Every year growing up, my parents would fill an advent calendar with things to do each day. For example, “getting a hot chocolate after school”, “watching a Christmas movie” or “drive around to look at lights”. My sister and I would get so excited to open the activity of the day and many of them were super low key!
I LOVE this idea! I've been trying to save money recently, and I was trying to think of alternatives even to making my own Advent calendar. This is brilliant! I love the idea of having an exciting activity to do every evening! I also watercolor paint daily. I think I might make an calendar that gives me a different fun, pre-planned image to paint every day during December.
as a darkskin girl, i avoid most makeup advent calendars because 9 times out of 10 the complexion products in them will not work for me. they do the deinfluencing for me :p another great video, shawna!
100%! If you’re darker than “medium” or very light (most companies lightest color are too dark for me and make me look like Drumph) it doesn’t work! Got a Sephora advent calendar a few years ago and the highlighters/concealers were too dark and made my face look dirty 😐 Ugh. I can’t imagine what it would look like on dark skin- probably like a smudge of white-out.
@@natillaRM They should offer different tinted make up advent calendars. That would make sense. They could offer at least 4 different shades and pick out the advent calendar in your shade.
I'm sorry that you don't have access to the products that you should be able to access!! they don't deserve your money! sending you love and good wishes friend ❤
I’ve really started taking control of my finances this year. I’ve gotten to a point where I see something I really want, realize I don’t have space for it, and then don’t buy it. I was not this way a year ago and I’m so proud of how far I’ve come
Good for you! I'm doing the same thing, but I'm also trying to move towards minimalism. The prospect of having to house a bunch of new products is enough to say no, even if my budget said yes.
a traditional advent calendar in my culture, finland, is a picture calendar. in each window you open, there is a small illustration, typically related to christmas or yule as we call it here. they're made by local non-profit organizations and artists, they're also very often free-of-charge. my family has always been on the poorer side, so sometimes we couldn't afford even a simple chocolate calendar for me, so instead i got one of the pictures ones, and they were just as special.
My family has one that’s a little Christmas tree and there’s an ornament in each pocket to hang on the tree. Not sure if it counts as an advent calendar, but we also have a book with doors that has a leading-up-to-Christmas bible story for each day
I'm curious as to if you guys have the one's where you flip the illustration? I had one where it was a box and you could pull it out and flip it, and it would be a picture. You could put chocolates in the box but my mom bought nasty chocolate so we just flipped the pictures to see the drawings.
If you really, really want to buy a (stuff) advent calendar, at least buy it AFTER the season, because then they're on sale (-50% usually) and it won't inflate the demand. Also, I love tea advent calendars. I buy them on sale in january and I get a bunch of different teas to try so cheap.
The only advent calendar I would consider is one with food. I’m a minimalist and I don’t want just a bunch of random crap, but I’ll eat just about anything. Chocolate would be the best 😂
Same tbh, my husband and I buy chocolate advent calendars every year and it really satisfies the craving. If we can find one, we sometimes also buy one with dog treats for our dog, but that’s the most we do!!!
I'm definitely going to be buying my little sister one with chocolate in it when she's old enough to be excited for Christmas. She's 2 (im 20) and she doesn't really understand the concept of Christmas yet lol.
shawna youve been a HUGE help with recovering from a shopping addiction. i’ll pick up an object i Want but don’t Need and feel your metaphorical presence telling me not to 🤣 thank you for calling attention to a big overconsumption issue in our culture in such a calm yet sympathetic way. happy holidays 💕
My spouse died 5/23 & he wasn’t one of those men that pretends he doesn’t know his wife wants a present. He took gift giving seriously. After last Christmas where I got nothing, I decided to buy myself an advent calendar. I normally skip them for the reasons you mention so I was careful in picking. I won’t lie, I spent a ton, $600. But I bought one that supports some of my hobbies. It’s a needlepoint calendar & 12 of the items will be canvases (consumable goods in a sense) and I know based on sneaks it’ll contain some items I wanted, plus supplies I can use for various fiber hobbies of mine. Because of the limited nature I know I’ll be able to trade any canvases I might dislike for something “better” too. I’m still a little scared since I’ve never bought one of these before, always assuming it’d be a bad experience. But I’m hopeful this will be a Christmas with a few less tears because I have something to look forward to. So they can definitely serve a purpose.
sorry for your loss! R.I.P. to your partner & I hope your families are doing well. keep up with your hobbies. maybe double the joy by creating something for charity or gifts for people & joining a craft group?
@@flyingbird9633 That's a nice idea but I'm a young widow so generally people are uncomfortable with me and don't want me around. At least my hobbies are something I can do solo so there's that. 🤍
@@lspbeautea4791 thank you. Yes, I really do think that some of these things can serve a purpose and prior to this I never saw the point in many of these over the top calendars. There's a market for them though, and for some of us it might be the only surprise gift we get. I think it's just about not going overboard with it and being mindful of what you're spending on. I'll definitely be looking at others as they open them this year and see if maybe next year there's another company I'd like to try to mix things up. Watching reviews really helped me to pick this years.
