Beauty Advent Calendars: What Are They + Top 5 of 2023

Beauty Advent Calendars

Beauty advent calendars have gained tremendous popularity over the last several years.

Major beauty brands and big box retailers (Walmart, Target, CVS) have joined to participate in the beauty advent calendar tradition, in which now many girls, teens and women worldwide get excited to take part.

Buying a specific brand of beauty advent calendar allows us to build brand loyalty and trust, as well as develop product knowledge of your favorite brand or one you’ve never tried before.

Beauty advent calendars are not only special for consumers at the end of each year, but a fabulous marketing tactic for beauty companies as well.

By the end of this blog post, you will find out:

• The Traditional Advent Calendar
• What Is A Beauty Advent Calendar?
• Are Beauty Advent Calendars Worth It?
• What Makes A Beauty Advent Calendar Special?
• What Products Are Included In A Beauty Advent Calendar?
• When Do Beauty Advent Calendars Go On Sale in 2023?
• 5 Popular Beauty Advent Calendars of 2023

The Traditional Advent Calendar

Before we get further into the beauty of advent calendars, let’s take a quick turn down memory lane, and talk about the traditional advent calendar.

I can’t help it – every time I even think of an advent calendar, my brain still goes to chocolate. Maybe that’s just me?!

Advent calendars are unique calendars used to count the days of Advent, which is the period of anticipation and preparation for Christmas.

The traditional Advent is a four-week season typically starting between December 1st to 3rd, and ending on December 24th (Christmas Eve). An advent calendar features numbered doors or compartments, each corresponding to a specific day leading up to Christmas. Behind each door, there’s a surprise or treat, often a tiny piece of chocolate, a toy, or a festive message.

The beauty advent calendar was created as a branch of the traditional advent calendar and is a fun way of trying new products and celebrating the beauty industry as a whole.

What Is A Beauty Advent Calendar?

Many of us already know what an advent calendar is (or now, we do)…but what is a beauty advent calendar? Let’s talk more about it.

Beauty advent calendar is a special type of advent calendar that offers a selection of beauty and skincare products, often in the form of miniatures or travel-sized versions, though some brands do include full-sized products. The price for the calendar often depicts how many products the advent calendar has, and how many full-sized products are included.

Similar to traditional advent calendars, beauty advent calendars are designed to help you count down the days leading up to Christmas (or any holiday), with a surprise beauty product behind each door or compartment.

Beauty advent calendars are often released by beauty brands or retailers during the holiday season and are popular among beauty enthusiasts who enjoy trying new products and experimenting with different brands.

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Are Beauty Advent Calendars Worth It?

Whether beauty advent calendars are worth the spend is entirely up to you. Take note, every beauty advent calendar is different and unique in its own brand, depending on the brand.

One beauty advent calendar from one brand does not mean you’ll like the next one, so be sure to choose and pick one you like (or the person you’re gifting it to will like!).

In terms of price, most beauty advent calendars are worth the price, as the actual value of the beauty products far exceeds the cost of the advent calendar (often by more than 50%).

As much as a beauty advent calendar is worth it in terms of value, it also offers a fun and festive activity to enjoy, keeping us on our toes and building up anticipation to finish the calendar (and for the holidays, duh!).

So yes, in our opinion, beauty advent calendars are totally worth it and might offer you the chance to find the hottest deals of the year at unbeatable prices.

Keep in mind many advent calendars sell out of stock quickly, so consider yourself lucky to get your hands on some of the good ones (like the ones mentioned below!).

What Makes A Beauty Advent Calendar Special?

Whether you’re getting a beauty advent calendar for yourself, or giving one as a gift, a beauty advent calendar gives a positive feeling of anticipation and preparation for Christmas.

Instead of having one day of opening gifts, beauty advent calendars give you anywhere from 12 to 24 days of gift-giving, even if the beauty products are smaller or sample size.

What Products Are Included In A Beauty Advent Calendar?

On average, most beauty advent calendars contain between 12 to 25 products (some up to 30) and often feature a mix of products, such as skin care items like serums, moisturizers, and cleansers, makeup products like lipsticks and eyeshadows, haircare products like shampoos and conditioners, and even beauty accessories like brushes or nail polish.

Unfortunately, there’s no way to customize most of the beauty advent calendars on the market, so it’s best to do some future research to see what you, or the person you’re gifting the advent calendar to, would most like so it best fits their personality and needs.

When Do Beauty Advent Calendars Go On Sale in 2023?

Though it may only be August right now, there are several beauty brands already opening their doors for pre-orders or waiting lists. Some of these include  Cult Beauty, Liberty, LookFantastic, ESPA, and Charlotte Tilbury. Other brands are expected to jump on board in the next coming weeks.

