🎄 2025 Style and Beauty Advent Calendar Discussion ***SPOILERS*** THREAD 10

[BakeOffRewatch]

Final one before the opening threads. Who is starting the opening threads and for which ones? Please share the links below. There’ll be Waifs and Strays one, DIY, and possibly Harrods, Space NK, Liberty?

On 1st December, the opening threads start, I’ll ask MN to update this post with links.

If you’re looking to continue the chat beyond BACs there is the Beauty chat thread here by @OvaHere : https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/5444855-beauty-chat-freebiesgifts-with-purchaseoffers-thread-six
and the perfumistas thread here by @IDontHateRainbows : https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/5443053-scent-of-the-day-part-six-what-will-the-friendly-perfumistas-spray-next
Both threads are quite spendy, be warned!

Waifs and strays opening thread
thank you @AprilLady

Liberty opening thread www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/5452449-liberty-beauty-advent-calendar-2025-opening-thread thank you @IlovePond

Empties and beauty hoarders rehabilitation thread www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/5441152-cant-stop-buying-hoarding-beauty-treats-youre-in-good-company-here thank you @Experiment627

[New links added by MNHQ at OP's request]

Hmmm 🤔 challenging 😁 I am trying to stay strong

So my loves are:
FDB sirene 😍💕 I've bought another 3 on vinted... Oops!
EX nihilo spiky muse, another love. Some say this is a summer scent but I feel it has enough warmth in it to be worn in winter too.
Hermetica Paris Verticaloud - I nearly sold this but they weren't going for much, and I'm so glad because it's gorgeous, I've already started wearing it.
PDM delina - I did sell this though as I have the full bottle in the PDM countdown 🩷

Likes
So not for me, but Creed Aventus and EM01 have gone to my husband, they smell nice on him 😍
FDB lucius leans slightly masculine but I like it and I think it smells nice on me.
Xerjoff torino21 another love but more summery for me.
Memo paris madurai
FM carnal flower
Gritti mango aoud
Fugazzi passionfroudh
M+G dark rum perfume oil
Granado tropicalia
Matiere premiere vanilla powder

Didn't like
Kilian roses on ice but I was able to sell this for £20 on vinted.
DS & durga Debaser EDP, I have kept the car freshener for my wardrobe though. I don't use my car enough for it to go in there 🤣 sold the perfume for £10, oops, then realised how much they're worth 😕 nm!
Atkinsons 24 old bond street - my husband doesn't like it.

So I feel like there's enough there that I do like either for myself or my husband to make it worth the cost, and I paid full price 🙂

The Harrods is great value, but this one has more to pick from. So I think it's great too. Did you get the SpaceNk FAC? I like the HN one more than the SNK.

I've been watching this one too. I think I'd want it to go under £100 but it probably won't go that low. I was starting to think that they must be confident it was going to sell out as there's not been any reduction on it 🤔 I'm tempted to buy the Elle one at £90 but it's still showing at £99 for me.

@JoRaRaRa My turn to feel grinchy today, I ordered both Vogue and PDM on Saturday and now both are reduced.
I would have to pay for any returns so won’t go down that route.

That's rubbish. 😢

Did you get PDM with all the gifts? All the extras were worth more than the discount so it's a discount of a different sort.

That’s really helpful, thanks. 😊 Sounds like there were quite a few you liked and good that you could sell the others. What did you not like about the Killian one? I see a lot of them have been listed on Vinted.

I didn’t get the Space NK one. I felt I didn’t need another fragrance calendar after getting Harrods but now HN has been reduced I feel I might actually need it! 😆

It's a right kick in the teeth isn't it?! 😔 I would find out how much it is to return, it might actually not be as bad as you're thinking. I know it's a bit of a pain, but think of what you could do with the additional money, maybe another ac? 😉
I was proper Grinchy yesterday. To de-grinch, I blasted christmas music out and started packing up my autumn decs. I put out the Christmas decs that I've bought for my new kitchen extension, so that made me feel excited. I had a tiny dark brown late 80s kitchen before, so I couldn't really put any decs out as it was too cluttered. I was having a right dance around 💃🎉🎄 I did end up at McDonald's though for tea which is annoying as I'm trying to not eat my emotions away. Hopefully you can de-grinch soon 💚

I could really smell the cucumber in it and I really don't like cucumber, so I think that was it. Vinted is awash with fragrances from the HN FAC, that's why I've been able to pick up so many sirenes, I've not paid over £20 🤣

I would definitely recommend HN to anyone, I'm not sure why it's not selling as the contents are gorgeous, something for everyone 😍 Buy it!! It's such an amazing price, if I had a bit more money, I'd be buying a 2nd one 🩷

25% off MAC calendar plus GWP.