What I don't like with advent calendar is the fact that you have a good chance of not liking A LOT of the products in it. Also, some of the product won't match with you routine and you will let them go to waste just because you won't remember to use them. Another case scenario, if it's a calendar with products from differents brands: skin breakouts. Introducing new products everyday to your skin is not a good idea. Just buy yourself a nice product that you know you will use and truly enjoy :)
that's why i never buy the yesstyle advent calendar even though i'm always tempted. i know i have no interest in some of the products. so it would be better to just buy the things i want
Halloween is my favorite season. A few ways to help: 1. Put up the decor early. Part of the problem is people feel they have to wait until October and then it's pack it all in one month. I put up the spooky things in September and feel a lot less pressured. Get to enjoy it at leisure 2. Theme. There are some things that are specific for halloween. However an orange pumpkin can be for all of fall. If you need a pumpkin decoration look for the one that can last a full season instead of part. The difference between a plastic carved pumpkin and full one is amount of use 3. Day after Halloween sales. If there was a thing you really really wanted, check again right after the holiday and get it 50% off. You have it for next year.
It’s hard for us Halloween year round people at this time of year. It is only out for a select time , for everyone else you can buy stuff whenever. It is the same thought “do I really need this “
Someone gifted my cat an advent calendar with treats. Very thoughtful, but cat didn’t like the treats. Gift giver was frustrated they didn’t just get a regular bag of treats instead. The gift was “for the cat”, but the vector was meant to bait the human brain away from the rational choice.
I had this with my old Saint Bernard. I was honest and said thank you, but he loves liver or chicken hearts as his treats. I said I will try and keep what he likes and regift what he doesn't. I had to regift the whole thing to a dog that likes most treats. I am not sure if the honesty was appreciated 😂
I've recently seen advent calendars that are activity based rather than item based. Each day has a suggested activity like "sing carols together", "watch a holiday movie", "talk about a happy holiday memory". Something like that could be a fun way to enjoy that anticipation of "what's it going to be today" without adding more stuff to your environment. Additionally, I have a lot (A LOT) of journaling supplies. This year I think I'm going to pull together some of my lesser used items & have a daily draw where I either must use that item in a spread or it's time to get rid of it. Sort of a combo of using what you have & decluttering.
Specific Halloween deinfluencing recommendations - spend more time doing Halloween activities using the stuff you already have, take advantage of what local businesses and events will be offering! Go to a Halloween-themed concert (I just played a couple of these 👀) look for a decorated bar, library, museum, etc. and when you go you can craft a Halloween-themed look from makeup and clothes you already own...have a scary movies night with friends, tell scary stories around a campfire, instead of a boo basket for your kids or partner or whoever, spend some time carving pumpkins and/or baking - lower-impact consumerism and higher-impact quality time. I agree that it's pretty much what you said about Fall, celebrate the holiday by doing instead of buying 🎃👻
Like there's probably still downsides to those but it's just...lil bit of chocolate in the holiday season. Guarenteed to be used, nice bit of novelty that's quite cheap.
I encountered variations of food Advent calendars last year : one with cheese, another with madeleines (small French sponge cakes - some had a chocolate layer). I liked those.
Is it weird that I’ve used advent calendars as a stocking stuffer for my family? Aka I open it (knowing what’s inside and what matches with my family’s taste) and I distribute what I think suits my family members best. A small gift for each one 😊
I made my husband an advent calendar of consumables and handmade items…basic things like toiletries, candy, gum, handmade socks, coffee, etc. He loved it, especially since we don’t exchange Xmas gifts. I bought myself a mystery yarn advent, too. Every day was a bit of yarn and a piece of the pattern , or an associated tool, and the idea was you’d knit with that bit of yarn every day and get time to catch-up on the days when it wasn’t yarn. I ended up with a beautiful hat, mitten, and cowl set. But I wouldn’t want 25 days of of makeup or something like that where I probably wouldn’t like or use a lot of the items.
The advent calendar could be great to buy a couple and put the products in gift bags for family and friends. You could always pick something out for yourself. 😉 I do this with bulk candles and other Christmas goodies from Trader Joe’s. Like the 3 hand lotion kit, or 3 candles ect. No one needs all of that. But women in my family do like one hand lotion one candle. Just an idea and hopefully a way to save and possibly treat yourself. ❤
Oh oh oh! I want to tell you about the advent calendar we have this year!!! We have A LOT of tea. More than my bf and I manage to find time to drink. And I am in fact a fan of advent calendars, and especially the tea ones since they don't leave you with a bunch of stuff and don't feed into any sugar cravings. So I figured instead of buying more tea, I will use what we already have and make an advent calendar out of it. So now we will have a reason to sit down and enjoy tea, while we drink up what we already have, save money and it is as zero waste as you get it. I make the calender now (Oct 28th) so I can 'forget' what tea I put on which day and also be surprised.
I like my shampoo brush/scalp massager, dealing with dandruff and itchy scalp it has helped so much with not getting a lot of stuff under my nails when washing the hair. I bought it on a whim but I have been loving it since I bought it a few years ago.
Same! I bought a cheap one at Ross for this purpose. I also started using Glycolic acid on my scalp before washing my hair which has taken care of the flakes.
How did stuff get under your nails? Did you scratch your scalp with your nails when you washed your hair? Sorry if the question sounds stupid, it's just that I keep my nails so short that that it never occurred to me that people with long nails had the option of washing their bodies with their nails instead of finger pads. It sounds painful.
