Gone are the days when an advent calendar was a piece of flimsy card with tiny windows that opened to reveal a picture of a snowman or a thumbnail-sized chocolate.
Now, calendars are elaborately designed boxes stuffed with expensive beauty products, wine and even stationery. They are staggeringly big business and can cost tens or even hundreds of pounds.
But just what are you getting for that rather substantial price? While some calendars boast contents worth far more than their cost, recently a ‘lifestyle’ advent calendar created by YouTube star Zoella came under fire from parents of her young fans, who claimed the contents weren’t worth the hefty £50 tag. Some outlets have since reduced it to £25.
So, if you want style and substance, which calendar should you buy? JENNY WOOD rounded up some of the most popular, peeked inside and worked out what the contents are really worth . . .
For the well-groomed man
Packaged in a huge, brown book-fold box, Mankind’s calendar (mankind.co.uk) has 25 pull-out drawers with a selection of full-sized men’s grooming products
Packaged in a huge, brown book-fold box, Mankind’s calendar (mankind.co.uk)has 25 pull-out drawers with a selection of full-sized men’s grooming products, from shower gels, face washes and shaving solutions to deodorant, eye serum and a fancy double-edged razor. The price tag may seem steep, but with the contents ranging from £5.50 (for a tube of cinnamon and mint toothpaste) to an impressive £98 (for a hyaluronic acid face and eye night cream), it represents a surprising £400 saving on buying everything individually.
Cost: £250
Worth: £650
Looks: 5/5
Value: 5/5
For beauty bliss
The priciest of the Body Shop’s three advent offerings this year, this ‘ultimate advent calendar’ is also the best value, containing full-sized products
The priciest of the Body Shop’s three advent offerings this year, this ‘ultimate advent calendar’ is also the best value, containing full-sized products. The enormous pink, red and gold calendar opens up to reveal 25 boxes with goodies such as Japanese Matcha Tea Pollution Clearing Mask (£17), Vitamin E Day and Night creams (£14 each), and Matte Lip Liquid (£6). The final box contains a special wooden dice, plus instructions for how to transform the calendar into a family trivia quiz game.
Cost: £99
Worth: £214
Looks: 5/5
Value: 5/5
For a houseful of treats
Marks and Spencer’s calendar sells out every year, and it’s easy to see why. A house-shaped exterior opens to reveal 24 smaller boxes
Marks and Spencer’s calendar sells out every year, and it’s easy to see why. A house-shaped exterior opens to reveal 24 smaller boxes — which you could keep and re-use. The contents include mini and full-sized treats from M&S’s range and other brands, such as an M&S Formula Absolute Sleep Cream worth £6.60 and a Leighton Denny nail polish worth £12. The ‘roof’ of the house opens to reveal a spotty make-up bag on Christmas Day.
Cost: £35
Worth: £250
Looks: 4/5
Value: 5/5
Top-drawer toileteries
Inside this calendar’s red and green boxes are 24 generously sized Molton Brown favourites
Inside this calendar’s red and green boxes are 24 generously sized Molton Brown (molton brown.co.uk) favourites including nine 50ml body washes (worth around £5 each), two candles (worth more than £10 each), and two 50ml eau de toilette fragrances (£45 each).
Cost: £165
Worth: £256
Looks: 5/5
Value: 5/5
For chocs you can share
This minimalist white box from Hotel Chocolat has 24 tear-off windows that each reveal a pair of mini chocolate truffles — one for you, one for your partner
This minimalist white box from HOTEL CHOCOLAT has 24 tear-off windows that each reveal a pair of mini chocolate truffles — one for you, one for your partner. The chocolates are good quality, in festive flavours that include gingerbread praline, clementine and Madagascan vanilla. The contents weigh 300g — but the same weight in full-sized truffles would cost just £16.92, so in essence you’re paying extra for the novelty sizes and packaging. Then again, maybe rationing your festive sweet treats over 24 days is actually quite a sensible idea . . .
Cost: £26
Worth: £17
Looks: 3/5
Value: 2/5
For scent fiends
Decorated like a chic London townhouse, this calendar contains 24 mini Jo Malone candles, colognes and bath oils
Decorated like a chic London townhouse, this calendar contains 24 mini Jo Malone (jomalone.co.uk) candles, colognes and bath oils. If you work out the price of each product per millilitre or gram, the value of the calendar’s contents by volume is around £188 — far less than the £300 price tag. But with the calendar you get to try more products.