@OvaHere I did get the free gifts with PDM so does help soften the blow.
@JoRaRaRa I have a reluctance to return any high value items as had an hourglass palette go missing on a return to SNK and they were not helpful and almost accused me of trying to scam them, luckily I had my receipts and have done a chargeback via Amex as they wouldn’t even contact Royal Mail and said I had to, even though I couldn’t as they had supplied the returns label.

The m and s skin care bag ( the awful space silver one ) down to £22.50 a good buy . Not sure if the others are on offer.

Yes 25% off skincare

Hello everyone, I need to send two advent calendars to two different people - which one would you choose for around £40 please, based on what’s left out there now (M&S has gone and no 7)

@CurlyFerret I've got the Lumene advent calendar. It's quite a small compact one (compared to my Liberty and Elle ones anyway!), but nice. I love their products - I find them to be very soothing, but not at all heavy. I adore the Nordic-c arctic oil cocktail serum, but that's unfortunately not in the calendar. Quite a few other things I wanted to try are though.

I think it's no longer available on Amazon, but Allbeauty have it for £66.25 at the minute.

That is awful! I don't know if these companies don't know the consumer rights or if they're just hoping that customers don't know them. Let me know if you need any help with it. I've worked in retail law and compliance. But you're right, as spacenk provided the rm returns label, the risk transfers to them as soon as you hand it over to rm. You've done your part so they have to refund you. If you have proof of postage, then they should be issuing that whilst they then do an investigation with rm 😡 No wonder you're getting Grinchy! These companies think they can mess us around!

Thanks for the new thread @BakeOffRewatch. You have done a sterling job on the threads this year.

Sorry you were feeling like a grinch yesterday @JoRaRaRa. So annoying to buy anything full price and it then get reduced. Completely understand you feeling the same @MrsBnow12. So frustrating especially with such expensive items. It’s such a risk at this time - do you hold off and it get sold out or wait for a discount? It’s a balancing act for sure.

I’m feeling grinch like about Lego today. I think DH got me the Home Alone house which I’ve been talking about for a few years but keep saying no as it’s expensive. I think he has obviously bought it this year as they sent him a catalogue in the post yesterday which he has never had before. So that kind of ruins the surprise!

@JoRaRaRa - I love the fact that you have ‘autumn decs’! I am getting the urge to wrap pressies this morning.

@Gettingthereslowly1 - I replied to you on the Xmas thread about the Boots calendars.

M&S may still be available in your local store - mine had a few the other day..

L’Occitane advent is £65.25 on M&S if anyone is interested in that one.

Sorry JoRaRaRa that was a typo. It's £99 🙈

Place marking for discounts

@Peridot1 it certainly is a risk. Advent buying malarkey is such a dangerous game to play 🤣 I was holding out for kiko to be discounted and it's sold out 🤦🏻‍♀️ I bet if I'd bought it, it would now be in the sale instead 🤣

@IlovePond yeah, I decorated my living room the trending grey 7 years ago and I can't cope with how dark and depressing it feels. So each season, I chuck a load of throws and decorations around that are brighter. So autumn is oranges, burgundy and autumnal green.

Christmas theme is enchanted forest, so sage greens, pinks and metallics. It used to be ice forest, so I'm slowly parting with those old decs. I would love to do a more 90s style christmas, bright coloured foil ceiling garlands, old style santa signs, reindeer card holder, bright coloured lights but I just don't have the money to replace everything right now.

@XiCi not to worry, I've started the day with a river island online shop so probably for the best that I can't get it 🤣

@JoRaRaRa - keep en eye out in charity shops and on eBay etc for those sort of decorations.

@JoRaRaRa - I am officially in awe!

I can start one of the openings if needed, happy to take Space NK or Liberty since I’ve ordered those this year. Really looking forward to 1st December now, feels like it’s taken ages to get here! And thank you for keeping all these threads organised, they move so fast I’d be lost otherwise.

Thank you just registered for that. Have £15 loyalty too and with 25% off must be something I want on there. Companies are getting a bit desperate I think.