I love your channel Shawna. I’m 2-3 yrs into healing my relationship with money! It’s definitely not an overnight fix but the personal growth feels amazing.
For me, a lot of the appeal of Halloween is the nostalgia/childlike wonder, and I feel like appreciating the things you already have can lean into the nostalgia. Something new isn’t going to have a memory, something old that you have can have that nostalgia year after year. That being said, I’m always tempted by cute Halloween stuff (like the holiday felt birds at Target) and I tend to leave stuff up year round because i like the maximalist look. (It has been easier to say no to stuff recently because I’m maxed out on stuff and love everything I currently have)
Super cheap (but a bit of effort) calendar suggestion! I have made calendar for some friends where I have a big jar with flake salt at the bottom as cheap fake snow and a tiny 1$ Christmas house and maybe string lights, then I fill it with folded notes. I have taken inspiration from menta health calendars, so the notes are a collection of “challenges” like 😅 “make the doctors appointment you have been postponing” “change your bedding” “meal prep a good lunch for tomorrow” and “go for a little walk and feed some ducks”. I didn’t think people would actually follow though, but my friends have sent updates though December. I have also included notes with compliments. Some of my friends have kept the notes and reuse the calendar year after year 🫶🏻
The beauty advent calendars are also never really a good deal. Most of what's in there consists of low value items and/or items they want to get rid of because they're not selling well enough. It's basically a way to off-load the stuff no one wants...and many of which might not even suit your needs or preferences at all. You'd probably spend less money (and end up less cluttered) by just buying what you really wanted. The same mentality also goes for mystery boxes and many "value" sets.
I exchange selfmade advent callendars every year with my twin sister. We fill them with sweets but also small things that we know the other one will like or find practical :) The big advantage: We won't get 24 (I'm German, Christmas is at the 24th here) new things that we probably don't like or need but only a few things that we most likely will have use for as we know each other really well. It's a nice mix of things (who needs 24 new pieces of jewelry, nail polish or cosmetics at once?) and we don't have to spend lots of money to make sure that we won't get only cheap crap. The problem with store-bought advent calendars is, even the price of cheap things adds up so you spend a lot of money for basically nothing and most likely will be disappointed. Of course, you need a family member or friend who is willing to participate in an advent calendar exchange ... A jewelry travel organiser is, of course, more useful to people who wear a lot of jewelry :) My in-laws live across the country and if we visit them, it's usually for several days to a week and for occasions like Christmas, so I often bring a small variety of necklaces, earrings etc. (I _could_ only bring one set, but I don't wear jewelry every day and want to use the occasions that I get!). I would not buy an organiser but I've already thought about sewing one. Sewing has been my hobby for decades and I probably would not have to buy anything but just use material from my stash. Oh, one hack for necklaces which like to get tangled if you store them in a little bag: You can open the necklace and slide it through a straw, then close it again. That way, there is less material to hang around losely and you prevent tangling!
I love making an advent calendar for my husband and I every year for Christmas. I started it when we first moved out together. I bought some sturdy gift bags years ago that I reuse (24 small bags, 1 larger bag for Christmas day). I do a combination of small treats (think mini candy bars, chocolate kisses, etc) and special treats (a chocolate orange, movie theatre candy, etc). Then I either have a joke, a fun fact, or activity in the bag as well. It's a bit of a pain to put together, but it's so nice for the month.
Honestly advent calendars (other than chocolate) are STRESSFUL! December is already busy, it ends up being just something else to do by the end of the month.
Advent calendars are such a waste. I used to have major problem with hoarding beauty products and being obsessed with all of the beauty subscription boxes. Many of the items ended up being wasted because they just weren’t something I would have normally used in my routine. And having so much is overwhelming. It’s better to just keep your go to products and have a simple routine. Learned that after years of throwing money down the drain!
Halloween girlie chiming in! I’ve been collecting since I was 15, I’m now 43. (I literally have a call, cauldron, from party city from when I was 15 and use it every year. ) I’m also a holiday designer professionally. Here’s my advice on scaling back and INTENTIONALLY consuming. Pick a theme and slowly build on it each year. Treat every item you purchase as an heirloom piece. Does it fit your vibe or theme? If not, it’s just extra. Will it truly inspire joy year after year? If not, you won’t love it and it will just be clutter. Holiday decor is my BIGGEST temptation! (I made it my profession, so clearly I adore it!) But in truth, more is not always better. Sometimes it overtakes the EXPERIENCE. in the end, our memories are all we are left with. Memories are our legacy. Not stuff. Keep in mind a theme and be strict with yourself. I recommend only purchasing what is honestly and truly magical and special to you. Give yourself a cap on the number of new items you are willing to bring in each year. Remember that you are being constantly marketed to and that your emotions are being used against you in the corporate psychology of consumerism. The buying can actually decrease the magic! Don’t be swayed by trends. You honestly won’t be happier with a new theme every year. I follow my fellow decorators and often feel my stomach turn with how I am constantly being sold to. Use what you have and love it. Trends don’t equate happiness. This goes for Christmas as well. You don’t need a whole new theme each year. Add an ornament or two and let your tree be a treasure of memories vs a soulless reflection of consumerism. I’ve done it both ways. I cherish my traditions over trends. Just my (very long) two cents. 😉🎃
i mean, for the yesstyle advent calendar, the influencers unbox it ahead of even preorders. so you can absolutely know what evey product is ahead of time
Travelon has a 2in1 small zip jewelry/electronics case and I adore it. It has just enough space for a couple jewelry sets on one side and I can fit my chargers on the other… I also use the jewelry side for my French hair pins, Bobby pins, and rubber bands.
