Conflicted by beauty advent calendars

[principalskinna]

And other sorts, I suppose,

Is this just more crap and waste and pollution and consumerism?
I speak as someone who likes small things and likes beauty products, a lot 😬
Then you think how much they cost, and think " oh God, I just buy two or three of the items that I know I like and try the rest in store"
A member of my family is in charge of doing them and let me just tell you that she's already sorting out some of the ones for brands for next Christmas and that just seems dreadful as well.
I know it's a first world problem, and I know that not obligatory and I'm just musing out loud (so don't give me any of that stuff) but do you think it's time for them to jump the shark?

I like them and agree the Holland & Barrett one is great value and I also use most things in it. I do have a shoebox of things I won't use though and will look for a raffle organiser that wants prizes later in the year. The packaging is the wasteful bit but at least a lot of it is paper so can be recycled.

Last year I bought the Lumene one at a huge discount and will open it this year. So I will stay off the advent calendar threads so I don't get tempted to get another one!

I bought my mum (89), the M&S one for her birthday last year, with other things. She doesn't get put much any more and she loved it. She said it was the best present she'd ever had. As I plan to have "she tried to please her mother" on my epitaph, I was equally thrilled.

I’ve never found the beauty ones wasteful, I use or gift everything from them - and they’re not small or sample sizes. I’ve bought the Liberty one this year as it’s way better than the last years ones, bought it as soon as they released what was in it.

Single use plastics and petroleum based products- never gonna be good. I loathe all the wasteful consumerism

I agree Holland and Barrett one was great last year, Boot’s always good too as is M and S. DD and I use everything from them. Really good value.

It depends. I think the £300 department store ones are an absolute waste of money and these companies see women who can't spend their money fast enough on expensively-packaged face cream coming.
However, the first year Body Shop did one I got one for under £60 in a sale and used all the minis as holiday toiletries.

I don’t’ buy them for anyone, but my husband buys me one - a good one. I really enjoy them and get a lot of use out of the products. I give the things I’d not use to my sons’ girlfriends in table boxes at Christmas.

I have very sensitive skin, so I love them as I can try a product without making a lot of big purchases to see what I can use without getting a reaction

If there’s something which doesn’t suit I just give it away

I like a jigsaw advent calendar, they are reusable. I like the idea of a cross stitch one or a crochet one but probably would not do it everyday! Tbh I also like the just card traditional picture ones too.

95% of what gets bought for Christmas is crap and waste and pollution and consumerism - I see no reason to single out beauty advent calendars. At least the products serve some sort of purpose and are things the people who buy the calendars would probably buy year-round in some form or another.

I have a weakness for beauty AC, beauty boxes & free gifts with cosmetics. It started years ago at beauty counters. So much unused stuff, but I just love opening them… Of course I use some of the stuff. But, yeah. Don’t need it.

Have just ordered the Boots No 7 one ( for myself ) 😉got DD the Look fantastic one last year and she loved it

I buy myself one if I’m interested enough.
I’m scrupulous about checking the contents though; not necessarily for value for money in total but for the value of the things that I would either buy/replace during the year anyway. I check space NK and cult beauty, I used to also check Liberty but the last few years they have been way too perfume heavy for me and I know most of it doesn’t have any value for me. Space NK and cult beauty do majority full sized products and often I easily make up the value of the calendar with about 7 full sized items (when I add them up and consider that I would only have bought them during a 20% offer). Last year I didn’t get one at all as neither of them were of use to me but I’m looking again this year. I’ve found some holy grails through these and I have 2 adult daughters and a beauty loving niece too who will happily take anything I don’t want off my hands so that’s also nice.

Other advent calendars don’t interest me and the kids always get chocolate one!

I’ve had the Vogue one for the last 3 years as my Christmas present from my husband and loved it! I’ve literally just seen what’s in this years box and there is one product I wouldn’t use (a cream eyeshadow) and my DD would probably like it so wouldn’t go to waste. If you like 90% of what’s in them and will use the products they can be great value - equally I’ve had other brands with too much stuff I wouldn’t use so I would strongly recommend looking at the contents of each first which you can normally do online!

My teen daughter loved the ASOS beauty calendar and has been using up everything that was in it.

She also got me the Nivea calendar as a surprise gift and I LOVED it and everything got used

Conflicting feelings- I buy my daughter one every year and this year will buy my son one as well as he is into skincare. But for myself I always buy a paper one- I don't like the way that the whole of Advent is now treated as an extended Christmas and a time for presents and feasting rather than a time for reflection followed by the 12 days. Even if you're not religious I think there's something to be said for times of restraint between the times of excess, even though I am contributing to the excess myself with the calendars.

I do 🤨 a bit about the waste worrying going on.

If I need 500ml of shampoo, I need 500ml of shampoo. Who cares if I buy it annually in a pretty box (that can be sold or given away to be reused).

Arguably noone needs chocolate or presents but yet people buy that because..."tradition"

I never buy them. I particularly wouldn’t get one with multiple brands in it as it’s too hit and miss. I look at what I’d pay for / know I’d use, and then all the rest are really free samples / testers that I’m paying the companies to test! I’m particular about makeup colours so I just won’t wear black mascara / warm toned lipsticks etc, and if I wear perfume I’d rather pay for one I love rather than pay to test a new one. And then they throw in stuff such as face washes for oily skin which I don’t have and serums with retinol that clash with what I already use.

I think the only one I’d probably use is the White Company one - body care and candles etc are less personal and can be less precisely tailored tham makeup and skincare.

I buy the grum one Love their little bits and pieces.Lasts me for ages. In fact, didn't buy one this year just gone.