I adore advent calenders and so every year I put together my favourites in our very popular Top Ten Advent Calendars features. You can see last year’s top ten advent calendars here.
Now on this list there are a couple I’ve not tested – I’ll highlight these below. They’re included because they look great and could be quite a lovely splurge but please don’t buy these on my say so, as the quality may not be what the manufacturers claim (which is why we always test every product we recommend!)
The others, I’ve had the fortune of opening early and they deserve to be on this list, I’m bowled over by how inventive the brands are getting. When I first started featuring the top ten non chocolate advent calendars back in 2013, the pickings were slim. We had Lego and luxury chocolate calendars but nothing like we have now. In fact it’s been quite a struggle whittling these down to ten as there are so many beautiful advent calendars out there! We think, with this list though I’ve found an advent calendar for everyone. Advent calendars for him, advent calendars for her and advent calendars for the kids. (I’ll stop saying advent calendar now!)
Advent Calendars For Her
The Wine Advent Calendar
You heard that right! A bottle of wine for everyday. What’s not to love. This is one HEAVY advent calendar but it’s amazing. It really is. Extremely high quality and sure to introduce you to new wines you’ve never tasted. If you like wine you will LOVE this wine advent calendar. I don’t even drink but I thought this was amazing and I’ll be buying one for my wine loving mum! Fine your own wine advent calendar.
Behind 24 specially designed ‘wine windows‘, discover 24 delicious, large glasses of wine; one for each day leading up to the festive day. Every day you can expect to include a delicious selection of gorgeous reds, the occasional crisp white, a stunning bottle of fizz or two and even a very festive port!
All wines are from world-renowned wineries across the globe and customers can now pre-order their Wine Advent Calendar through the Virgin Wines website for £10.
The calendar is available for £79.99 with free delivery, and if you want to order as a gift for someone you can even add your own personalised message.
The LUSH Advent Calender
This is a huge advent calendar that spans 12 days with a treat in each one. We gave the postbox shaped soaped to the postman and have had a lot of fun with the bath bombs. The whole office smells like Lush which is absolutely divine, and the products are as lovely as you would expect with Lush.
The W7 24 Mini Treats Advent Calendar
This, and the W7 cracker are all you need for a glam look over Christmas.They’re available from Just My Look. The thoughtfulness of the gifts is amazing as these really are very useful from an eye palette to eye liner and mini nail varnishes. I absolutely adore it (and the cracker) and had to resist opening all the doors at once.
Tinc Advent Calendar
This one would actually sit nicely in the children’s or teen’s section too. It’s a bright, fun advent calendar packed full of gorgeous products for the office or school. It has some great quirky gifts alongside the practical presents and we believe anyone would be impressed with Tinc this Christmas. Do check them out, and see the incredible reviews for this advent calendar. We’re surprised we haven’t heard of it before as it really is the best value calendar we’ve come across this year.
Tinc wins one of our Top Product awards as a top product for 2017!
Advent Calendars For Him
The Beer Advent Calendar
One for the boys or the girls who like high quality craft beer. This is heavy and is such a joy! Now I don’t recommend opening either of these calendars in the morning! The craft beers in this beer advent calendar are fabulous, and there are some we’ve never heard of but can’t wait to try. You will put a smile on his or her face with this in the lead up to Christmas.
Assortment of 24 different beers from renowned worldwide craft brewers, along with a tasting glass
All beers and the glass come in the traditional advent calendar format, hidden behind 25 numbered windows
The advent calendar includes a wide range of both bottled and canned beers from some of the globe’s most critically acclaimed breweries
On sale now at craftbeeradventcalendar.co.uk
Price – £74.99
The Wiha Tool Advent Calendar
I buy this for my husband every year and the tools are very high quality. He’s always impressed and has quite the essential collection by the end. It includes staples such as drill bits which are always handy to have in stock, and so it makes a great Christmas present for him.