5:44 love the tea calendars 🫶🏻 usually by one for me and some friends on 1st of December, then they are priced down and it’s a nice way to sample different teas though December 😊
I did buy a Halloween hand soap at TJMaxx a year or two ago. I just refilled the dispenser (a cute mummified cat) for this year. I do like cutesy Halloween stuff, but if I do buy anything new, I look for something I can reuse every year and will fit in with what I already have.
Trying to deinfluence someone who is devoted to halloween is difficult, one might lose a finger. I suppose I would ask if the purchase was to be used year round or just seasonally. Do they have a place to display or store the item? Does the item have a purpose? Is the item replacing something you already have? Would you be willing to release something else you own to bring the new item in? Most importantly, does this fit in with your current halloween decor or clothing style? I bought Halloween themed pillow covers two years ago and I use them to store my out of season clothing, they make me smile and have a useful purpose.
I've gotten a yarn advent calendar from a small business/indie yarn dyer. For me it was ok because i was supporting a local business, I could afford it financially, and I had a pre-existing plan. I don't buy any "corporate consumer" ones, and I'm limited to one/yr.
The only Advent calendar i would consider if it was food items, since I will eat it so it wouldn't clutter up space. I would love for a cheese advent calendar.
I’m so glad I saw this video. I pre ordered the Look Fantastic advent calendar last month (which hasn’t been dispatched yet) this bought me to my senses and I’ve cancelled the order. No idea why I thought I should have been spending £100 on advent calendar
Have you done a video on influence baby items?? I'm about to be in my second trimester & I really love to see baby shower hauls, "pack my hospital bag", "first time mom items", etc. but these people are CLEARLY in a different tax bracket then I am.. some of the stuff is SO overpriced unnecessary!!
I have the scalp massager and also use it once a week at most for a more vigorous shampoo moment. I like it a lot when i use it and realize it was marketed as such a "gimmick" for hair growth but oh well. Idk if I would rebuy it.
Oh, and quitting ALL sulphate containing shampoos cured my, and my daughter’s itchy scalp. We’ve been using the same sulphate free products for years now and will never go back. I don’t have to wash my long hair nearly as often either, which is great.
I travel with jewelry a lot, and I use a small plastic tupperware container I got from a friend a while ago. Its great for jewelry because the lid claps shut and the container is strong, it's great for travel because the container is small (bout 3.5in by 2.5in, ish) and fits in hand luggage. I don't use large hard bracelets or what have you, so it fits all my earrings/necklaces/whatever else perfectly
Home decor for all the seasons and holidays. And gift ideas. I’ve got a problem buying both. Over the last couple months it’s been a LOT of money ramping up for Christmas. I of course wasn’t keeping track, or I wouldn’t have spent so much. My husband brought the amount to my attention and I was appalled. I went through everything and found all the receipts and returned everything that I possibly could. I kept a few items, but a good majority went back. I just feel sick how much money was spent. There’s plenty of people suffering right now, and I’m over here spending stupid money on decorations for my house for a holiday three months from now. 😮
For deinfluencing Halloween, I would probably focus on costumes and decor. I would have questions like, "Do you really need to buy the new trendy Halloween costume that probably will be out of trend soon? Especially when you have one or more costumes you definitely love that you can wear again?" Or I would even encourage people to go thrifting and put together their own unique Halloween costume, or see if they can assemble a Halloween costume with clothes and makeup they already have. Because I know for me that costumes are a big deal for me and I love wearing a different one every year, but with having to tighten my finances this year I may need to consider reusing costumes more often. Not only that but I think other people don't care as much if people reuse costumes from previous years than you might think. For Halloween decor maybe there could be a discussion over getting trendy or micro-trendy Halloween decor or focus on buying/storing/using Halloween decor that is more timeless and will get more use. Or maybe even using stuff you have at home to make Halloween decor. My kid and I had so much fun making little mummies and ghosts out of toilet paper tubes and toilet paper that we have hung up in our yard and house now.
Thoughts: Advent calendars: you could make them in a white elephant or secret Santa style. It’s still a surprise but more personalized, still get to enjoy the fun each day. You could make one at the end of this year to open next year if you don’t have someone to swap with. If the trash production is something you want to avoid, make or buy one and then reuse it each year (like you would with a stocking) Travel organizer: I agree , I wouldn’t buy one but enjoy the one I got. I go on longer trips to see family and definitely love for that. Mine is like a soft drawstring pouch with internal pockets to keep things separate. Pill organizer would 100% be a great alternative Autumn sweaters: I love my Christmas sweaters, pop off and enjoy fall your way. But like with workout clothes, set your storage box and don’t get more than that (hard sided box so you can’t stretch it!) keep what you’ve got to pull back out and wear each year. Do not go buy one each year you won’t wear through them that fast Halloween: same as above, set your hard sided storage boxes, don’t go past that. Reuse each year
4:16 I’ve tried a few advent calendars in the past and the only one that I genuinely loved and used every product was the Trader Joe’s skincare calendar. The variety was incredible, it was all stuff I would use, and some lasted me 6-12 months as part of my daily skincare. The facial sunscreen specifically is formulated specifically for their advent calendars and worked SO WELL for me (I’m a mail carrier with sensitive skin , so I always need a good SPF). It was $25 and I definitely got more value than that out of it.
