for friends under £20

£17.50

Selection of 6 Crosstown cookies, Farmdrop, £17.50
Crosstown bakery is well-known in London for their decadently indulgent doughnuts and sweet treats. We guarantee whoever you send these cookies too, they'll be very grateful - especially for the apricot and chocolate option.

Care packages for friends under £40

from £20

Stationary bundles, Papier, from £20
Long loved for their quirky and bold stationary designs, the gift bundles from Papier are unique. Order your loved one a personalised journal, planner or notepad, or gift beautifully personalised notecard sets.

from £21

Personalised jewellery gift box, Orelia, from £21
Now this is a thoughtful - and affordable - gift. Jewellery brand Orelia now have a care package making section on their site. It's as simple as choosing your box size (letter box or parcel), plus the gifts you'd like to send.

£29.90

Gin Cocktail Gift Box, Bookblock, £29.90
A good gift for a gin lover. Like the sound of Forty Liquor’s delicious pink grapefruit Negroni and 100ml of London Dry gin? Yeah, we thought you might.

Image

Fix8 Build Your Own Homebrew Kombucha Kit, Fix8, £33.00
This one's fun. Got a friend who loves a home project but has run out of steam on the home renovations and sourdough starter? Next stop: kombucha. Just in time for summer, too.

£35

The Camille bouquet, Bloom & Wild, £35
Another handy letterbox gift, except these are alive and guaranteed to brighten up any room. Bouquet includes roses, snapdragons, carnations, olive foliage, statice, and eucalyptus.

£39.99

Grey Goose Espresso Martini Cocktail Kit featuring Grey Goose Original 35cl, Amazon, £39.99
An espresso martini set? Complete with Grey Goose? Need we say more?

Care packages for friends under £60

£55.00

NEOM Moments of Sparkling Energy box, Amazon, £55.00
Ft. two of their best-selling products, the energy burst eau de parfum and the nourish, breathe and energise hand balm. Enjoy.

Senior Health and Sustainability Editor

Ally Head is Marie Claire UK's Senior Health and Sustainability Editor, nine-time marathoner, and Boston Qualifying runner. Day-to-day, she heads up all strategy for her pillars, working across commissioning, features, and e-commerce, reporting on the latest health updates, writing the must-read wellness content, and rounding up the genuinely sustainable and squat-proof gym leggings worth *adding to basket*. She's won a BSME for her sustainability work, regularly hosts panels and presents for events like the Sustainability Awards, and is a stickler for a strong stat, too, seeing over nine million total impressions on the January 2023 Wellness Issue she oversaw. Follow Ally on Instagram for more or get in touch.