What were your Advent Calendar hits?

[clary]

I had F&M and CB which was lovely, and thought it might be interesting to see what people have tried and liked or loved.

I'll start with what I've used and liked in F&M:

Cult 51 day cream is yummy, not too heavy and yet rich
Surprised how much I like and am using the room sprays esp lime and ginger
Utterly LOVE the F&M perfume, I've not worn perfume for years but I adore this and have almost finished it
Have used and enjoyed the candel too, tho this is not something I use often, so I have no idea if it's a good one
Love the bee-embroidered makeup bag.

Anyone else? Any calendar obvs

I had F&M too, and I also loved the makeup bag and room sprays - I haven't tried either of the perfumes yet. I also liked the AA bath oil and the pillow spray .

From Space NK my biggest hit is probably the Sunday Riley face oil from the first day which I'm planning to RP (even though I have a zillion face oils to get through already) and the Dr Dennis Gross exfoiliant pad things which I've already bought more of. There will be lots more I'm sure - I'm trying hard to use things up in order and so I haven't tried a lot of it including the makeup.

Jo Malone! So lovely, I have a huge selection of perfumes now and used the candles, gels, creams etc along the way. Love the box too.

Oooh great thread. I miss our advent calendar chats

I’m really enjoying using my space NK products. I use the Nars lipstick every day. The eyeshadow is fab too.
My favourite is probably the Sunday Riley CEO oil. It’s such a treat after a bath (using the Jo Malone of course)! My skin feels amazing at the moment.
The drunk elephant moisturiser is lovely too, but it’s a shame it was such a tiny size.

There’s another face oil in it too, I can’t remember the name now but it’s an absolutely ridiculously small sample size, and very hard to get any of the product out. That one is disappointing

I had NAP and I don't think (apart from the pink quartz thing) that there is anything I haven't loved. All the face stuff I have tried has been really wonderful, I loved the Posh VK lipstick and even the weird coloured eyeliner is incredibly flattering to me. what I love about advent calendars is if you find a product you love, it is very likely to be selling on ebay in the hundreds. I bought a lot of Suzanne Kauffman Mallow bath - the most lovely smell I have had in the bath.

Good shouts all, this will be useful.

Interesting about the walk of Shame eyeliner as I wondered about that.

I remembered two more - the Sol de Janeiro products in F&M - I love the hair mask anyway and have bought before, so that was a plus; also adore the bumbum cream. It is a very small pot tho (but then won't take me long to use up :))

John Lewis Calendar here.

Only one disappointment out of the whole calendar (Liz Earle Instant Boost Tonic) so lots I've enjoyed.

Top hits for me:

• Elemis Kefir Tea Mist - surprisingly useful
• Charlotte Tilbury Queen of Glow - has become my most used palette
• Aromatherapy Associates Destress Muscle bath oil - used before but full size and I love a lot.
• MAC Satin Lipstick in Twig - good colour for me.
• Augustinus Bader Rich Cream - stocked up from post calendar EBay listings since.

The really surprising one (which wasn't popular on JL advent thread) was the The Inner Chef collagen beauty boost. Don't believe half the claims but was a real pick-me-up in the morning so I've bought some to try out longer.

Some items yet to try. Sorry for essay- it was a great calendar.

Oooh @Stoic123 I also have the JL one (shhhh) as a secret (well, I know about it) to cheer me up in Jan; I justified it bc I was going to by that CT palette and a couple of other things that came to the price of the calendar.

I've not started it yet but your review is good to read :)

@clary- sorry if I've spoilt some surprises!

hahaha nooo I know what is in it - it's still so lovely to open it each day. I am saving it for that low feeling that comes in January :)

I had the John Lewis one and loved a lot out of it. My absolute fave was the Elemis Kefir mist, I've used it and bought a full size already. Loving the CT pallet, Mac lipstick, aromatherapy associates and Clinique moisture surge.

Meant to update with my faves from the CB calendar as well.