I grew up with a homemade advent calendar -- a wall hanging with a miniature stuffed Christmas tree, made out of felt, and 24 little pockets. Each pocket held a bauble (for the little tree) and a candy (for me). It would be so easy to make something like that with slightly larger pockets as a gift for adults -- fill the pockets with things you, your partner or your kids would love, gifts or food or tickets to a show or IOUs for something non-Holiday themed that you know they'd like to do later in the year.
About Advent calendars I suggest getting all the little things you normally don’t allow yourself to buy and pack little presents for yourself. Or ask someone to pack it for you so you get a surprise every day and a guarantee that you will love everything you get.
I try to stick to the consumables for advent calendars - that way I don't have anything actually left at the end of the period. This year, I got a tea advent for myself and a dog treat calendar for my dogs.
My favourite advent calendars are £1.99 from local post offices. They have a nice illustration then just paper doors showing cute mini illustrations. Sometimes if its a particularly lovely one I reuse them a second year. I also made an advent calendar one year by getting a nice branch from the park, cleaning it, letting it dry then I wrote numbered quotations and encouraging words on paper tags and tied them to the tree and read one each day of December. I've never understood those hugely overpriced makeup calendars.
Omg. The Bonne Maman advent calendar. I think it was day 10 when I started having anxiety about another, albeit tiny, jar of preserves. Apparently, I can each a whole lot less jam than I thought.
I have the Dyson Airwrap and the Dyson Corrale and LOVE THEM! For me personally, I feel they were worth the costs. I use them every single day, usually more than once a day. It works great on my hair, but that being said I have had multiple family members and friends who have tried them both and they did not work well on their hair. I'd highly suggest anyone interested in either of the Dyson tools to find someone they know who owns one and at least try it out once. While they do work great on most hair types they definitely don't work great on all. As with most things, especially higher cost items, what's a waste of money to some is well worth it to others.
I look forward to reading advice on how to de influence others on purchasing seasonal decor. Growing up we had very little money to spend on seasonal decorations and our home was generally decorated with things we made during school (I was in prime decoration making years in the 80s fyi) now my mother, who has always enjoyed decorating, overbuys (in my opinion)seasonal decor to “make up” for her/our youth. I’m in my mid 40s, and It’s difficult going out with her because I’m always saying; “mom, you have xyz already…” she doesn’t listen. I let her do her own thing, but I wish I knew a constructive way to help remind her that she doesn’t “need” these new things every year. And I’m talking EVERY year new items!
These videos are so interesting to me as someone living in south america. A lot of these trends are not accessible to me. Where i live buying Something new is sometjing that is very last resort, fixing it or passing it to family members/friends is usually the norm. We learn to be resourceful because one day that one imported item that you need wont be available anymore and you have to make do. No hate to my gringos ❤
With the weather changing and it getting darker earlier, I’ve been finding myself bored more easily and I’ll waste time scrolling. Your video gave me an idea to make myself a fall/winter advent calendar for free and easy activities I can do. Thank youuuu
I'm not the biggest Halloween person, but I think the best way to de-influence it is to ask how you will feel about buying a bunch of Halloween-themed items by the time November rolls around. I know that I'm mostly only into Halloween stuff in October, maybe late September. But once we're well into November people usually move on from it.
Not to be contrary but when I need to replace a holiday item, I do it after the holiday when it’s cheapest and put it away for the following year. Other than replacements, I try not to buy much new stuff.
@@BuyLessJess This might be a good strategy for certain things, but when it comes to any kind of personal care items I would recommend against it. I've recently had to learn the hard way with the Bath And Body Works products Shawna mentioned. They really market in a way that tempts people to overbuy, which I did last Christmas (expecting to use them this year). I just looked at them and realized that some unused body creams had separated into liquid and chunks in a matter of less than a year. Their body creams used to have a shelf-life of a few years! I stored them in a cool, dark place and everything.
The workout clothes section reminded me of a pitfall I’ve run into: be realistic about how often you *actually* do laundry. Do not base this on how often some ideal version of you does laundry. Similarly, do not buy workout clothes for some idealized version of you. Curate your wardrobe to what you actually do already on an average day (not just your best days!) and what you have solid plans to do in the near future. I actually only do laundry once a month or so, and it works fine for me! Part of it is that I have a lot of clothing (probably too much), but a lot of it is just knowing whether or not something needs to be washed after I wear it. Some stuff needs to go in the hamper immediately. Other stuff, like jackets and sweaters, can get quite a few uses in before they need to be washed.
