We were starting to become a little jaded at the endless procession of beauty advent calendars over the past few years – every brand, it seems, has a take on little drawers and mini hand creams. Has the novelty worn off? It seems not for many beauty-lovers. When we asked some of our The GLOSSiest beauty panellists to tell us what their dream Christmas beauty gift would be, we were surprised that the majority of them mentioned a beauty advent calendar – particularly the luxury versions. As Louise said, “I just feel after such a tough two years it would be a real treat.” And another panelist, Roisín, explained: “My wife buys me a beauty advent calendar every Christmas and last year surprised me with the Space NK one. It was honestly such a delight to open every day and I got so much enjoyment out?of it during a?tough month in my?life.” Meanwhile Ursula said hopefully: “I would love to receive a Creme de la Mer advent calendar with full-size products (I don’t know if it’s even a thing).” We love her thinking – what a great idea!

A mixture of brands in a calendar seems the most appealing – it’s a great chance to try out lots of things without committing to a full size. So it’s exciting news that this October (October 14 to be exact), Brown Thomas will unveil its first ever Beauty Advent Calendar, filled with 25 skincare, make-up, fragrance and haircare products from its key beauty brands. And it’s certainly luxurious. It will cost €295, but the contents – from covetable brands such as Augustinus Bader, Nars and Hourglass – are worth over €690. There will be a mix of full size and deluxe size and it will be available for a limited-time only. Other brands featured include Dr. Barbara Sturm, Sisley, Sunday Riley, Byredo, Laura Mercier, Escentric Molecules and Olaplex.

Since Liberty London kicked off with a calendar back in 2014, featuring selections from their great beauty hall, the whole idea has become big business, with prices rising accordingly. Last year’s Jo Malone calendar, with a collection of 9ml and 15ml colognes and mini candles, was €360. The minis are cute, but you could buy several full-sizes bottles for the price.

In general, calendars can often represent waste in packaging terms; Lush and L’Occitane are among those who try to minimise this, with the latter’s beautifully designed reusable fabric calendars among the best. And many, including this Brown Thomas one, are reusable, so you can repurpose for years to come. And as we start to leave home again, a little, the smaller sized pots make perfect travel companions.

It seems that the whole idea of a joyful calendar can be a positive one. During a lowpoint of lockdown last year, I sent a Boots beauty calendar to a teenage friend in the UK who was struggling. She said later that opening a little treat every morning gave her something to get up for and look forward to, and encouraged her to look ahead. And so it was worth its weight in gold.

We know for a fact that many of our beauty panellists will be first in line to shop this BrownThomas beauty – so the best thing to do is visit BrownThomas.com now to sign up and be the first to shop the calendar on October 14: www.brownthomas.com.

The Brown Thomas Beauty Advent Calendar will be available to purchase at Brown Thomas Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Galway stores and BrownThomas.com from October 14.