Funnily enough I haven't started as many things (no idea why not) and there are more items but some things I have tried and liked:
Victoria Beckham lippy - one reason for buying the calendar, I love this, feels so yummy on and also the packaging is so luxe, and the colour is great on me too (pale-skinned white brunette)
bath crystals smell nice tho don't think they do much
Like the sparkly palette (Roen) tho the texture is not as lasting as CT
Single eyeshadow in tabac (I think) is also very good - more luxe packaging as well
I am diligently using the vitamin D capsules
I also like the Oskia serum, a really high-end product
I'm looking forward to trying the flicky eyeliner but haven't dared yet :)

Anyone else?

Funnily enough I just checked the list of contents of CB in case I had forgotten something I loved, and thought I knew there was a CT eyeshadow - turned out I had missed that and also the eye gels! How could I pack away the calendar box with two treats still inside? I can only think I was in a pre-Christmas whirl and forgot - oops

I spent the whole M&S thread basically complaining about it being dull, and I have to take it back because lots of the products have been very good. I had three calendars (JL, M&S and F&M) so I have lots of hits. The Alpha H Liquid Gold from M&S is fantastic and I'll be switching from REN to that. The Eyeko brown liquid eyeliner is great too. The Formula Absolute Ultimate Sleep cream is amazing too, it makes such a difference to how my skin looks in the morning.

I haven't tried much from F&M but a surprise hit was the Gallinee cleansing shampoo. Also like the Aromatherapy Associates and Olverum products, and the room sprays.

John Lewis was my favourite calendar. I really liked the Juliette has a Gun perfumes, the Mac lipstick, the CT palette, the Elemis mist, and the dry shampoo.

I had m and s. I loved a few things but my most favourite are the Emma Hardie moringa cleansing balm, formula Absolute Ultimate Sleep Cream, Philip Kingsley Elasticizer , Alpha-H Liquid Gold Rose and the little L'occitane Immortelle Precious Cream.

and I still haven’t tried some products!

Interesting about M&S and the night cream; I had the AC but divvied it up for presents (including giving away the Moringa cleanser and the liquid gold) but I kept that night cream as it was fairly small for a gift; so I will try it next and hope to see results too :)

I liked a few things from the M&S one. Emma Hardie balm is sooo nice! The AlphaH Rose Gold did give me a lovely glow. I don’t go in much for face cream hype (even though I love trying different ones, I tend to whack on whatever whether posh or cheap) but this stuff is very good.

The hits for me from Rituals (2D) were the hand cream and body lotion. The candles were a disappointment as they barely smell at all. I also thought the sizes of some of the products were too small to test them out properly so I won't get this one next year!

Loved the Emma Hardie cleansing balm in M&S likewise the day cream. Not finished opening this calendar yet as I got it for January but am really impressed so far!

I’m half way through the Cult 51 day cream from F&M too, it’s excellent, look forward to the night cream when my current is finished. My skin feels great at the moment. Also loved the AA bath oil, Bramley spray, used the candle over Christmas, olverum and the face vinegar. A big surprise hit was actually the Kure nail oil, it’s the nicest I’ve ever tried and also the sol Janeiro hair stuff. I fully expected to dislike it as not a bum bum cream fan but I had the hair of dreams after using it, swishy and bouncy.

I haven't tried many of my new items yet as I'm still trying to finish up all the old stuff that I have open! I'm loving the rosi drops from space nk though. Also the hourglass eyeshadow. I rarely wear eyeshadow, but I like that one as it's a subtle shade.

I had M&S, H&B and LF 12 day calendar. I didn't really like H&B this year. M&S was good and I will try most of the products. LF 12 day was good and probably best one this year.

I need to find a face cream I am not allergic to. I can throw away L'occitane and Pure moisturisers already.

I had JL, and have already been out and bought a full size Kefir mist as I loved it so much. The smaller one has gone in my travel bag.
The CT palette was a miss from me so must try to eBay it at some point.
I have the M&S still to open. I know I already live the EH balm and the alpha gold stuff.

Me too @NameChangeinHaste! Already got the kefir mist. And I've also kept the small bottle to pour some more info for holidays!

I have the M&S one but I'm very impressed by those who've saved one for January. I'm far too slow to have thought of this myself!

For those that had M&S did your strew relieving roller ball work?
Not so much did it relief your stress? Rather, could you get any of the damn stuff to come out?

The palette in Glossybox was great and the night cream in M&S