As a member of the "very short" hair community (ranging from buzzcut to Beatles), I can say that ive never had to deal with Dyson hair tools or the urge to get them. I will say though, the routine trims can add up; even though they arent as expensive as a regular womans haircut. But my urge to buy is less on hair tools, more on hair styling gels. I dont currently have a hair gel, and never used one, but the back of my hair naturally sticks up in a very awkward way and im wondering if i should buy some idk.
My wardrobe is mostly black with neutral tops and sweaters/jackets 😂 everything matches each other. love your videos. I am currently going through my babies stuff to get rid of non-neutral clothes/items so we don’t travel across country with stuff we may not need to use again (don’t know what our 2nd little gender will be). your videos remind me of how I used to be before being wasteful with money/space/etc. you’re reminding me to be mindful. ❤ thank you
I would like to defend myself about the dyson airwrap, I do not actually own styling tools! The thought in my head often is that I should invest in one good quality piece instead of buying several tools and discarding them. The price tag is the reason why I haven't bought one (I'm lucky enough to be able to afford one within my budget). My head is just trying to trick me into thinking it's the price of two larger hair appointments and if I could style my hair, I would be happier with it (and spend less on the hairdresser).
How do you deinfluence a parent who seems to hoard decor? And she won't let me help get rid of the clutter because she's still mad that my dad once got rid of some her things 30 years ago. There are so many unnecessary piles and bins, like she has gifts that aren't for anyone in particular, but they are around just in case she has to give someone a gift. She'll find something for a good deal and a lot of times it just ends up never used, taking up space or forgotten about.
This is too relatable lol... stationary is definitely my vice, especially everything Happy Planner, their marketing team knows exactly how to exploit my weaknesses 😂
Gosh, I work out 7 days a week and I have 2 set, thermal Leggings for colder runs and normal. I invested in Lululemon and sweaty betty, I wear them 2 days in a row and wash them and I must of washed them over 200 times and they still look good. You don’t need lots of workout sets! I found I only ever wanted to wear the ones that make me feel good, so gave away all my other ones.
I bought a beauty/skin care calendar a couple of years ago from Cult Beauty in London. But I shared it with my daughter who was 25 at the time and her girlfriend so it was 8 items per person. Also, my Mum bought advent calendars for my kids when they were little. My daughter's was the story of the Nutcracker Ballet and the story was broken up into 24 little books, which you could put on the Christmas tree as decprations. My son got the story of Christmas. My kids are now 27 and 20 and we still have them.
I love my travel jewelry organizer. As someone with very few pieces of jewelry it works well as a substitution for a jewelry box. The size is smaller than other methods of storing jewlery that I've used and the way my case displays my pieces works well for me. I have a scalp massager as well. It seems to only work well for removing dirty and sand from my kids' scalps; there was no difference on myself though.
to answer your question re Halloween, I am not biiiig on Halloween but I like to "decor" my office with seasonal decor. However, I have things I can use over and over and they can still make sense. I have a pennywise figurine, a little ceramic ghost, and 2 strings of light with lil ghosts as well as glow in the dark pumpkin. Passing Halloween, I can still use the glow in the dark pumpkin, and I have 3 others ceramic ones, smaller with a plaque with something written on it re Fall. That's it. What I am trying to say is, if you must get something, try to be strategic about it, something that is timeless and can take lil space, be re-used and maybe even overlap with other themes.
I use a hair massager/shampoo brush religiously for one reason and one reason only: my hair is stupid long. it's far easier to get at scalp buildup with one of those than it is to maneuver around knee-length wet hair with just my fingers lol. but if you can hold up a high ponytail with a standard size hair elastic you're probably fine!
Regarding dyson Airwrap - I do own one, bought it second hand, but as it has been used 3 times before my purchase, I still spent 500 USD (more or less, depending on exchange course). I had the opportunity to test it before I bought it. As I live in 4 season climate and have chronic sinusitis I need to dry my hair after every wash. Even during summertime. Having really long and thic hair, it took me 2,5 hours to dry my hair with normal 70 USD hair dryer. Now it takes me 25 min. So for me these 500 USD were a good investment and I don’t regret spending them, however it is still a lot of money for me. In my country for some people it might be their monthly income. Anyway, to summarize - for me it was great purchase, I have more time now, but if you don’t have super long hair taking much time to dry I would really reconsider this purchase.
Here is a tip for workout clothes. This only applies if you work out at home like I do. Workout clothes get gross and sweaty, so they basically double as house cleaning clothes. I do my chores and then I work out, and then I get changed out of those grubby clothes and into something comfy or nice. So basically I never worried about the style of clothes I used to work out in, but just separating them from clothes that I want to look and feel nice when I am finished with all of my chores and my exercise.
So for the removal of excess... I keep a seasonal wardrobe. At the end of every season I pull out the storage cubes and things go into or out of rotation. You can do that for every category. And make wardrobe color choices etc for the next season by shopping your stash first.
I do travel for long periods of time, like visiting family for a month, but the travel jewelry cases don’t fit the kind of jewelry I like to wear so it’s still a bit of a waste
I buy advent calenders with single tea bags. This is something I can use and I got to taste the upcoming limited editions so I would not buy one I do not like. Loved that one.
