General “Waifs and Strays” Beauty Advent Calendar opening thread

[AprilLady]

As last year, I suggest we use this as a general beauty advent calendar thread for everyone with beauty calendars that may not be covered by other threads or who prefers a general thread. I’m opening FM, Harrods and M&S this year, and will aim to post on both this and the M&S threads.

Please can no-one post any spoilers before 7am on the relevant day.

Just over a week to go. I’m really looking forward to it!

I will report back @festivefuschias.

Thanks.

Day 21:

Byredo Vetyver hand sanitiser Harrods. About as fancy as a hand sanitizer gets! Quite happy with this.

Christmas candle. F&M. Very Christmassy smell, and reasonable size. Much happier with F&M today.

REN day cream. M&S 2021. This is another good, if not exciting, M&S offering.

This works in transit camera close-up. M&S 2018. This is actually the one and only This Works product I really like, which I’d forgotten about. So very happy to get it again to be able to see if it still works for me.

Two very similar products from the M&S calendar today, but personal preference means I’m giving it to 2018.

13.5: 7.5. to M&S 2021.

Rituals today is a body mousse and Degustabox is chocolate covered cherries - yum!

@FaoinDrualus - yum to the brown bread and marmalade and tea! You have reminded me I have a McCambridge brown bread in the freezer kept especially for this week.

@Peridot1

Rituals today is a body mousse and Degustabox is chocolate covered cherries - yum!

@FaoinDrualus - yum to the brown bread and marmalade and tea! You have reminded me I have a McCambridge brown bread in the freezer kept especially for this week.

Chocolate covered cherries have me drooling.

Me too! It’s the first one I went Yum! for.

A cacoa and mushroom tea that tastes like chocolate and cinnamon. Not sure what reishi is but I'm looking forward to trying it.

Ren day cream from M&S. I seem to be getting loads from this brand. I'm currently using their body lotion which I really like.

@AprilLady

Day 21:

Byredo Vetyver hand sanitiser Harrods. About as fancy as a hand sanitizer gets! Quite happy with this.

Christmas candle. F&M. Very Christmassy smell, and reasonable size. Much happier with F&M today.

REN day cream. M&S 2021. This is another good, if not exciting, M&S offering.

This works in transit camera close-up. M&S 2018. This is actually the one and only This Works product I really like, which I’d forgotten about. So very happy to get it again to be able to see if it still works for me.

Two very similar products from the M&S calendar today, but personal preference means I’m giving it to 2018.

13.5: 7.5. to M&S 2021.

2018 is making a late run. Still can't catch up but may come a respectable second.

JL is a NARS lip pencil (like a lipstick, not lip liner) in Dolce Vita.

ASOS is a MAC lipstick in Whirl.

@festivefuschias - tried the sleeping mask last night. Instructions are to put it on as the last item in your routine and then to rinse the following morning.

It felt quite nice last night but my skin was a bit tight after I rinsed it so I'm not so sure of it. I wonder do you really need to rinse?

This mornings M&S is a Ren day cream. I will use this, but will save it until I finish the Pure day cream from an earlier day.

Breakfast this morning was elevated to brown bread, rashers and black and white pudding, with a cup of tea
We have an Agenda this morning - buy gifts for the neighbours at the gardening center, gift deliveries to friends, arrange flowers and tidy up graves at the cemetry. All requiring a good breakfast!

@FaoinDrualus

This mornings M&S is a Ren day cream. I will use this, but will save it until I finish the Pure day cream from an earlier day.

Breakfast this morning was elevated to brown bread, rashers and black and white pudding, with a cup of tea
We have an Agenda this morning - buy gifts for the neighbours at the gardening center, gift deliveries to friends, arrange flowers and tidy up graves at the cemetry. All requiring a good breakfast!

Much better than a muesli. You can't beat the Irish mammy for a good breakfast.

@OchonAgusOchonOh You can't beat the Irish mammy for a good breakfast
Fact!

The curry crisps are delicious, will definitely buy again.

Chocolate and cinnamon tea yum!

Space NK is 2 FREE SAMPLES. Sisley ecological compound and a face mask, both 10ml.

