The Ultimate Guide To Advent Calendars
49 Of The Best In Beauty, Home Fragrance, Food & Drink, Gardening, Crafts And The Utterly Bizarre. Grab Them While You Can!
Welcome to H&H, the place where we chat about home and garden renovation, design & enjoyment, with a little bit of life, love and fun thrown in for good measure. This is the first of my mega guides to the best season of all. The rest will be in November.
This is a long post with masses of photos, it’s super juicy. You may want to view it in your browser or the app.
Yes, yes, I know it’s nowhere near Christmas yet. I’m not even supposed to say the word am I? But, if you don’t act fast, all these much sort after goodies will be gone.
It seems like everybody and their mother is doing an Advent calendar these days, it’s big business. There’s so much choice, it can take you hours, if not days searching for the perfect one (believe me I know!), so I’ve done all the hard work for you with my guide to 49 of the best.
The idea came to me after we bought the Liberty 150th Anniversary Beauty Calendar, with the idea of splitting it up to give to different friends. But, it’s so beautiful I couldn’t bear to separate any of the blissful treats from each other. It was like Sophie’s Choice, all very emotional.
I fell in love with it so much I had to make this little stop motion animation. Whoever guesses how many photos I took to make the video wins the Liberty Calendar. Kidding, kidding! Ain’t no one getting their mitts on this bad boy! Feel free to guess anyway though.
Anyway, the first part of the guide is free for all to read, and gives you a sample, in no particular order, of what’s behind the paid section. Then, I’ve separated them out into categories: Beauty, Home & Wellness, Gardening, Crafts, Food & Drink, DIY calendars, etc. A handful of these have affiliate links at no cost to you.
Melt London Chocolate Notting Hill House Advent Calendar - £79.99
This is a limited edition and will go fast. It’s a tribute to Notting Hill in London. Each pretty little house, each with its own front door, contains one of 25 mouth-watering, handcrafted chocolates.
The Ricorumi Crochet Advent Calendar - £75.
I think this has to be one of the most adorable calendar ideas I’ve ever seen. Tucked behind 24 charming doors, you’ll find high-quality yarns, accessories, and a crochet hook, all ready to bring a cosy Christmas market scene to life. Look at those little mittens!
The Graham and Green House Advent Calendar - £295.
Pricey, but how enchanting is this? Each calendar is adorned with 24 individually embroidered and bejeweled decorations, lovingly hand-beaded using traditional Zardouzi techniques and Zari threads.
The John Lewis Home Fragrance Advent Calendar - £99.
You know I love a candle. There’s only 12 doors, which is a tad disappointing, but the contents are lovely none the less. Perhaps when they’re empty fill them with chocolates.
Norfolk Natural Living Advent Calender - Pre-order £150
There are perfume advent calendars… and then there’s this. A 24-day luxury advent calendar, crammed with perfumes, candles, bath oils, hand creams and little surprises, each with their own reusable drawstring bag.
The whole thing is worth £210, but if you pre-order before 13th October for delivery at the beginning of November, then they will throw in a full-size MidWinter 21 Candle. Which means you’ll be getting £239.50 worth of products. Every piece is handmade in their Norfolk perfumery, entirely vegan, and never tested on animals.
Look Fantastic Beauty Advent Calendar - £105.
The packaging is sumptuously festive, and what’s inside is worth over £655. This is a bargain with 28 pieces, 17 of which are full size. Go, go, go!
Harry Potter Diagon Alley Advent Calendar - £85.00. I don’t have anything to say about this, as I can’t stand Harry Potter, but kids should love it. Inside the four shop fronts from Diagon Alley (whatever the hell that is) you’ll find twenty four magical products.
The Tiptree Jam Advent Calendar - £30.95
Twenty-four days of jam. What more could you ask for?
To get all the juicy details on the remaining 41 Advent calendars, 21 of which could be gifts for all the family, another 13 are for beauty, including the full details on both the men’s and women’s Liberty Calender, plus five ideas for DIY calendars, and even a sex calendar (Lordy!), you’ll need to upgrade to a paid membership.