Advent Calendars For Children
The Matalan Advent Calendar
This high quality wooden advent calendar allows you to fill each drawer with sweets or treats of your own. We recommend Hawkin’s Bizarre for finding the perfect mini treats (that won’t rot the teeth!). It looks great and will become a staple decoration that you’ll bring out every year. We love it.
Illustries Countdown to Christmas
Illustries’ ‘Countdown to Christmas’ advent calendar is an engaging activity book designed to keep little (and bigger kids) amused throughout the month of December, while creating special family memories along the way.
Beautifully designed and stylish to display, it features a daily nativity activity. From making homemade gingerbread men and decorations to Christmas colouring and snowman building (with or without snow!), there’s plenty for craft-loving kids to create. Jolly jokes, a ‘Quizmas’, movie night, carol singing and a treasure hunt will bring festive fun for the whole family to enjoy, while letters to Santa and Christmas wishing pages add to the advent excitement.
The calendar is designed to suit every family type and features a stylish red, grey and white colour-way. Heavy matt uncoated paper pages are bound together with red ties for a quality look and feel, making it the ideal gift for family and friends.
The Haribo Advent Calendar
If you love sweets or want a low price point advent calendar for the kids you won’t go far wrong with the large Haribo advent calendar. It’s glorious and what is Christmas for if not for a little indulgence? I actually bought this for my husband as he’s Haribo mad!
Advent Calendars For the Home
The Wax Lyrical Advent Calendar
This smells absolutely divine. The house is filled with a new luxury scent everyday that lifts the mood of all around. It looks amazing and would make a great gift. We love it.
The Yankee Candle Advent Calendar
Advent Calendars For the Chocolate Lover
The Godiva Chocolate Advent Calendar
The design of the Godiva advent calendar is enough to make you want it. It makes any home interior look sophisticated. It’s reminiscent of William Morris prints in gorgeous royal green. This is the ultimate for any chocolate lover and one to add to the list!
The Calendar is adorned with scenes from the timeless Christmas Classic ‘The Nutcracker’ and filled with a selection of Godiva masterpieces and this year’s seasonal collection.
From all Godiva stores and at www.godivachocolates.co.uk
The Thorntons Advent Calendar
If you love Thorntons you’ll love the massive selection in this generously sized advent calendar. It’s delicious, moreish and one for every chocolate addict.
Advent Calendars for Dogs
We found this treat advent calendar for Willy and Fanny from the PDSA Christmas shop and we’re sure they’re going to love having a treat a day alongside the rest of the family.
Luxury Advent Calendars
Please note I’ve not tested these but they are on my wishlist. Once tested I’ll come back and let you know!
Charlotte Tilbury Advent Calendar Review
I’m warming to Charlotte Tilbury cosmetics although the customer service in Covent Garden left me cold. I’ve tried a few and the colours are gorgeous but the eyeliner is almost unusable after it’s been sharpened, which doesn’t seem like great value for money. I’m thinking of trying this, as it’s a great way to sample many products for a good price. Maybe I’ll be a convert afterwards, who knows?
Liberty Advent Calendar
I love Liberty, I ADORE the fabrics and I spend too much time fawning over the designs. This calendar would be a dream. I’ll let you know if I get a chance to try it.
Wildcard
Newby Teas Advent Calendar
This is a lovely advent calendar that takes inspiration from one of London’s iconic buildings.
What’s in the Calendar:
Black Teas: African Pride, Assam, Black Tea & Thyme, Ceylon, Darjeeling, Earl Grey, English Breakfast, Indian Breakfast, Masala Chai, Strawberry & Mango, Winter Dream.
Green Teas: Green Lemon (Green Tea), Green Sencha (Green Tea), Jasmine Blossom (Green Tea), Moroccan Nights (Green Tea), Oriental Sencha (Green Tea)
Oolong Teas: Ginseng Oolong, Milk Oolong
Herbal Tisanes: Chamomile, Peppermint, Verbena, Rooibos Orange
Fruit Tisanes: Berries Delight, Rosehip & Hibiscus
Newby’s 2016 Advent Calendar retails at £48 and is available from the Newby Teas website; https://www.newbyteas.co.uk/.