Hey lovers of beauty AC

Todays offerings are

JL - Nars lip liner - not as red as the photo but more like the colour of the Mac Twig

Boots No 7 - a voucher for a concealer - I thought they'd forgotten for a panicked moment - I never use the vouchers - will give to DD to use when she's in town

Degusta - chocolate covered cherries 🍒

@festivefuschias I'm glad you pointed out it was a lipstick pencil and not a lip liner

@FaoinDrualus amazing breakfast you are being well looked after and loved

@Jooox

Chocolate and cinnamon tea yum!

Space NK is 2 FREE SAMPLES. Sisley ecological compound and a face mask, both 10ml.

That's pretty poor. You don't expect free samples in the expensive calendars

I’m aware it’s very much a matter of opinion, but I actually don’t think two 10ml Sisley “free samples” is that bad at all. Sisley is a £££ brand, and I’ve liked almost everything I’ve tried from them (the Black Rose moisturiser is particularly good). One of our local shops has a Sisley counter, and the most I’ve ever got “free” was a couple of sachets of shower gel, and then only after I had spent ££ on a product. So they may be “free”, but you would only get them as part of a GWP and after you’d spent a fair bit of money. It’s really not the same as a single use sample sachet, which would indeed be something to feel cheated by.

Incidentally, I’ve found the Black rose mask to be a lovely product, and I’ve got 4 or 5 uses out of a 10ml tube in the past.

@AprilLady

I’m aware it’s very much a matter of opinion, but I actually don’t think two 10ml Sisley “free samples” is that bad at all. Sisley is a £££ brand, and I’ve liked almost everything I’ve tried from them (the Black Rose moisturiser is particularly good). One of our local shops has a Sisley counter, and the most I’ve ever got “free” was a couple of sachets of shower gel, and then only after I had spent ££ on a product. So they may be “free”, but you would only get them as part of a GWP and after you’d spent a fair bit of money. It’s really not the same as a single use sample sachet, which would indeed be something to feel cheated by.

Incidentally, I’ve found the Black rose mask to be a lovely product, and I’ve got 4 or 5 uses out of a 10ml tube in the past.

That's the difference between you and me - you actually know what you're talking about with products whereas I'm clueless

I agree @OchonAgusOchonOh, it was very disappointing.

A free sample is a free sample as far as I’m concerned, regardless of how expensive the product is. I will try and adopt some of @AprilLady’s positivity for the rest of the week though

@OchonAgusOchonOh Probably just a sign that I’ve spent far too much time and money on beauty products in recent years - wish I could say it had lead to amazing hair and skin, but sadly not.

@Jooox, fair enough. There are different perspectives on whether something is “free” if you only ever get it once you’ve spent money on something else.

I also think it’s hard not to have very high (and possibly unrealistic) expectations from the luxury calendars.

A bit more positivity from me: Even at £200+, it’s not realistic to expect generous sized, luxury products every day for 25 days. One way of looking at it, is that if you have spent £200 in total, you have actually spent £8 per day. Every day you get something “worth” more to you than £8, you’ve done well. For a luxury calendar you’ve chosen after scrutinising the contents first, this is likely to be the case for most of the 25 days.

As an aside, M&S works out at £1.60 per day! Even a 15ml REN cream is reasonable on that basis

[quote AprilLady]@OchonAgusOchonOh Probably just a sign that I’ve spent far too much time and money on beauty products in recent years - wish I could say it had lead to amazing hair and skin, but sadly not.

@Jooox, fair enough. There are different perspectives on whether something is “free” if you only ever get it once you’ve spent money on something else.

I also think it’s hard not to have very high (and possibly unrealistic) expectations from the luxury calendars.

A bit more positivity from me: Even at £200+, it’s not realistic to expect generous sized, luxury products every day for 25 days. One way of looking at it, is that if you have spent £200 in total, you have actually spent £8 per day. Every day you get something “worth” more to you than £8, you’ve done well. For a luxury calendar you’ve chosen after scrutinising the contents first, this is likely to be the case for most of the 25 days.

As an aside, M&S works out at £1.60 per day! Even a 15ml REN cream is reasonable on that basis [/quote]
To an extent, I agree with you. I would rather a small amount of something I like than a large amount of something I'm not interested in. I also like to get a few deluxe items and am happy with them being small but would be a bit disappointed with a single use moisturiser or shampoo, for example.

That said, I'm very happy with both of mine. No drawers of doom other than the nail varnish which is good going.

That is a nice way of looking at it, thank you @AprilLady You’re like a Christmas fairy spreading sprinkles of positivity

I’ll still never forgive space nk but you’ve got me out of my grump.