2019 marked a few firsts for me. It was the first time I saw a bear in the wild, the first time I went to Brighton and the first time I had an advent calendar which was something other than a bog standard Cadbury one that my mum buys us each year (at my insistence I must add).
I’ve grown to really love the Boots No7 range and not just for all the free gifts you get. No longer are they the old lady brand that my grandma used to use. Since undergoing a massive rebrand in 2007 I think they hit the balance perfectly between being high end quality but affordable prices. I mean, ok they can’t rival Revolution or Collection in terms of price, but £15 for a foundation that actually covers your wrinkles and lasts all day isn’t that steep in my eyes.
I’d never even considered getting a beauty calendar before until i got an email from Boots telling me I could have one 3 days early because they love me so much. And anyone who knows me will know that making me feel special or part of a gang is a sure fire way to get me to do pretty much anyway. Plus I was lonely in Eastbourne on my own and that’s when I tend to make most of my whimsical purchases.
But enough of the back story, that’s not why you’re all here. What exactly was in it? Here’s a run down (not in date order, soz):
- Amazing Eyes pencil in ‘Black’ (1.1g, full-size) – RRP £7.50
- Intense Volume mascara in ‘Black’ (7ml, full-size) – RRP £10
- Flawless Finish sponge (full-size) – RRP £7
- Precision Lips liner in ‘Nude’ (0.3g, full-size) – RRP £7
- Lip gloss in ‘Naturally Nude’ (8ml, full-size) – RRP £9
- Gel Finish nail colour in ‘Midnight’ (10ml, full-size) – RRP £7.50
- Slanted tweezers (full-size) -RRP £8
- Blusher in ‘Damson Mist’ (3g, full-size) – RRP £9
- Voucher for mono eyeshadow in colour of your choice (full-size) – RRP £7
- Voucher for Lash Impact lash serum (6ml, full-size) – RRP £16
- Skin illuminator in ‘Nude’ (30ml, full-size) – RRP £12.50
- Small eye contour brush (full-size) – RRP £10
- Felt tip eyeliner (1.6g, full-size) – RRP £8
- Nourishing nail & cuticle care (10ml) – RRP £6
- Radiant Results wipes (15 wipes, mini) – RRP £3.75 for full-sized 30 wipes version
- Laboratories serum (3ml, mini) – RRP £7.60 based on full-sized 15ml version
- Airbrush Away primer (10ml, mini) – RRP £5.50 based on full-sized 30ml version
- Protect & Perfect Intense Advanced eye cream (5ml, mini) – RRP £6 based on full-sized 15ml version
- Instant Results Revitalising peel-off mask (10ml, mini) – RRP £1.73 based on full-sized 75ml version
- High Shine lip crayon in ‘Day Dreamer’ (2.71g, full-size) – RRP £9
- Protect & Perfect Intense Advanced day cream (25ml, mini) – RRP £12.50 based on full-sized 50ml version
- Protect & Perfect Intense Advanced night cream (25ml, mini) – RRP £12.50 based on full-sized 50ml version
- Protect & Perfect Intense Advanced serum (5ml, mini) – RRP £3.40 based on full-sized 50ml version
- Hydrogel eye masks (6g, two sachets) – RRP £6 based on full-sized five sachet version
- Radiant Results daily face polish (15ml, mini) – RRP £1.35 based on full-sized 100ml version
Canny little haul for £42 right? But what did I think of it all and would I buy it again? Well, it was very much a game of two halves for me. We’ll start with the positives…
I loved that you get some full sized staple items like the mascara and blusher, that’s almost £30 I’ve saved myself right there. And for some reason (call me naïve) the tweezers and the make up brushes/sponge were a nice surprise. They’re those essential items that you always need and are super useful but I almost never buy myself. I also liked that they put a few vouchers in there for you to get some full priced items in a colour of your choosing. This is particularly handy when your local boots is less than a 5 minutes walk away. You seem to get loads of stuff for your £42 and I was surprised at how many full sized things were in there.
The cons? I must have a shed load of their Skin Illuminator. Honestly, I’d be amazed if the ever actually sold any of it because it’s what’s always in the free sets and I have more of it now than I would ever know what to do with. Another full sized tube of it seems lazy; just throw in what we don’t sell much of. A travel sized packet of face wipes was also a disappointment, but I guess you can’t get a full priced mascara every day. Consciously, it’s not great. Setting aside for a second the plastic that’s used to make up the actual calendar, all these little travel sized bottles of single use plastic on my dressing table made me a bit sad. There must be a better way of packaging everything in 2020?
All that being said, would I buy one again? Yeah probably because it’s the make up brand I use anyway, it hasn’t really given me the bug to try different ones, stick to what you know I reckon. Plus, there’s still always a Cadbury one, which has never let me down!
