I can’t believe we’re halfway through with the advent calendar. It makes me excited because Christmas is near, but it also makes me sad because soon the little surprises will be over. Well, for now, let’s what else I got in my advent calendar.

Annayake 24 H Shower Cream

It’s funny to me how there are several products from this brand in the calendar, and yet it’s not sold in our Douglas stores. This is a sample size of the shower cream of only 30 ml and it’s supposed to provide hydration for 24 hours. I’ve used it up the day I got it in the shower and I was not impressed. Probably because it’s a cream, not a gel, it doesn’t lather up too much and you have to use it in generous amounts. For a product that does contain perfume, I would have preferred a different scent because I don’t like how it smells. All in all, I’m not at least tempted to buy this shower cream. A large bottle has 400 ml and it retails in Germany for 17,99 euros, so this sample size is worth 1,34 euros.

What I got last year

For the 10th of December, I got the sample size for the Ari perfume by Ariana Grande that I have told you about in my previous post. It’s a sweet, fruity scent and I’m glad I still have it in my collection. The mini perfume was worth 6,83 euros.

Douglas Essential Nourishing Body Milk

Ok, I must say this one really pissed me off. I received the Annayake shower cream which was a small sample, but they put a 10 ml sample of a freaking milk in the calendar. I can’t use only 10 ml, that’s not enough for one application on the entire body, so I’ll use it as a hand cream. It feels nice on the skin, it contains mango butter and has a very pleasant scent, but the size of this thing is a joke. At least a 30 ml sample would have been nice. A large bottle of 400 ml retails for 49 lei – 10,8 euros, so 10 ml is worth only 0,27 euros. I guess I won’t complain because we already topped the retail value of the calendar, but regardless.

What I got last year

The 11th of December was kind of a bummer last year as well. I got a pack of 3 Invisibobble hair ties. I used one of them and I still have the other two. I didn’t like them because I don’t think they’re meant for thin and fine hair. I couldn’t get them to hold a ponytail for the life of me. The pack of hair ties retailed for 4,8 euros.

Daytox Eye Wonder serum

This small ampoule contains a serum for the eye area with hyaluron and the BioDetox formula. It claims to have an illuminating effect, reduce dark circles and puffiness and to reduce fine lines. My only problem with this sample is not its size, because 3 ml is not bad for an eye product as you don’t need much for one application, but the packaging. Once the ampoule is opened, you can’t seal it back so I don’t think it’s good to preserve it this way. I’ve already used it twice and I have plenty of product left. Other than that, I can’t say much about the fine lines obviously, but I think the skin around the eye area looks brighter. It’s a quite expensive product, for the 14 ml full size it retails for 115 lei – 25,5 euros. This small sample has, therefore, a retail value of 24,64 lei – 5,47 euros.

What I got last year

For the 12th of December, I got a Douglas Essentials hydrating mask for a one-time use. The product had a retail value of 3,33 euros.

Douglas Essentials Hydrating Mask

No, I did not make a mistake, this is what I got today, for the 13th of December. It’s a repeat product from last year’s advent calendar. The mask contains 12 ml, a little much if you ask me and it has the consistency of a thick gel. It has a light blue color, you apply on the face, leave it on for 5 minutes and then just wipe the excess off. It feels nice and has a cooling effect on the face, but I don’t think it’s more special than cheaper masks that I buy from the drugstore. Like I said before, it has a retail value of 3,33 euros.

What I got last year

For the 13th of December, I got a travel size of the Daytox Rich Cream, with macadamia oil and hyaluronic acid. I remember that I liked the cream because it made my skin feel smooth and it even looked brighter in the morning – I used it at night, although it’s not a greasy cream. The sample had a retail value of 4,75 euros.

If I were to compare the two calendar, I would say neither was better or worse than the other. The products were so-and-so, but for last year’s at least I had a nice mini perfume during these days. The shower cream and the body milk were really small samples and I wouldn’t have missed them from the calendar, the ampoule with the eye serum is annoying because it doesn’t seal back and the face mask is really nothing special. For last year, at least I had the perfume and the face cream that I really liked.

Regarding the value, the products for these 4 days had a retail value of 10,41 euros, while the product from last year had a retail value of 19,71 euros, so almost double the value.

So, for now, the first 13 products of the advent calendar had a total value of 65,28 euros, which is really good, but I must say this week has been a bummer so far. I hope there are more exciting surprises for the rest of the days. I plan to do the next update on Sunday.