August and September are typical release dates for waiting lists and pre-orders, so keep your eyes out for your favorite brands at this time each and every year.

5 Popular Beauty Advent Calendars of 2023

THE CULT BEAUTY ADVENT CALENDAR 2023

•  Number of products: 39 beauty treats with 20 full-sized products
  • SNEAK PEAK:
    • Dieux Skin Skin Forever Eye Masks – Dieux Tattoo (Travel Size 2 Oz Worth $23.00)
    • Glow Recipe Plum Plump Hyaluronic Cream (Travel Size 20ml Worth $35.00)
    • Jo Loves Votive Candle – Roasted Chestnuts (Travel Size 70g)
    • Olaplex No.3 Hair Perfector (Travel Size 30ml)
    • Roen Eyes On Me Eyeshadow Palette (Full Size Worth $46.00)
    • Saie Glowy Supergel In Starglow (Full Size $23.00)
    • Sunday Riley Good Genes Glycolic Acid Treatment (Full-Size 30ml worth $76.00)
    • + 32 more products
• Worth: over $1000 USD
• 2022 Throwback: The Cult Beauty Advent Calendar carried 37 products (13 being full-sized) from top-tier brands including Charlotte Tilbury, Byoma, 111SKIN, The INKEY List and more. In 2023, our expectations stay high.

CHARLOTTE’S LUCKY CHEST OF BEAUTY SECRETS

• Price: $210
• 12-drawer beauty advent calendar of makeup Icons
• Collection of suits-all makeup and skincare products
• Advent calendar doubles as a jewellery box or keepsake
• 2022 Throwback: The Charlotte Tilbury advent calendar carried 12 best-selling products, 5 being full size. Some hot hits from the 2022 advent calendar included Charlotte’s Magic Lip Oil Crystal Elixir, Hollywood Beauty Light Wand in Spotlight, the cult-favourite Magic Cream and many, many other trending products. 

Liberty Beauty Advent Calendar 2023

• Number of products: 29 incredible beauty products (including 20 full-size items) from Liberty’s iconic Beauty Hall
• Price: $270
• Worth $1,130 USD
• What’s included (What we know): Brands of Sunday Riley and Augustinus Bader, to handbag essentials from luxury lines like Rose Inc and Le Labo

LookFantastic Beauty Advent Calendar 2023

• Number of products: 27
• Worth: $720
• Price: $110 USD
• What’s Included: 27 makeup and skincare products worth over $720 from reputable brands like NARS, MAC, Elemis and many more.

Benefit Beauty ‘All I want’ Advent Calendar 2023

• Number of products: 24
• Price: $157 (save 49%)
• Worth: $305
• What’s Included:
  • Roller Lash mascara full-size
  • The POREfessional face primer full-size
  • Fluff Up Brow Wax full-size
  • Multi-Tasking Cheek Brush full-size
  • The POREfessional Lite Primer
  • Hoola matte bronzer mini
  • Willa blush mini
  • Shellie blush mini
  • Terra blush mini
  • Crystah mini
  • 24Hr Brow Setter fun-size
  • The POREfessional Good Cleanup cleanser fun-size
  • The POREfessional Tight N Toned toner fun-size
  • The POREFessional Deep Retreat clay mask fun-size
  • The POREfessional Super Setter fun-size
  • Benetint fun-size
  • Plushtint fun-size
  • Splashtint fun-size
  • BADgal BANG! mascara fun-size
  • They’re Real! mascara fun-size
  • They’re Real! Magnet fun-size
  • Fan Fest mascara fun-size
  • Gimme Brow+ brow gel Shade 3 fun-size
  • Precisely My Brow Pencil shade 4 fun-size
• Goes on sale on August 30th, 2023

To Wrap It Up

Beauty advent calendars are a fun way to celebrate the anticipation of an event or special holiday (like Christmas), and help us to practice patience and living in the present moment.

Purchasing a beauty advent calendar gives us the opportunity to buy discounted products from our favorite brands, or explore new brands we’ve never used before.

Personal opinion: Unless you’re SUPER brand loyal, try going for a beauty advent calendar that showcases more than one brand (i.e., Cult Beauty). This way in one calendar box you get to try over a dozen different brands, rather than a dozen products all from the same brand!

Don’t forget – beauty advent calendars sell out quickly, so make sure you join the waiting list for your favorite brands and products to be notified as soon as they drop!

What beauty advent calendar are you looking out for this year? Let us know in the comments below!

Like this blog post? Be sure to check out our 50+ Self-Care Beauty Tips for Young Women to stay on top of your skin, hair, nail and body self-care needs.