Revolution Advent Calendar review: I tested the bargain beauty bundle ahead of Christmas, and you can save 25% at Boots

MAKEUP Revolution has launched its beauty advent calendar for 2024 — three full months ahead of December.

I was lucky enough to get my hands on the Revolution Advent Calendar for 2024, to see exactly what is inside, and if it is worth the hype.

Maisie Bovingdon

The Revolution beauty advent calendar is filled with £97 worth of beauty products[/caption]

Revolution Advent Calendar 2024, £48 £38.40 from Boots (worth £97)

The Revolution Advent Calendar retails for £48 from Revolution’s website but contains £97 worth of make-up, cosmetics and beauty tools.

This year’s calendar is also available to shop at other beauty retailers, including Boots and Superdrug.

It has been reduced to £38.40 at Boots, as part of a sitewide deal on advent calendars.

Beauty advent calendars have become hugely popular in recent years, with more and more brands launching their own festive bundles.

They come in various guises; 12-day, 24-day, or even more to make the countdown to 25th December glamorous.

With an abundance of advent calendars to buy it can feel overwhelming knowing which is the best beauty advent calendar to buy, and if it is a beauty deal worth investing in.

Here are my honest thoughts on Revolution’s beauty advent calendar, and if it is worth the sub £50 price tag.

Maisie Bovingdon

Revolution Advent Calendar 2024, £48 £38.40 from Boots (worth £97)

Pros:

• All make-up products
• Also includes some beauty tools, such as a brush, beauty blender and powder applicator
• Mainly miniature sizes — perfect for travelling
• A variety of timeless make-up shades
• Affordable
• Saving of almost £50
• Extra gift inside, (spoiler alert; it’s a voucher to shop more Makeup Revolution)

Cons:

• No skincare ingredients included
• Includes brow gel but not mascara, which some consider a key makeup item
• Duplicate products, e.g. numerous blushers, lip products and eyeliners
• Excessive packaging
• Some larger boxes house miniature items
• Flimsy box

Rating: 3/5

Revolution Advent Calendar review: how we tested

I was fortunate enough to get my hands on Revolution’s 2024 advent calendar almost as soon as it released, and didn’t need to wait until 1st December to open every door, which is a treat in itself — especially for an impatient person like me.

On a gloomy and rainy September day opening the Revolution advent calendar felt quite apt, but it certainly brightened my day sampling the contents.

Over the years I have sampled quite a few beauty products (to say the least), Revolution included.

I have trialled a selection of the brand’s bestsellers, some of which are recognised as amazing affordable alternatives to other brands, but I have not tested every item from the label.

This advent calendar allows me, and fellow beauty buffs, to sample a wider variety of products from the brand without having to fork out for every individual product.

Instead of starting each day by opening a box to find out what’s inside, I blasphemously ripped through all of the boxes in one day to see the products included, note their sizes and colour varieties, as well as the packaging, to see if it is worth the money.

Maisie Bovingdon

Revolution Advent Calendar 2024, £48 £38.40 from Boots (worth £97)

Revolution Advent Calendar review: quick summary

The Revolution Advent Calendar is one of the most affordable beauty advent calendars on the market.

While it retails for £48 (or £40 depending on the retailer) it contains almost £100 worth of products, which is a big selling point.

Revolution’s bundle is filled exclusively with make-up products from the brand, so if you are looking for a hybrid of make-up, as well as skincare, haircare and bodycare, or want to sample an array brands, you might be better suited with something like the Look Fantastic Advent Calendar.

However, if you are looking for a vegan and cruelty-free make-up-filled advent calendar, want to specifically test products from Revolution or overhaul your beauty regime, you’ve struck gold with this festive countdown.

The 24-piece make-up advent calendar is one of the lighter calendars I have seen, despite being filled with a festive month’s worth of products.

However, the box is flimsy; simply opening the advent up and standing it on my kitchen side caused it to tip over.

But it’s what’s inside that counts, right?

Revolution Advent Calendar review: full review

Maisie Bovingdon

Revolution Advent Calendar 2024, £48 £38.40 from Boots (worth £97)

First impressions

At first glance, I was impressed by how lightweight the Revolution beauty advent calendar was, though — as previously discussed — it is on the slightly flimsy side.

Considering the contents I presumed this advent would be weighty, but I was quite relieved it wasn’t so I could find it a home without taking up too much space or weighing down a shelf.

The design is dazzling, there’s no doubt about it, but is it the most festive exterior? Probably not.

Having said that, I think the pink tones, metallic detail and iridescent accents make this advent extremely appealing to younger shoppers.

Opening the calendar was also slightly problematic, as every box spilled out, and I spent a good chunk of time trying to reconfigure the set up to make it stand upright.

While I was desperate to tear open every drawer to see what was waiting inside, especially the larger boxes, if you are patiently unwrapping each box daily, this may be a nuisance (and a mess).

What’s inside the Revolution Advent calendar?

Maisie Bovingdon

Excessive packaging and large boxes for small items seemed wasteful[/caption]

Revolution Advent Calendar 2024, £48 £38.40 from Boots (worth £97)

The Revolution Beauty Advent Calendar is comprised exclusively of make-up products, as well as (spoiler alert) an eyeshadow brush, beauty blender, and powder puff.

The 24-piece advent calendar contains a mix of product sizes, but they are almost entirely miniature versions, except for the potted products, lip liner, and eyeliner.

