I’ve never actually had a beauty advent calendar before. I’ve been intrigued by them ever since they popped on to the scene a few years back, but I’ve never had the spare money to drop on one so have settled for chocolate each year instead (apart from last year when Bob bought me a Lego one, which was pretty much the greatest thing ever).

I was recently contacted by the team at Chemist 4 U who are stocking beauty advent calendars this year. They wanted to know if I would be interested in reviewing a couple, and of course, in the interest of research, I said yes.

I wasn’t really sure what the etiquette was on posting advent calendar reviews was- spoilers vs. no spoilers was my main concern. In the end I’ve opted for a no spoilers approach, but will share my thoughts on the contents below to help influence your decision making.

The first calendar I picked was the Morris & Co. Pamper Advent Calendar*. Chemist 4 U are selling this for £32.99 (it’s available on John Lewis for £40, just to give you an idea). This calendar contains 24 days of pampering treats which range from shower gels to bath salts, in a range of fragrances. I broke in to this calendar almost straight away as it smelt so good through the packaging! Since moving, I don’t have a bath so have passed on the bath salts and mini bath bombs the calendar contains, but the products I have tried have been lovely- although highly fragranced so approach with caution if you, or the recipient has sensitive skin.

Since Bob and I are now living together I thought it would be fun to get a his ‘n hers advent calendar which we could open together. The Ladies Fragrance Advent Calendar* and Men’s Fragrance Advent Calendar* cost a respectable £14.99 each, with an RRP of £49.99 each. Whilst you won’t find big name brands in these calendars, you still get 24 difference fragrances in perfect handbag (or pocket) sized bottles. I feel like perfume is a very personal thing so this isn’t going to bit a hit with everyone and some of the scents weren’t to our taste, but we found some hidden gems and the combined haul will keep us going, probably until next Christmas rocks around!

To celebrate this year’s stock of Advent Calendars the guys at Chemist 4 U are offering 20% off all calendar purchases. Simply add the code ADVENT20 when you check out and get even more of a bargain!

What’s the best advent calendar you’ve ever had?