🎄 2025 Style and Beauty Advent Calendar Discussion ***SPOILERS*** THREAD 3

[BakeOffRewatch]

Annual Style and Beauty Advent Calendar discussion thread. First AC reveal this year was 23rd June. First luxury reveal was 2nd July.

Thread 1: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/5360770-2025-style-and-beauty-advent-calendar-discussion

Thread 2: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/5388836-2025-style-and-beauty-advent-calendar-discussion-spoilers-thread-2

The regulars on the thread mainly discuss luxury BAC and this dies down by September when everyone has purchased and forgotten the contents. Then it goes into discussion on what’s selling out, what hasn’t and what deals and discounts to be had on ACs in the lead up to December. Then in December we move onto AC opening threads!

There’s a separate thread for GWP, discounts and other deals here: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/5338957-beauty-chat-freebiesgifts-with-purchaseoffers-thread-three

A thread for the Liberty Beauty Drop here: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/5253698-liberty-beauty-drop-spoiler-from-the-despatch-date-part-9

MN has a great Christmas board for deals and early gift buying here: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/christmas

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LUXURY MULTI-BRAND

Cult Beauty - partial reveal so far beautyadventcalendar.net/cult-beauty-advent-calendar-2025/
£265 Fortnum & Mason - full reveal www.fortnumandmason.com/2025-fortnums-beauty-advent-calendar
£250 Fenwick - full reveal beautyadventcalendar.net/fenwick-advent-calendar-2025/
Flannels - only a cracker so far beautyadventcalendar.net/flannels-beauty-cracker-2025/
£250 Harrods - full reveal www.harrods.com/en-gb/p/harrods-of-london-the-harrods-beauty-advent-calendar-2025-000000000007826118
£250 Harvey Nichols - full reveal www.harveynichols.com/harvey-nichols/harvey-nichols-beauty-advent-calendar-2025-42956-232485/
John Lewis - later in the year probably October
£275 Liberty - full reveal https://www.libertylondon.com/uk/pre-order-liberty-beauty-advent-calendar-2025-000839831.html
£250 Selfridges - full reveal cloud.mail.selfridges.com/beautyadventcalendar25
£260 Space NK - full reveal beautyadventcalendar.net/space-nk-advent-calendar-2025/
Vogue - later in year probably September issue, £350 last year

HIGH STREET
Anthropologie
ASOS
Beauty Bay
The Body Shop https://www.thebodyshop.com/collections/beauty-advent-calendars
Boots
Elle
French Pharmacy
Glossybox
Holland & Barrett https://www.hollandandbarrett.com/info/beauty-advent
Jarrolds
LIB Latest In Beauty x Stylist
Lush £125, £179, £205, https://www.lush.com/uk/en/c/christmas-advent-calendars
L’Occitane
LookFantastic £105 https://www.lookfantastic.com/c/waitlist/advent
M&S
Next
Revolution Beauty £50 https://www.revolutionbeauty.com/uk/en/gifts/advent-calendars/revolution-beauty-makeup-advent-calendar-2025/1868648.html
Sephora https://www.sephora.co.uk/c/beauty-advent-calendar-waitlist
Ted Baker
The White Company

BUDGET
Aldi
Sainsbury’s

SINGLE BRAND BEAUTY
Arran £85 https://arran.com/products/advent-calendar
Charlotte Tilbury
Elemis https://uk.elemis.com/advent-calendar-2025-sign-up
e.l.f.
Gruum
Jo Malone
Liz Earle
Lumene
Neom https://neomwellbeing.com/pages/neom-wellbeing-advent-calendar-sign-up-page
Shisheido https://www.shiseido.co.uk/gb/en/newsletter-advent-calendar.html

BATH & BODY
Ciaté
Cowshed
Rituals

JEWELLERY
Oliver Bonas
Liberty
Accessorize

FOOD
Bonne Maman jam
Degusta
Paxton and Whitfield cheese
Fortnum & Mason Tea and Biscuits

MEN’S
Liberty

FRAGRANCE
Acqua Di Parma
Diptyque
Fragrance Shop
Harrods fragrance
Harvey Nichols fragrance
L’Artisan Parfumier
Jo Loves https://www.joloves.com/pages/advent-calendar
Jo Malone
Penhaligons
Perfume Shop
Sniph
Space NK fragrance

K-BEAUTY
Stylevana
Yesstyle
Stylekorean

I actually like most of the ones I've smelt so far. This is how I rate them

1. Gris Charnel – 10/10
2. Myrrh and Tonka – 10/10
3. Ganymede – 9/10
4. Dorade – 9/10
5. Floraiku Sand and Skin – 8/10
6. Millesime – 8/10
7. Valaya – 8/10
8. Thameen Riviere – 7/10
9. Roja Isola Verde – 7/10

10. Nishane – 4/10 I've not yet opened rude oud or Immortals.

I bought the fragrance calendar at H Beauty last year (following the online cancellation debacle). I can confirm they gave out freebies. IIRC, I got a mini SDJ bum bum cream, some H beauty wash bands and something else. They also gave out scratch cards to ‘win’ bonus reward points between £5 and £100. I think mine was for £20 or maybe £25. It was decent and a lovely surprise.
I have noticed that I’ve randomly had £10 of reward points added to my Harrods account (by manual adjustment - I was not expecting anything) this year after ordering both advent calendars on release date. The points were added about a week later following calendar dispatch so wondered if it was an effort at some parity with the in store experience.

The 3x Creed are all in day 5 not spread over multiple days.

CB actually looks more appealing now I can see everything. Day 25 having multiple items is a bit different- I think I’d rather have a really high end single product but variety is the spice of life- I can’t make up my mind!