This is a clever way for Revolution to keep the cost and weight of the calendar low, plus it’s great for customers to master a travel-friendly make-up routine when on the go.

The contents included almost everything: lip glosses, lipstick, lip liners, a make-up palette, eyeshadow, highlighter and brow gel, to name a few.

There are numerous bestsellers in this bundle, much to my delight.

The mini Revolution Shimmer Bomb is a smaller version of Revolution’s bestselling Pout Bomb, which has been likened to Fenty Beauty’s Gloss Bomb.

The Shimmer Bomb gloss is deeply nourishing, thanks to the vitamin E-infused formula, and has an added sparkle, which is perfect for the festive party season.

The mini Reloaded Palette features soft pink and purple tones that are warm enough for subtle everyday wear, as well as glam Christmas parties. Plus, it’s exclusive to the Revolution Beauty Advent Calendar.

The mini Loose Baking Powder is a gamechanger to have in your make-up bag all year round, as it keeps your make-up budge-proof on wet and windy days, Christmas or New Year’s Eve parties, as well as sweaty summer season (if it lasts you that long).

The setting powder included in this advent calendar has previously gone viral and is highly sought after, which is not surprising considering its uncanny resemblance to Laura Mercier’s iconic loose powder. It makes this advent calendar even more desirable.

I am a sucker for a lip oil and lip mask, so I was pleased to find those essentials waiting inside the advent.

The winter season means my lips flare up and are often chapped and dehydrated, so it’s nice to see that Revolution has thought logically about the inclusion of these products.

I also love a lip liner, but I’m not too mad about two included in the bundle, and putting them in one box together would have been more of a treat for me to open.

And while I do enjoy lip products, I thought the number of them included was a little excessive — almost 10 of the products are solely for the lips.

There was also one key make-up essential missing; mascara.

This is something I was surprised about, considering it was the first make-up item I ever used as a teenager.

However, I do love that Revolution opted for versatile shades of makeup to complement all skin tones.

For example, the blushers and lipsticks are in pink or berry shades, while the eyeliners are black and brown and the brow gel is clear, making all of the items wearable throughout the year.

In comparison, other calendars I have tried feature glitzy reds or plums, which I think are more seasonal and less wearable day to day.

While an eyeshadow brush is useful, I thought a mini fluffy brush, considering the amount of blushers featured in the bundle, would have been better to include.

I also found there was a lot of excessive packaging.

In each box, every item was wrapped in tissue paper, and though it added to the suspense of seeing what was inside, it also meant extra large boxes included more stuffing than product.

In particular (spoiler ahead) box seven was quite deep but contained just a slither of card with face and body gems inside.

How much is the Revolution Beauty Advent calendar?

The Revolution Beauty Advent Calendar retails for two different prices at different retailers.

If you purchase directly from Revolution’s website this advent calendar fetches £48, though it is worth twice as much.

However, if you shop from Superdrug the bundle retails for £40, which is an extra £8 saving.

Why there is a price difference between retailers I don’t know, as they both contain the exact same items, as far as I can tell.

Revolution shoppers will not have to spend a fortune on delivery fees, as there is free delivery on orders over £30.

Revolution Advent Calendar 2024, £48 £38.40 from Boots (worth £97)

Where to buy the Revolution Advent calendar

The Revolution Advent Calendar for 2024 is available to buy from three retailers: Makeup Revolution’s website, Boots, and Superdrug.

It’s hard to say how long stock will last, but it’s great that beauty fans who want to get their hands on the bundle have more chance of doing so because it is stocked at multiple retailers.

As previously stated, it is odd that the price varies depending on the retailer, though.

Boots and Revolution are selling the calendar for £48, whereas Superdrug has the bundle listed at £40.

While the price difference may decide where you purchase the bundle, the fact you can earn Superdrug or Boots Advantage Card points — or even redeem a Boots bonus — may also sway where you purchase this calendar.

The verdict: is the Revolution advent calendar worth it?

There are a number of factors to consider before deciding if the Revolution advent calendar for 2024 is worth it.

I have already stressed how impressive the price is, especially in comparison to other beauty advent calendars.

Admittedly, there are more expensive and luxury beauty advent calendars that offer a larger saving, but it is always important to stay within your budget, and for under £50 I think this is a steal.

Having said that, the fact that the calendar is mostly comprised of lipsticks and blushers, as well as miniature items, might put off some shoppers, and I felt slightly underwhelmed with the contents of some boxes.

If you only want to stock up on make-up products, and specifically from one brand, this affordable Revolution advent calendar ticks those boxes.

But if you like to experiment with different looks, and products, this bundle is quite limited.

Personally, I would rather put a little extra money to opt for a beauty advent calendar with numerous brands included that total five times as much as the retail price, such as Lookfantastic or Glossybox.

Alternatives to the Revolution Advent Calendar

Nowadays, shoppers can enjoy plenty of beauty advent calendars to suit every budget and preference.

Here are some of the most popular picks you can purchase or pre-order.

• Lookfantastic Beauty Advent Calendar 2024, £100 – buy here
• Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Advent Calendar, £170 – buy here
• Soap & Glory 24 Moments On Cloud All-Mine Advent Calendar Set, £23.20 – buy here
• Harrods Beauty Advent Calendar 2024, £250 – buy here
• Glossybox Beauty Advent Calendar, £85 – buy here
• Space NK Beauty Advent Calendar, £250 – buy here

Revolution Advent Calendar 2024, £48

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