Welcome dear lovelies! I am back with much to share with you in the next few weeks. I am delighted to bring to you a few advent calendars, but first things first; can you believe it’s mid-October (one of my favourite months) and the festive season has actually already begun? It may seem like every brand in the world is doing a version of an advent calendar this year, but to be honest, advent calendars are nothing new. Traditional advent calendars in my family are actually really special, handmade as well, and my parents go all out for the season of Advent even before the bakes and concept menus are started.
In fact, I love that loads of brands are embracing the advent calendars, however, don’t get sucked into buying all of them unless you are independently wealthy. Instead, figure out what you want and need most. What’s more, there is also health and wellness advent calendars out there for the holiday season, and I am excited to gift some myself this year to friends and family, along with charities that we are helping.
Thinking Outside The Box
If you have friends and loved ones who adore diverse types of beauty and skincare brands, then gifting advent calendars may be helpful this year. Another idea is to create custom gift bags from calendars. Last year, I ended up making several miniature holiday hampers out of various items and advent calendar products for women’s charities that we worked with at work (these are also great gift ideas for traveller friends, those that look to you for guidance in the top products to buy).
Although a little mystery can be fun and exciting, here is a guide to what’s in selected beauty advent calendars below so that you don’t have to wonder. I won’t spoil it entirely for you with the exact day the item corresponds with — I will be sharing more details of other advent calendars that I receive on my Instagram Stories. Some of you may have already seen snippets in the past two weeks.
Overall, I really loved these boxes but like any box, there are some things that I will use and other items that I won’t use at all. Fortunately, the former was (in one particular box unrelenting in top quality) more suitable for my needs. There is more positive than not and since I don’t subscribe to many boxes, I did not have many repeat items to be upset about.
I did think that Lookfantastic gave more full-size and specialty size products in theirs; again, deciding on which one of these to buy completely will depend on your preferences and budget. There’s variety in each one, from full-size, travel-size samples, and deluxe samples. As for price guides, most brands are seemingly listing the price(s) for full-size products, not all of the sizes that you actually receive. I have even compared this with some fellow co-workers who have purchased holiday boxes elsewhere, this is just a personal quibble.
Are advent calendars for you? Well, here’s the thing … If you don’t spend too much money on massive amounts of product throughout the year, I think that buying a specific advent calendar is a treat. However, be smart, choose wisely and most importantly, remember, it’s okay to indulge a bit now and again.
Glossybox (UK) – 370+ GBP – *Buy it here.*
MUA Makeup Academy – Pro/Base Primer Oil w/Gold Flakes
Dermalogica – Daily Superfoliant
LASplash Cosmetics – Wickedly Divine Eyeliner
Kat Von D Beauty – Tattoo Liner Liquid Eyeliner
Steve Laurent – Lip Tint
GLOSSYBOX – Blending Sponge
Nudestix – Cream Lip + Cheek Pencil
Sleek Makeup – Matte Me Birthday Suit
Rituals – Ritual of Sakura Body Cream
Curaprox – BE YOU Candy Lover Toothpaste
The Body Shop – Hand & Nail Cream (4 fragrances, 1 per calendar)
Luxie Inc. – Medium Angled Shading Rose Gold Brush
Chloé – Nomade Eau de Parfum
PAWPAW – Original Clear Balm
NYX Professional Makeup – Ultimate Shadow Palette Warm Neutrals
Living proof. – Perfect hair Day In-Shower Styler
Nails Inc – Nail Polish Golden Days Ahead
Tarte Cosmetics – Parce Ave Princess Chisel Palette (Limited Edition)
Mitchell & Peach – Flora No.1 Bath Oil
Winky Lux – Uni-brow
Dennis Gross Skincare – Professional Grade IPL Dark Spot Concentrated Serum
3INA Makeup – The Cream Eyeshadow 313 Light Brown
Nude By Nature – Touch of Glow Highlight Stick
Avant Skincare – Pro-Intense Hyaluronic Acid Illuminating Day Cream
Barry M Cosmetics – Blusher Quad
Glossybox (USA) – 500+ USD – *Buy it here.*
Eyeko – Black Magic Mascara
Christophe Robin – Cleansing Purifying Scrub w/Sea Salt
Morgan Taylor Professional Nail Lacquer – Copper Dream
furr. – Lash Curler
Alterna – Caviar Anti-Aging Leave-in Overnight Serum
Doucce Fierce & Fine Graphic Eyeliner/or Iconic Freematic System Eyeshadow
Ciaté & Luxie – Christmas Special Eyeshadow Palette and Eyeshadow Brush
First Aid Beauty – Ultra Repair Cream Intense Hydration – Honeysuckle
Oribe – The Lacquer High Shine Nail Polish
GLOSSY Makeup – Blending Sponge
L.O.V. – Blurring Blush
Nudestix – Lip + Cheek Pencil
APTO Skincare – Healing Mask –Turmeric
invisibobble – Got to Glow – Holiday
CONTEXT – Micro-Derm Regenerator
Patchology – Moodpatch Eye Gels
Viktor&Rolf – Flowerbomb Eau De Parfum
Winky Lux -Uni-Brow Universal Eyebrow Pencil
Dr. Botanicals – Pomegranate Superfood Regenerating Sleeping Mask
Giorgio Armani Beauty – Homme Code & Femme Code – Absolu Eau de Parfum
Avant Skincare – Pro-Intense Hyaluronic Acid Illuminating Day Cream
3INA – The Cream Eyeshadow – 313
Steve Laurant – Lip gloss- eggplant
Philip Kingsley – Elasticizer
Absolute New York – Matte Made in Heaven Lipstick
*Discount Code:
Fortunately, I do have a promo code for Glossybox, for both UK & USA followers. For any 1-month or more subscription (instead of 3, 6, or 12 mo.) you can grab 20% off + (an additional 10 GBP off or 10 USD/ off of an advent calendar. *Canadian followers should be able to use the code as well.
Use code: MADISON
Lookfantastic (UK) 420 GBP – *Buy it here.*
Illamasqua Nude Collection Liner – Raw
Rodial Dragon’s Blood Lip Mask
OSKIA Renaissance Cleansing Gel
First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads 20
Sleek MakeUP Highlighting Palette – Solstice
Avant Skincare Moisture Surge Overnight Treatment
Prai Throat & Decolletage Crème
Philip Kingsley Elasticizer
Molton Brown Fiery Pink Pepper Bath and Shower Gel
Bio Effect EGF Serum
Eyeko Lash Alert Mascara
Delilah Cosmetics Eye Brow Pencil
Emma Hardie Moisture Boost Vit + C Cream
Bubble T Limited Edition Bath Bomb
Filorga Meso-Mask
Omorovicza Queen of Hungary Mist Limited Edition
Living Proof Perfect Hair Day (PhD) 5-in-1 Styling Treatment
Rituals The Ritual of Ayurveda Dry Oil
Lord & Berry Black Eye Liner
Mellow Cosmetics Liquid Lip Paint – Tehran
Caudalie Vinopure Clear Skin Purifying Toner
Luxie 121 & 141 (2 brushes)
Elemis Pro-Collagen Marine Cream
Neal’s Yard Remedies Wild Rose Hand Cream
Morphe 9A Palette
Although this post is NOT sponsored and not required for me to create, I do work with both brands regularly and hope that this post was helpful to anyone looking to purchase makeup, beauty or skincare driven advent calendars this season.
What are you excited about for the holiday season?
The goods: Advent calendars via Lookfantastic and Glossybox-c/o. All content and opinions are honestly expressed and are my own. Some affiliate links are within this post. *View privacy policy here.