Interesting! Some high ratings there. Some of the ones that you like the least, are actually ones that I prefer. For me, I think order of preference would be:

1. Sand & Skin - 10/10
2. Roja Isola Verde 10/10
3. Gris Charnel 9/10
4. Nishane 8/10
5. Ganymede - 7/10
6. Myrrh & Tonka - 6/10
7. Thameen - 6/10
8. Dorade - 5/10
9. Brompton Immortals - 2/10
10. Rude Oud - 1/10
11. Creed - 0/10
12. Valaya - 0/10

Absolutely hated Valaya. Annoyingly, the ones that I prefer tend to be the smaller bottles!

Despite saying I was going to be good, I ended up trying a couple of the bigger bottles. Valaya and Nissans are among my favourite fragrances anyway, so I didn’t need to open them. I love Dorade but wasn’t keen on Thameen Rivière. I thought Sand and Skin was horrible. I’ve already got a small bottle of the Jo Malone - it’s not one of my favourites but I will definitely use it. I’ve put the box away now so won’t try any of the others 😆. My Liberty csme this morning and my husband has checked that every drawer is occupied and not damp, and that’s fine away now as well.

They also had quite a nice GWP with it at one point

I remember looking at flights (seriously!) to see if I could combine a day trip to visit family with buying this calendar 🙈. I very nearly did it and would consider it again if the offer was appealing!

😂😂😂 would not be unheard of

So interesting reading the different opinions on the Harrods fragrances. I’m coming to realise I have quite different tastes to many, in that oudy, spicy, oriental style fragrances are not really my thing but more classic perfumes are (wearing my much loved Mitsouko today, whenever I do I question why I keep bothering with many modern fragrances)

So I might be the only person who does like the Creed - it has definite classic Chanel vibes to me, and that’s a positive as far as I am concerned. I haven’t yet tried Rude Oud or Dorade and already knew I liked Gris Charnel and Brompton Immortals (there was a travel size on the original 2022 Harrods fragrance calendar). I also knew Valaya was not me, mostly just as I am not a fan of white florals. Of the rest, I liked the Roja Isolde Verde. I thought the Thameen and Jo Malone were fine but pretty strong and therefore not things I am likely to reach for much and I’m not a fan of the Hacivat. I am anosmic to most “skin scents” so while I don’t dislike it, Sand & Skin does very little for me.

So it’s actually not been a fantastic success for me; I will think twice about buying it next year.

Oh gosh I tested Kilian GGGB yesterday and loved it, hoping to see an influx on Vinted once people receive the CB Calendar!

I know it is really overpriced, but the Beekman calendar looks so pretty.

https://beauty-detective.com/beekman-1802-advent-calendar-2025/

It is pretty. There's a few single brand ones I wouldn't mind having just because they're nice but I know I wouldn't enjoy them that much as my only AC. Last years Rituals taught me that it gets too samey.

The shipping and tax from the US probably makes it not worth it though. I ordered a few Beekman products, it was expensive and they took over a month to arrive.

Immediate Magic Roundabout vibes 😁

@HolaLolla did your Harrods frag come ok with the postcode thing? I had decided earlier I was going for Harrods beauty and when to purchase and it said it didn’t post to my address so I’ve settled now that it will be space nk for me x

I’m starting to think the Boots skincare and the LF fragrance would be a good combo for me. I wouldn’t normally get two but it would still work out cheaper than Cult Beauty etc and I could repurpose the Jo Malone perfume I can’t smell as a Christmas present for someone.

Not bothered about make up in a calendar and I’ve got enough body care and hair stuff to last me a good year or two (though that could also be said for fragrance and skincare 😂).

I'm quite torn as I like the idea of removing DoDs but at the same time I've now totally forgotten what's in my Liberty calendar other than the product I'm really looking forward to and one certain DoD. So I'd need to remind myself what I don't really want and then get DH to remove them and hope I forgot all over again by December.

As it's actually still (how???) August I probably would to be fair.

I was just about to brag, it arrived today 🎉🎉🎉 and weirdly it has my proper postcode on DPD paperwork 🤔🤔
I decided its a sign for me to get the beauty one too 🙈🙈
I use DT instead of BT and it worked twice now.
I would love to know whats their issue with posting to NI is, they post to Ireland and elsewhere 🤦🏻‍♀️

Aww I’m so happy for you @HolaLolla I sat last night changing up my post code but it kept saying it didn’t post to my address but it was the numbers and letters in the last bit I was changing. There’s no reason not to post to here that I can think of especially as it came with dpd too. X

So interesting how we all like/dislike different scents. I can’t quite put my finger on what it was that about Valaya but there was something in it that I really didn’t like. Fortunately it sold quickly online!

My Liberty arrived a few days ago but I haven’t opened the cardboard box yet. I feel like September might be an acceptable time to put it in display, but not August! 😆

ive ordered Sephora to share with my daughter. There’s loads there she will love, some bits I want to try as well

I definitely prefer the fragrances in my Penhaligon’s calendar to the Harrods one, but I like the fact that Harrods pushes me out of comfort zone and gets me to try a few things that I wouldn’t normally choose. I also thought that Jo Malone and Thameen were too strong, and I didn’t like the liquorice smell in the Jo Malone, but both smelled ok once they had settled on the skin for a while, I started to like them more. Brompton Imortals I thought was very strong. I wasn’t keen on that.

Ooh, a RHOBAC trip 🙌

I sprayed myself with the JM fragrance that is apparently in the LF fragrance calendar today. I didn’t hate it, but couldn’t really smell much on me, so that was a bit weird.

That is the one I am leaning towards though.

There is a unboxing for the Glossybox on line for anyone interested (Eltoria) . Also she had a code for nonsubscribers ELTORIA for £5 off taking it down to £85 when it is released on the 5th September