The Grown-Up Advent Calendar

A bunch of my favorite memories from being a child revolve around the holidays—Thanksgiving feasts, Christmas trees, colorful lights and shiny ornaments! From my 8 year-old eyes, all of the decor, displays and lighting wasn’t just beautiful, it was magical! I’d go to bed each night stealing peeks outside my window at our neighborhood, glowing peacefully with twinkling lights. My mom even had these miniature Christmas trees that we’d get to decorate ourselves and keep in our own rooms, making the holidays feel extra extra special.

One of my favorite traditions was getting an advent calendar just before December hit. Part of the excitement was likely due to the fact that the advent calendar meant we got to eat chocolate everyday, but it also served as the countdown to Christmas. Every year, one of my parents’ friends would bring my sisters and I our very own advent calendar. Starting on December 1st, we’d find the little window with the matching date and pull open the little cardboard door to find a chocolate inside! And, every day, the chocolate had a new unique design, so there was always something to look forward to. It was the perfect treat at the end of the day, or before school if we could sneak it in without our mom seeing!

With each passing day, our anticipation would grow and eating that final chocolate before bed on Christmas Eve was the most exciting—Santa is coming!!!

As I’ve gotten older, the meaning of Christmas has changed. It’s less about Santa and presents and more about spending time with the people I love, but I do miss the anticipation of it all! I’d sort of forgotten about our advent calendar tradition until I received this beauty advent calendar from QVC. I’m dubbing it the grown-up advent calendar, and personally, I think every girl needs one—it’s so fun!

With this advent calendar, you won’t find chocolate behind each door. Instead, you’ll find a new beauty product! The box itself is so pretty and would make for a perfect pre-holiday gift. Inside, there’s everything from makeup to skincare to perfume to bath products and more! It actually comes with six full size products(!!!) and 18 trial size items, which are perfect for the holiday travels. I went ahead and opened all of them in one day to show you guys what’s inside, but opening one a day feels like such a treat! It’s like a mini present at the end of the day. It’d be a fun little gift for yourself, or an ideal gift for your beauty-loving girlfriends!

Best of all, it’s only $64! The Mally More is More Mascara, the eye lash curler, the StriVectin and the the Josie Maran Body Butter together are the same price as the entire advent calendar—just to give you an idea of how sweet this deal really is! The price does go up at the end of November, so don’t wait too long! If you’re curious about exactly what’s inside, here’s the full list with a few of my own notes.

What’s Inside!

• First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream
• Molton Brown Eucalyptus Body Wash
• StriVectin Advanced TL Neck Cream
• Josie Maran Body Butter in Vanilla Apricot (feels insanely silky)
• Algenist Multi-Perfecting Pore Corrector Moisturizing Gel
• philosophy amazing grace shower, bath, and shower gel
• Peter Thomas Roth Cucumber Gel Mask (perfect for a mini at-home spa night)
• Nest Midnight Fleur Eau De Parfum (smells amazing and is so beautiful!)
• bareMinerals Gen Nude Matte Liquid Lipcolor in Swag (my favorite!)
• Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid
• Clark’s Botanicals Smoothing Marine Cream
• IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Pores Pressed Powder
• Full-size Doll 10 Lip Velvet in either Fashionista, Coutureable, or Material Girl
• philosophy purity made simple
• Juice Beauty Anti-Wrinkle Booster Serum (been using this since I got the box, love!)
• Full-size Mally More is More Mascara
• Two Pinrose Fragrance Petals in either Merry Maker or Secret Genius fragrance
• Go-Soleau Make-Up Remover Towelettes
• Full-size Campanelli towel
• Full-size eyelash curler
• Faux eyelashes
• Full-size nail file
• Full-size blender sponge
• Compact mirror (why did I not have this in my purse before?)

On that note, I’m off to relax with a cup of tea and apply the Cucumber Gel Mask!

What holiday traditions do you miss from childhood? Do you and your girlfriends exchange gifts?

BTW, this year’s holiday guide, and how to dress down your fancy pieces for everyday wear.

Thanks to QVC for sponsoring this post!