🎄 2025 Style and Beauty Advent Calendar Discussion ***SPOILERS*** THREAD 5

[BakeOffRewatch]

IF YOU ARE NEW TO BEAUTY ADVENT CALENDARS AND WOULD LIKE IDEAS PLEASE READ THE THREAD FIRST

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

Thread 3: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/5396898-2025-style-and-beauty-advent-calendar-discussion-spoilers-thread-3

Thread 4: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/5403558-2025-style-and-beauty-advent-calendar-discussion-spoilers-thread-4

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/5389635-beauty-chat-freebiesgifts-with-purchaseoffers-thread-four

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

@AlPaccacino you look amazing, the application is perfect. Enjoy your palette!

@JoRaRaRa your dog is very cute and the scenery is stunning

Yes I’m off to look at Boots skincare again after @greenold post. I’ve run out of vitamin c, which did make me think oh I should just get Cult Beauty again!

What a beautiful dog @JoRaRaRa - and lovely scenery!

That’s quite expensive for what’s in it. 😯

That looks lovely @AlPaccacino your skin looks fab 🥰

I have 2 but one is Lindt. I want a 12 day one so I can start that Christmas Day. I love having a treat every day 😆

Does it count as a third if I buy a 12 day one to start on Boxing Day??

Whose counting?

@Twinsandsome I just received the dreaded Harrods cancellation email 😭😭😭 they are saying its out of stock, which is not true as its still available to buy 🤦🏻‍♀️

No, that's called continuity planning! It's what I'd like to do.

@Theresalotgoingon try 10OFF

@greenold Your review has definitely swayed me back towards the Boots skincare one. I'm not buying at the luxe end so it looks like great value. I'm fine with no make up as it also means no unsuitable hair products.

I’m waiting for the Shiseido too - I had it last year and really enjoyed it. I’m still using the bigger pot of eye cream and loved the night radiance concentrate! IIRC it was in the Bicester outlet with 30% off, so was quite good value despite some smaller sizes

Value is subjective I guess because I would be mostly interested in creams and cleansing balm. I'm not too fussed about some other products so the price of the 24 day would be a bit too much for me just to get some Elemis products I do like. If you'd use everything in a 24 day then for you it's probably worth it.

After deciding Liberty was the best option for me (it looks so fabulous), I decided to buy the bits I really wanted from Vinted. I’m going to make a diy calendar with them, the Scent with Love kit and last years Harrods 12 day hair and body. I think I have an old F&M box in the loft, so will be ready for the waifs and strays thread!

At the moment Tatcha have still got their offer on of choosing 4 minis for a spend of £200. So presumably if you bought the BAC you can choose 4 additional minis plus the standard 3 samples.

Still feeling unconvinced I decided to go completely left field and I've ordered the Avant 12 day calendar. I know everyone on here hates Avant, but I've liked their products from other calendars and this particular calendar just looks pretty (the actual products as well as the box). Plus they're things I'll use and they're all full sizes. I'm going to open it straight away and then if there are some great bargains late in October/November, I'll buy a proper 24 day one to open in December.
I appreciate making a choice purely based on the pretty colours of the products probably goes against all the principles of RHOBAC but I'm having a F it kind of day 😆

I've been weirdly tempted by Avant. I've seen plenty of people say the products are nice. My main issue with them is that the 'ordinary' price is clearly massively marked up for the beauty box market otherwise the calendar would be selling for Elemis type prices and not under £100. The dodgy sales tactics don't equal the products being terrible necessarily but it's probably annoying if you wanted to rebuy something you couldn't find in a beauty box or on Vinted.

If it does I'm going to be v annoyed along with everyone else who already bought the BAC. 😒

@CocoMascara - yes, I got mine with 30% off from Bicester a couple of months before Xmas. It would be lovely if I could get it discounted again, but I would just like to know what’s in it atm!

Yes that is the catch - I really liked a serum I got once but I could never justify the extortionate price to repurchase

I think it's safe to assume, just like their gwp's, it's pretty much the same stuff in a different order in a slightly different box. Which is fine I guess because if you enjoy Shiseido you can usually get it at discount either at the outlet or online like last year where I used a discount code, stacked it with a gwp and got nearly £19 back from TCB.

@OvaHere - I’ve ordered the 12 day one from Elemis as it’s the night cream I really wanted. Also I had a JL voucher for £50 from work and a £10 off beauty products on my JL app, so total cost £65 which seems incredibly bargainous , obviously I could have spent the voucher on something else but that’s how I’m justifying it 😂😂.

Got home to find my Space NK had been delivered to the neighbours so put my boots back on and ran over to collect it. I haven’t checked all the drawers yet but it’s definitely on the flimsy side - two of the drawers had sort of collapsed into each other because the dividers had come adrift. I managed to fix it but now I’ve been spoiled as to which day the Medik8 serum is in.🙁

@OvaHere It probably won't, that would be a poor show from them but then part of me wonders if maybe the initial sale didn't go as well as they hoped? Either way I really should resist 🤣

Definitely do the QR code VR thing then! Best thing about that calendar.

I just went to check. It does stack. Obviously it's still £204 for 16 minis + 3 samples but better than just 12 minis.

Edit to add - they've extended this fukubiki event much longer than they said they would so no it probably hasn't done well. I was waiting for it then I saw how poor it was compared to the US one, where some people could get entire hampers of stuff or at the least a bunch of full sizes, and thought nah.

2nd edit - Sorry just realised you are talking about SNK not Tatcha. Getting mixed up. Same could apply though. Not quite the sell out they expected.