🎄 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

@TreesinthePark it's so easy to be critical when comparing all the calendars.

If someone bought me Liberty as a gift and I had no idea what was in it until unboxing in December I think I would be thrilled with it. Spending my own money and the vast choice available definitely makes me hyper critical over contents.

I feel like we're all very critical 🤣 but they are a lot of money.

I think spacenk is the most exciting out of them all but I keep going back to Harrods. By the way, for anyone who likes stats and figures like me 🤓 even though harrods has less full sizes, it actually more ml of just serums and moisturisers than the SpaceNk does.

The serums and moisturisers are the thing I look at the most with the BACs, as I find them so expensive to replace, hence why they're what I compare the most.

I don't hate the bright pink Saie blush but I do have one in a very similar shade already. Part of me thinks the Patrick Ta shade could be nice on the skin but it's very different from what I would usually go for. I'm not keen on either of the ND palettes we've seen so far but it is only one item. I want to see what their fragrance edit of the AC looks like.

I've seen someone try the pa shade on, somewhere on insta and it actually went on really nice. I was impressed as it looks so dark in the palette. I decided then and there that I'd get the CB one as I think the blush would suit me. But that has all changed 🤣 Unfortunately it was weeks ago when the first spoilers came out so I've no idea how to find it again to share.

@JoRaRaRa serums and moisturisers are a big draw for me too. It doesn't feel like any of them have got it totally right this year (by my exacting standards). I think my main issue with Harrods is although it's offering a luxe experience I couldn't repeat buy a £600+ cream so maybe it's better not to know if I'd love it.

@JoRaRaRa that's what I was thinking. Maybe with a light hand (cos I'm very pale) it might be a really nice autumn shade. Hard to tell from the packaging. I'll have a hunt around SM.

Ah interesting. The fragrance is one thing I really like actually – mainly bc I know from experience I will actually use it up (10ml if I like it lasts me about two months) whereas I don't seem to get through things like lip oil and I have a lot of eye creams as well.

I saw someone list the drawstring bag on ebay for £45 and it sold straight away.

Yep that is a problem. I think harrods have done that to allow people who might not ever be able to afford to just buy a £600 outright to just get that little taste of absolute luxury, and I'm here for it 🤣 I actually can't afford most of the full size moisturisers in it, la mer, shiseido, Lancaster. I really like that Medik8 serum though, so I'm excited that that's a full size. I also like that it only has one cleanser in that's not a balm, when I shared my photo of my eve lom collection, I realised that I had almost 2 years worth of cleansing balm 🤣

Wow. That's a decent chunk of the calendar price back just with that. I'd want to keep the bag though.

I think overall the luxury BACs all offer pretty decent value - but with a lot to choose from it’s reasonable to be picky. I’m usually not put off by a small number of DoDs - if the rest is good, I can just ignore a few misses. But this year some of the calendars seem more half and half - half great, half really not what I want. So harder to choose.

Don’t know if anyone on the thread is a Pat McGrath fan (I love her make up, especially the eyeshadow palettes) but if you want to feel good about the value of the BACs you can compare them to the about to be launched LV/Pat McGrath collection. Haven’t seen UK prices yet, but a single lipstick will retail for $160 and a single eyeshadow quad for $250 (!!!!!). That is just having a laugh.

Thanks for the new thread!

Does anyone know will beauty drop members still get £25 off the liberty calendar on general realise or was that specific to early release? I’m now toying with going for it x

I have the ND Mini Xenon palette in the video. It’s probably the ND palette I reach for least, as I’m not going for a full on smoky eye very often.

Found a review of the Patrick Ta blush. It actually looks lovely, with the caveat that the woman in the video is about 30 years younger than me.

https://youtube.com/shorts/fzzRTxXOExY?si=QCcnZNOq305DbioU

I am a serum fan too That was one of main issues with JL I think it only had one serum the Estée Lauder and that was a deluxe size and the main reason why I will probably buy Spacenk is for the Tatcha and Medik8 serums. I use Tret so the AB retinol is no good for me but if I didn't I would have liked to try that too.
It's funny how we fixate on things though at the moment I am fixating on the Hourglass lipstick in Spacenk I.have convinced myself it will look great in a sophisticated autumn vibe but there is the chance it may just look ridiculous on me

I don't think I've seen the UK prices yet but based on the $ price that would make them around £120 per lipstick and maybe around £200 for the eye palette.

It's totally ridiculous pricing but I do love how the palettes look. There's a gorgeous green one. For all the complaining on social media I think they will probably sell out.

@Puravida23 I feel the same about the lipstick. It would go nicely with the Patrick Ta blush from Cult Beauty. Whether either will look good one me is a whole other question.

I do love Denona though - my dd is always swiping then and means we get better use of it as she plays it less safe than I do!

the brands are onto the expensive holiday preset. track are they, either self gifting or gifting!

Thanks for the new thread @BakeOffRewatch

It's still Liberty for me. Although I will be using my BD credit to buy it, I would still get it anyway if I wasn't a BD member.
I'm trying to hold my nerve to see if I can wait till my September credit is paid & then get the Liberty BAC as then it's completely paid for.

I think SNK & JL are runners up for me.
Anthropologie is very good this year & I'm hoping M&S gets it wow factor back this year but I'm not banking on it.
I can't wait to see what's in Vogue but last years was a bit pants (those playing cards) compared to their previous first ever BAC.
As an Elemis lover looking forward to their reveal & the November QVC TSV.
So at the moment we are also waiting for The Glossy Box & Sephora reveal.

Non beauty BAC - I think I'll get the Bonne Maman to share with DD.
I don't think we'll be lucky enough to get the amazing £10 oops we've cocked up the price White Stuff sock calendar again this year.

Some of the European BACs available from Douglas Beauty are really good too.
I was lucky enough to pay a visit to a Douglas store when I was in Poland last year, it was in the seaside town of Sopot on the Baltic Coast (it's got The Hamptons vibe but more inclusive)
Both Sopot & Douglas were fab.
If you ever get chance to visit Gdansk in November/December take a tram or Uber to Sopot as you'll love it.
The Gdansk Christmas Market is amazing too. In fact the whole city was amazing!

As RHOBAC cast members we should perhaps get on to MNHQ to do a Mumsnet BAC? The fun we could have designing/producing it!

Another thing I've just remembered about the CB unboxing on Youtube. The original spoilers said it had the Glow Recipe Niacinamide Dew Drops but the product the influencer received was actually the GR Dewy blush in Watermelon - the bottles look very similar.

I emailed Liberty CS & they replied that all BD members get the £25 discount whenever they buy the Liberty BAC whether it be pre order or any time (if they're still available)

Also the CT Beauty Light Wand was shade Spotlight which is a highlighter rather than a blush shade.

I joined liberty beauty drop earlier in the year in anticipation of the AC but now leaning towards SNK.
Agree there's too many perfumes in Liberty, but not sure I want even one lip oil, let alone two.

Also I keep meaning to ask, and it's probably really obvious, what does DoD stand for?