Beauty advent calendars get better and better with every trip around the sun, making them the most fun way to count down to Christmas. There’s literally nothing better than opening a new makeup, perfume or skincare treat every morning of December – and luckily, tonnes of beauty brands have dropped epic beauty advent calendars for the 2021 festive season.
Alongside veteran advent calendar creators including ASOS, Jo Malone and LookFantastic, a few new brands have joined the beauty advent calendar brigade for the first time this year. Case in point: Flannels, who have dropped a beauty advent calendar worth over £760. This means there are more than 70 beauty advent calendars on the market – each packed with bestselling moisturisers, lipsticks, scented candles and eyeshadows and more. So how the hell to know where to start with choosing the best beauty advent calendar for you?
Enter: our sneak peak inside 71 of the very best beauty advent calendar releases of the year. Don’t say we don’t treat you. We’ve been testing, opening and checking out the contents of them all – and since you’re all beauty junkies who credit Christmas as the most wonderful time of the year due to makeup advent calendars, beauty Christmas crackers and Christmas beauty gift sets alone, we thought you might like to join us.
Here’s everything you need to know about the best beauty advent calendars of 2021.
When do beauty advent calendars go on sale in 2021?
Many beauty advent calendars are available to shop or pre-order already. Take the LookFantastic advent calendar, for example. That costs £85, is worth £410 (!) and is available to buy on the online beauty store’s site with free delivery. Elsewhere, on LookFantastic, you can order Shiseido‘s epic skincare advent calendar plus beauty advent calendars by By Terry, invisibobble, Benefit, Armani Beauty and many other incredible brands.
Similarly, the Fortnum & Mason beauty advent calendar is available to shop, Charlotte Tilbury’s long-awaited makeup advent calendar: Beauty Dreams and Secrets advent calendar has dropped, and the MAC beauty advent calendar has launched after racking up an impressive 40,000 email sign-ups.
Which other brands have a beauty advent calendar this year?
Most big beauty retailers – from ASOS and Elemis to Space NK and The Body Shop – all release their own beauty advent calendar each year. And they’re all spectacular in their own right. Whether you’re after something packed full of nail varnishes (think: OPI, Barry M or Mylee), haircare, skincare or colour cosmetics, you certainly won’t be spoilt for choice.
Tell us, what are the best beauty advent calendars for 2021?
Sit on the fence we may, but the best beauty advent calendar for you totally depends on what you’re after. If you’re loyal to one brand, you can treat yourself to a wardrobe of 24 (or twelve) of their luxe bestsellers with their own-brand offerings (think Bobbi Brown, Charlotte Tilbury, Benefit or Clarins), but if you want to mix things up, destinations like Feelunique and LookFantastic will serve up a selection of 24 bestselling products from the beauty brands they stock.
Speaking of Feelunique, we’ve got a little treat for you. GLAMOUR readers can get an exclusive £20 off the Feelunique beauty advent calendar from 1st November to 9th November 2021, if you use the code GLAM20ADVENT. That takes the cost down from £119 to £99, yet the calendar is worth over £385. Talk about a saving.
Forget offering 24 beauty products, this beauty advent calendar serves up 27 (!) indulgent treats across makeup, skincare, haircare, body care and fragrance. Charlotte Tilbury, Huda Beauty, Emma Hardie, ELEMIS and numerous other cult beauty brands make an appearance… Get on it. Pronto.
Here are some of our advent calendar reviews:
Keep your eyes peeled on this line-up over the coming weeks, because we’ll be adding more of the best beauty advent calendars to the edit as and when they drop. We’ve also rounded up the best luxury advent calendars, the best alternative advent calendars covering grooming, jewellery, food, alcohol and the best gin advent calendars of the year.
For more from Glamour UK Commerce Writer Sophie Cockett, follow her on Instagram @sophiecockettx.