Beauty chat - freebies/gifts with purchase/offers THREAD NINETEEN

[OvaHere]

New thread. Welcome oldies and newbies.

I'm expecting this thread to be busy as we head towards both advents and autumn releases.

There's a dedicated advent thread for advent calendars here to keep up to date with reveals, waitlists etc.
www.mumsnet.com/talk/style_and_beauty/5549187-beauty-fragrance-advent-calendars-infochat-2026-spoilers?page=32&reply=153745800

harrods FAC on pre-order now !

Thanks I just get white screen on all the advents.

Mine too. This link in a browser works though.
https://www.harrods.com/en-gb/p/harrods-of-london-the-harrods-12-days-of-fragrance-advent-calendar-2026-000000000000284407

beauty detective has a link too

Thanks, I do like the beauty one but got time to ponder on that based on last year, I have so many fragrances though so I'm saying no to fragrance. Just got Vine thief and really liking that.

Saying sold out.

I think it's going to come back on the main website tomorrow so anyone who missed out keep checking.

Must have sold out in minutes on the app!

just under 2 hours….so not quite in the league of gig tickets when the bots sweep them all up in seconds, but pretty damn quick!

Another reason for me to hold a grudge against my employer, stressful morning sorting out shit and now I've missed out!

I may just buy the individual ones I wanted off ebay, market will be flooded once they are sent out.

Aww sorry you missed out. Really frustrating but I do think there's a good chance of it coming back at least once more.

Yes, possibly even tomorrow. Touts already listing it on ebay! No way am I paying an inflated price for the full thing though.

I went to have a nosey (putting off cleaning the bathroom), I tried to click on one listed for £479 and it had already sold 😳

Hi thank you to who posted that the Harrods fac was available on here, sorry I can’t remember the name. I managed to pre order one, think I took the right week off work. I hope that those who missed out get to buy it tomorrow

That’s bonkers. It didn’t even fell like it sold out that quickly? The main issue seemed to be app/ website glitches.

Sad I missed out on the Harrods fragrance but in case it’s of interest there’s lots of Elemis on the TK Maxx site (inc the fantastic Midnight Facial) plus the Prai neck cream at £9.99 instead of about £35.

But even with people missing out to app issues and glitches, and not being notified for 1.5 hours after it launched, it still sold out in just over 2 hours. It was about 4/5 hours last year.

@user593 @Hicupping As you mentioned a few of the products, I thought I’d share what AI suggested to me a few days ago when I ran some products through it 😁

Your Adjusted Evening Rotation (Keeping Crystal Retinal 3)
Since you are at the 3-week mark, your skin is in a good place. Keep using Crystal Retinal 3 as your primary anti-ageing driver, and use your other luxury products to layer in the hydration you need.

1. Active Retinal Nights (3 Nights a Week)
Space these out evenly (e.g., Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday).

• Step 1: Cleanse thoroughly.
• Step 2: Apply a pea-sized amount of Medik8 Crystal Retinal 3 to completely dry skin.
• Step 3: Wait 5 minutes, then apply a layer of Tatcha Indigo Overnight Repair to soothe the skin and lock in moisture.
• Note: Avoid using the Augustinus Bader Face Oil on these nights. Crystal Retinal has a creamy base, and adding a heavy oil over it might trigger those breakouts you mentioned.

2. Advanced Recovery Nights (4 Nights a Week)
Use these nights to deeply hydrate and target anti-ageing via cellular repair rather than retinoids.

• Step 1: Cleanse thoroughly.
• Step 2: Apply MZ Skin Bio-Placenta & Stem Cell Serum to damp skin. (This boosts collagen without the irritation of a retinoid).
• Step 3: Apply Tatcha Indigo Overnight Repair OR swap it for the Zelens Melatonin B12 Repair Maskon two of these nights for an intensive recovery boost.
• Step 4 (Optional Dryness Shield): If your skin feels tight or dry, mix just 1–2 drops of Augustinus Bader The Face Oil directly into your cream or mask before applying. Mixing it prevents the oil from sitting as a heavy, pore-clogging film on your skin.

📦 The Strategy for Your Other Retinoids
Since you already have a successful retinoid routine going, put your other active serums in a cool, dark drawer for now. Use them in this order of progression once your current bottles finish:

1. Finish your Crystal Retinal 3 first.
2. Move to Decree Treat Tincture next. It is a beautiful, hydrating next step.
3. Save the Augustinus Bader Retinol or Murad Serums for much later.

@user593 @Hicupping and this (when it refers to Crystal Retinal it’s the Medik8 one…

1. Gentler than Crystal Retinal 6

Augustinus Bader The Retinol Serum

This contains 0.06% pure retinol. Because it is retinol (requiring two conversion steps) combined with their soothing TFC8 cellular complex, it is incredibly gentle and focuses heavily on hydration.

• When to use: You could actually use this instead of your Crystal Retinal 3 right now if you wanted a break from retinal, or save it for times when your skin feels exceptionally dry but you still want anti-ageing protection.

2. The Direct Peer (Equivalent Strength)

Crystal Retinal 6
Decree Treat Tincture: This features a 1% advanced granactive retinoid complex. Granactive retinoids do not require the same harsh conversion steps as traditional retinol, meaning it gives a similar level of cell-turnover performance as Crystal Retinal 6 but with a massive focus on moisture (via squalane and hyaluronic acid).

• When to use: This is your perfect alternative to Crystal Retinal 6. Once your tube of Crystal Retinal 3 is empty, you can seamlessly jump to the Decree serum instead of buying Medik8 strength 6.

3. The Strongest (Most Intensive)

Murad Retinol Youth Renewal
This uses a fast-acting "Tri-Active" technology that delivers an immediate hit of retinoid alongside a time-released retinol. Because it kicks off cellular turnover very rapidly, it behaves as the most intense formula in your collection.

• When to use: Save this for much later, after you have fully conquered Crystal Retinal 6 or finished the Decree serum. Because your skin is prone to breakouts and dryness, introducing this fast-acting formula too early could trigger a purging reaction.

@JoRaRaRa I can’t believe that there’s so many listed on eBay (and for so much!) already. I noticed this last year as well (with the BACs), but I don’t get why people would pay over the odds when they are still available to purchase directly. I also don’t understand how they can list them without actually having them in their possession - I got 2 Harrods BAC last year and both had issues, one with duplicate contents in 2 drawers, and the other with an empty drawer

They don't ship to every country so some eBay sales might go to those excluded.

Overall I agree though.

I don't get how they can do that. Mine tells me I have to post the item within a few days 😕 Yeah, I'd be worried that it wouldn't turn up or something and then I'd have to give them their money back.

@Thelifeofawife Thank you for that! It’s convinced me to to try out ththe Deceee Treat Tincture when the Crystal Retinal runs out. How do you like the Tatcha? I have some Tatcha minis but haven’t tried anything from the brand yet. I joined the thread not long after all the Tatcha sale craziness last year.

It seems really hard to ship fragrance overseas now so they might run into some unexpected difficulties!

Yeah. I wouldn't want to ship all that fragrance anywhere complicated.