Cost: £300
Worth: £188
Looks: 5/5
Value: 2/5
For manicure maniacs
A pot of Ciaté nail polish costs £6 on the brand’s website and this calendar contains 22, making it a steal
A pot of Ciaté nail polish costs £6 on the brand’s website (ciatelondon.com) and this calendar contains 22, making it a steal. For the remaining days of advent, there’s a nail file and pot of nail glitter, plus a large 13.5ml nail polish in a festive sparkly gold and pink shade (£12 on the website).
Cost: £35
Worth: £144
Looks: 4/5
Value: 5/5
For sparkling socialites
This calendar from The Pip Stop has 24 200ml bottles of prosecco, cava, sparkling wine and champagne
This calendar from THE PIP STOP (thepipstop.co.uk) has 24 200ml bottles of prosecco, cava, sparkling wine and champagne. Most aren’t usually available in small sizes, so it’s difficult to estimate their value. I work it out based on the price by volume of full-sized bottles, and find the contents are worth just over £78. Not an amazing deal, but it is a fun way of tasting a variety of fizz without shelling out huge sums. For example, a full-sized 750ml bottle of Laurent Perrier champagne would cost around £25.95, so this 200ml version is the equivalent of £6.92 by volume.
Cost: £125
Worth: £79
Looks: 1/5
Value: 3/5
For preening teens
This calendar from Superdrug may not look fancy but it’s filled with 24 full-sized, decent-quality products
This calendar from SUPERDRUG may not look fancy but it’s filled with 24 full-sized, decent-quality products. There are lipsticks and glosses, a set of travel make-up brushes worth £4.95, highlighters, plus an eyeshadow primer, bronzer, travel mirror and a pretty palette containing 12 matte and shimmer eyeshadows worth £6. Now reduced to £30, it’s a great deal and perfect for any beauty-obsessed teen.
Cost: £79
Worth: £50
Looks: 2/5
Value: 5/5
For mums to de-stress
This classy box from Diptyque has 15 half-size candles
This classy box from DIPTYQUE (selfridges.com) has 15 half-size candles. A full-size one costs £24, so I estimate these at £12. Then there’s one full-sized candle (£28), seven 10ml fragrances (100ml for £100, so £10 each), a body polish and facial oil (£27.37).
Cost: £300
Worth: £293
Looks: 4/5
Value: 4/5
For fans of perfumed potions
Open these 24 windows to find great-smelling mini L’Occitane products
Open these 24 windows to find great-smelling mini L’Occitane (uk.loccitane.com) products. A 250ml full-size shower gel is £16, so the mini 35ml version is worth £2.24).
Cost: £49
Worth: £87
Looks: 4/5
Value: 5/5
For wine buffs
A huge red cardboard box from Virgin Wines weighing over 11kg
A huge red cardboard box from VIRGIN WINES (virginwines.co.uk) weighing over 11kg. Each door reveals a 187ml or 200ml bottle of red, white, rosé or sparkling wine. Many aren’t available in small sizes, so I apply the price-per-ml of a full-size bottle to these. There’s a decent, if moderate, saving.
Cost: £80
Worth: £94
Looks: 1/5
Value: 4/5
For connoisseurs of gin
Gin kiosk’s modestly sized box contains craft gins in 30ml bottles — the equivalent of one shot
Gin kiosk’s (ginkiosk.com) modestly sized box contains craft gins in 30ml bottles — the equivalent of one shot. Again, I work out the price-per-ml of a full-size bottle, and find the gin in this is worth around £37.
But then, in a bar you could pay anything from £2 to £8 for each shot.
Cost: £125
Worth: £37
Looks: 2/5
Value: 2/5
For make-up addicts
This offering from Amazon comes in a fun dispenser — when you pull out one of the boxes, the next drops into place for the next day
This offering from AMAZON (amazon.co.uk) comes in a fun dispenser — when you pull out one of the boxes, the next drops into place for the next day. Almost everything is full-sized, and from a well-known brand. The final box contains a Rimmel palette with eyeshadows in eight neutral shades worth £6.24. A good deal for beautyholics.
Cost: £50
Worth: £185
Looks: 3/5
Value: 5/5