General beauty advent calendar discussion thread 2

[AprilLady]

New thread to continue discussion of any and all beauty advent calendars. As before please don’t post details of content before 7am on the relevant morning.

Only 3 days left to go . But we can continue to discuss products used, and those doing Jadvent please continue posting updates.

Shower bomb thing today. As I virtually never take showers (I’m a bath person) unless I’m in a tearing hurry, I suspect this will sit on the shelf for months and eventually get chucked.

I'm thinking of getting a calendar for my mum next year. She would probably like hair products, shower gel, fragrance, hand cream, nail varnish and a bit of skincare (Obviously wouldn't need all of this in it but just to give an idea). I'd have a budget of £40 ish and last year nearly got her the Arran one as that was getting good mentions (plus quite a low spend threshold for a free gift for me if I recall correctly!) but didn't think she'd be too fussed. Spoke to her yesterday and turns out she would have loved one!

Any recommendations for that budget I could look out for next year?

@tellmewhentheLangshiplandscoz I would go for Occitane, which is the one I have right now, although that doesn’t have any makeup, or M&S, which is excellent value if they bring it back again this year - you have to spend on other stuff though to be eligible to buy the calendar and it sells out fast.

Maybe depends on your Mum's age, but we gave an elderly friend the Holland and Barrett calendar, and she absolutely loved it.

I'd recommend the Holland & Barrett calendar as I was really impressed with it this year.

I agree, Holland and Barrett is great - I liked it much better than Arran, which was a bit samey. I've discovered several lovely things they I've already bought again.

Thanks all. I had the H and B one which I found ok but I think mum would like. Good price too with no qualifying spend unlike M and S. Although that one does feel more luxury and the qualifying spend us easily done on gifts.

I also though L'Occittitane, mamma can you remember the price of that one? Feels like it's a bit over budget.

Oh and she's mid 60s 😁

I got it for £40 @tellmewhentheLangshiplandscoz but that was on sale, I think it was originally £50 but not sure

Ahh I'll keep an eye out nearer the time. Thanks

@tellmewhentheLangshiplandscoz

Oh and she's mid 60s 😁

Aaahhh - my sort of age range then!

I thought the M & S one was excellent, but as they didn't do it in 2020, I don't know whether they will in 2021. Great mix of products though and a good price.

Liberty was great

Sort of loving the Selfridges one. Bit hit and miss. Gorgeous perfumes but then bloody Eve Lom and mini Nars blusher.

Today was a teeny weeny pot of ByTerry lip balm. Nice but small.

Do you not like Eve Lom / Nars @Babysharkdoodoodood ?

Sleek eyeshadow palette in Amazon today. I wear glasses so eye makeup isn’t worth the bother most of the time.

@Babysharkdoodoodood The By Terry lip balm is gorgeous - I got it in the John Lewis calendar and was a bit meh at how small it was, however it's been sitting on my desk since I got it and I use it every day, sometimes more than once and there's still loads left as you only need such a tiny amount. £££ to repurchase though!

Roccabox today is a Rose Blossom Glow Facial Oil. Only just started using facial oils (got a set of two day/night ones in JL advent) but am getting on with them now I've learned where to add them to my routine. This will therefore go in the drawer until those ones are finished but I think I will definitely use it.

Catch up post. Today's is Bumble and Bumble invisible oily primer protection spray.

Yesterday - Dr. Botanicals Moroccan rose super food facial oil. How do you fit these into your routine, @bigdecisionstomake? I'm not sure and I have combination skin with some oily areas.

Day before - Eyeko tinted brow gel. Will have to see how tinted this is, as I have used clear brow gel but coloured ones don't tend to be the right shade for me.

@mammmamia I remember the Eve Lom day in Look F and for quite a few people it felt like a regular over-familiar item. I've never tried it! Haven't started mine yet though as have loads of cleansers waiting.

@Butterymuffin I have dry and dehydrated skin generally (52 and menopausal!) I did a bit of research and most people recommended using facial oil as the last step of your routine. One or two suggested sandwiching it between serum and moisturiser. I tried both ways and now use it last at night - so cleanse, tone, serum, moisturise then oil. I use retinol at night but in a cream so the oil works well last - to kind of seal everything in. Occasionally I use a retinol in an oil formulation, in which case I wouldn't use a facial oil as well as I think that would be too much even for my dry skin.

In the morning I was worried about using oil last in case it left me greasy but in actual fact, the disciple oil I'm currently using (from John Lewis AC) doesn't do that. I do however mostly sandwich it between serum and moisturiser in the morning. I only use 2-3 drops (less is more - pretty much everything I read said that!) and after serum I spritz with a hyaluronic mist first then pat the oil mostly on my cheeks and neck with the lightest of swipes over my T-Zone. I then leave it for a few minutes before applying moisturiser and usually I can't even feel the oil on my skin at that point. I don't do it every day in the morning but have found it's helped to keep my skin more hydrated than normal so is particularly useful when wfh with the central heating on all day. I suspect I wouldn't use it during the day in the summer though, just at night.

The Disciple oils are the only ones I've tried so far and I've been really pleased at how they don't seem to leave my skin oily at all after a minute or two. Will be interested to see if other facial oils are the same though. With combination skin I would think it would be best to try them initially just on cheeks/neck to see how you get on and then work lightly over T-Zone if you feel your skin can take it. You don't need as much as you think so start with just a drop or two and see how you get on.

Hope that helps!

Face vinegar today. Seems to be a toner, doesn’t smell vinegary but I’m really not sure about the marketing that came up with this particular name - I mean, ‘Face Vinegar’ doesn’t really sell itself.

I thought the same about the face vinegar!

Thanks @bigdecisionstomake, that's really useful! I may try a tiny amount on my drier skin last thing, maybe neck and throat too.

'Face vinegar' is a terrible name!

I forgot one of my other items from the last week - Eight and Bob perfume, 'Egypt' in a travel size but which is still priced at over £40 when I looked. Tried it briefly and liked it but need to test a proper amount.

Only 2 days to go It has perked up a grinding and dull January for me so job done.

So Jadvent Christmas Eve today. I have a full size Generation Clay brightening purple clay mask tube. Love a clay mask so happy with that!

@tellmewhentheLangshiplandscoz I agree that if M&S bring their calendar back this year - and I really hope they do - that would be a good choice for your mum. It's tough now to get a 24 day calendar with all round good value and a range of products below the £50 mark. Holland and Barrett looks good otherwise.

Emma Hardie moringa cleansing balm in Amazon today. Really like it, so happy with that.

Kili.g Face, Eyes & Neck Mousse for fauxChristmas Eve! I had to look up what it was supposed to be - cleanser? face mask? moisturiser? - as the packaging is unhelpful on this point. H&B isn’t actually much clearer but I think it’s probably a moisturiser.

I tried the face vinegar this morning and it does smell very slightly like something you want on chips when you first apply it...

Roccabox has Balance Gold Collagen Rejuvenating Serum today with Colloidal Gold and Marine Collagen. I've had a couple of products recently with gold in them - maybe it's a new thing!

Brow pencil from Look Fantastic. Have to say I haven't been knocked over by their calendar, but I was spoiled with Liberty in December.