I agree that scalp massagers are only useful for some. As a girl with a super oily scalp, the scalp massager helps so much to get in there and clean it properly. I live a super active lifestyle too though, hence why it’s so useful for cleaning my scalp. I thought about getting one for 3 months before making the purchase for sure!
I have one of those scalp massagers and I kind of hate it. Idk if all of them are like this or just my Walmart one, but the one I have the ends are pointy and not rounded. I have such sensitive skin because of eczema and dandruff, using that thing felt like I had no absolutely no skin left. I felt like it took off too much skin and my scalp was raw afterwards. I didn’t like the feeling. It was useful when I had tendinitis in my shoulder and could lift my arm without pain, especially for long periods of time. It was more effective using that thing than only one hand, but it’s quicker to just use both hands when you have the option.
I am going to stick up for the air wrap here, it was a very considered purchase due to the price but I absolutely love it and use it every day. I did keep my other tools (hairdryer and straighteners) a proper hairdryer makes things quicker than the one that comes with the air wrap, although I do use it for travel to save space. Also I have very thick curly hair and if I want it straight the air wrap cannot do that. I absolutely agree that hair type plays a massive part - I don't think it would be useful if my hair was thin or fine as I have heard that the curls don't hold as well and I use the brush attachment to get my hair dry quicker because my hair is so thick. Also FYI Dyson have an outlet on eBay where they sell refurbished - I got mine from there and it saved me hundreds (I have had it for a year now with no problems)
I have dry scalp, so I use one of those scalp massager things everytime I wash my hair. It stops me from scraping my fingernails across my scalp to remove dead dry skin. Mine is a 5 USD one from Ulta, but I have seen ones I think would work just as well at the Dollar Tree. Not really different than what you were talking about, but hope someone finds it helpful anyway. I also find shampoos and scalp scrubs that have tea tree oil in them to be helpful.
I have no idea about outside of the UK - but since I was a very young child (I’m old now) chocolate advent calendar have been a MASSIVE thing here - they still are the most accessible type of calendar and we always loved getting to pick the brand of chocolate we wanted that year. They were relatively inexpensive as a child and really build you up to Christmas - I have no idea when the product calendars became a thing but it’s really unnecessary and sometimes cost more than actual Christmas gifts. Just a whole other chunk of money to spend - the same with when Christmas Eve boxes became a thing 😢
I agree about the consumable advent calendars. I loved getting a different shaped chocolate every day as a kid. And the David's Tea one is great because its a small amount of tea, and you can decide if you want to order a full amount of each flavor if you like it
First of all, I’d like to say I love your videos, and I generally watch almost all of them. They’re really helpful to think critically about what I’m buying. In this video, I thought your comment on “if you have space in your wardrobe, you are more likely to fill it” is spot on! That being said, I have a Dyson, and agree, it’s $$$$$. BUT - I asked for it for Christmas last year (2023) from my husband and told him to use my account on Sephora when they had their 25% off sale. This is the best hair tool I have ever bought and I use it every time I wash my hair, unless I’m wearing it naturally (which is wavy). It has completely replaced everything else and also saved me a LOT of time. People at work always ask me how my hair looks so good and I’ve even been stopped in a store 😂 If it broke, I would 100% replace it. Is it a necessity? No. Do I love it? Yes. I am at the age (millennial, early 30s, married with no kids and we both have full time jobs) where I want to be able to enjoy things and am financially able to treat myself. If people are putting it on credit and going into debt, that is a different story. I think this does align largely with what you say in that if you can’t afford it don’t buy it. Just wanted to share my thoughts!
I use a scalp massager almost everyday to scratch my scalp lol! But I also use it to work in dry shampoo or oil depending on the day but it is like integral to my life at this point! I think it works product into my scalp much better than my hands!
Your videos have really helped me a lot with not buying clothes and make up that I don't need, I think the next thing I need to work on is not buying stuff for the home and just overspending around Christmas in general. When I've researched beauty advent calendars our (UK) ones do seem to be more usable, just mini versions of stuff you might already buy however still not worth it, and the PLouise one (don't know if that's available worldwide) is terrible.
We have a refillable advent calendar we got 2 years ago. We often did toy ones prior to this for my 3 kids. 2 years ago I filled it with candy (like a hersey kiss each). last year I got them a microscope and each day they got a new slide for it (from a set). the microscope was a planned gift so it was a pretty fun activity each day to check out. It was a purchase but I felt better about that than junk. not sure what we will do this year yet. maybe an activity each day. like one day will say " do a random act of kindness" another day "movie night and pizza" etc
growing up i had a re-usable christmas calendar that was made of wood with little draws in it. my mum would fill it with sweets and trinkets, like hair clips and hair bands. now we buy paper ones that show religious scenes. i love opening the door and seeing a tiny little painting, and you can re use them! they make a good backdrop for the mini nativity we have :)
My zero cost Advent Calendar that we do as a family is a Movie Advent. I fill the vintage door calendar thing with holiday movies and tv specials based on our schedule for the month and at least my youngest child watches that show or movie on that day (hopefully). This builds tradition and nostalgia for those shows and movies that we watch every year and we often watch together, so it's family time too. In our house, the calendar comes with the Scout Elves and so there's also the tie-in that the Elves can use "bringing movie snacks and excited to watch today's movie" as a ready made theme for a day or two.
