Somewhere along the line, gift cards got a bad rap. But let's be clear: If you think giving gift certificates lacks thought, you've clearly never gotten one that lets you go on a shopping spree at one of the top beauty stores. Sure, they're often bestowed upon those who are "too difficult to shop for," but in our world getting one is a bit like hitting the jackpot. This season, we'd be thrilled to see one land in our stockings — especially if it's in the triple digits. But how to spend it? Well, we've already got some ideas.

Over the next few weeks, our beauty editors will be breaking down exactly how we would spend (very generous) $100 gift cards at some of our favorite stores — and we're starting with Sephora. Our methods were different — some of us chose to re-up our daily essentials; others went straight to the gift-set section, hoping to maximize the haul — but we all satisfied our inner beauty junkies.

See our picks ahead, and then hope you've been very, very nice this year.