Not only did you deinfluence me from the shark hair wrap(Dyson was far out of my budget) but you also convinced me to declutter all the tools I dont use and the scalp Massager I never use.
if there’s an advent calendar from a brand you like, with lots of tiny sample size things that you potentially won’t like, take whatever the amount of the advent calendar would be and put it towards one single product that you know you would enjoy instead! I know it’s not a “dupe” for the fun of it, but if you are trying to consume less, buying a single product that you know you would enjoy and use is a much better use of the $$, usually $25+
Years ago I bought a sewing panel to make a wall hanging Advent calendar that has 25 pockets. I put a mini Christmas tree ornament and a couple of chocolates in each pocket (one for each of my children). The ornaments went on our tree and they enjoyed their chocolate. I love the idea some people mentioned in these comments of doing activity Advent calendars!
I think for the Halloween stuff it depends on how much it fits your vibe and if you’re going to use it year-round. I work at a haunt so during October, that’s basically my whole personality haha. Plus, I regularly wear/enjoy spooky things year-round, so if I’m buying a pair of skeleton earrings or something, I’m definitely still going to be wearing them in February or July.
okay so i have a lot of feelings about advent calandars. i find the holiday season INCREDIBILY DIFFICULT, and i need help getting through it. i used advent calandars for that a lot of times (beauty/tea ect) i have bought the same one for a few years ( sukoshi mart! ) but htis year i have had some shopping issues and i noticed i didn't always love everything in my calandars so like last month i bought a bunch of stuff from my favourite stores and wrapped it up in the hopes that by the time december rolls around ill forget what excatly i bought so i get that suprise factor and i already have stuff for that time of year so won't buy anymore around that season. i know i still want a calandar that wont go away but also want to be sure ill like what i is in there.
While there are no pictures for the Yesstyle advent calendar, there is actually a list in the product description with all of the products included! It also says how much the products are worth in total. So customers actually can see what they're buying and can make an informed choice! (It's still really expensive and I doubt consumers need that many skincare and Make-up products though)
I really appreciate your videos, and this is another great one. I just wish to add one piece of info for the YesStyle calendar - there is a list of things you get in it on their website, but not in the main description. I got the calendar this year because I really liked almost all of the products, even though I agree with you that it is quantitatively really a lot. But I do like the opportunity to see what’s in it so I can decide if I will really use everything.
Personally I love my scalp massager! When I moved, I left mine in my boyfriends shower and was seriously missing it so much that I went back to get it 😂 My two specific reasons for loving it: 1. It lathers my shampoo much better than my fingers. I have curly/wavy hair, so I co-wash and this means that my usual shampoo is not a very sudsy one. 2. Saves my nail polish when I have my nails painted. I am lazy and will only paint my nails once a week, but will wash my hair twice a week. I noticed that, by avoiding using my fingertips during the sudsing, the nail polish lasts longer.
I picked up my first ever advent calendar this year and I don't feel too bad about the choice since they're smaller paper products like bookmarks that I will use until they fade, but I definitely talked myself out of at least three yarn advent calendars because I knew for a fact I wouldn't be using those skeins anytime soon. They sound so promising, but I just cannot really justify it to myself when I don't use particular colors too often.
If you really want one of the expensive advent calendars I think a good solution can be to share it with someone, so it’s “12 days of Christmas” in stead of 24 or 25 things. Quite easy to do if the calendar is a collection of individual boxes, not doors in one box. Or if you live with the person you share it with you can just open every second day 😊
If anyone is looking for a super cute food related advent calendar, my family and I got a mini jams one! It was delicious, got us a bunch of nice glass jars, and was really fun! Most were a hit too so we didn’t waste too much either!
Every year growing up, my parents would fill an advent calendar with things to do each day. For example, “getting a hot chocolate after school”, “watching a Christmas movie” or “drive around to look at lights”. My sister and I would get so excited to open the activity of the day and many of them were super low key!
Such a great idea! My son is 6 months old and I will do this with him one day 🥰
Thank you for sharing this sweet memory. I will do this for my kids this year!
I LOVE this idea! I've been trying to save money recently, and I was trying to think of alternatives even to making my own Advent calendar. This is brilliant! I love the idea of having an exciting activity to do every evening!
I also watercolor paint daily. I think I might make an calendar that gives me a different fun, pre-planned image to paint every day during December.
This is so cute
I love this! I’ll try and think of something similar for my household/family
as a darkskin girl, i avoid most makeup advent calendars because 9 times out of 10 the complexion products in them will not work for me. they do the deinfluencing for me :p another great video, shawna!
When not being tailored to helps our wallets 🤣
100%! If you’re darker than “medium” or very light (most companies lightest color are too dark for me and make me look like Drumph) it doesn’t work!
Got a Sephora advent calendar a few years ago and the highlighters/concealers were too dark and made my face look dirty 😐 Ugh. I can’t imagine what it would look like on dark skin- probably like a smudge of white-out.
@@natillaRM
They should offer different tinted make up advent calendars. That would make sense. They could offer at least 4 different shades and pick out the advent calendar in your shade.
@@natillaRM I have the opposite problem. I'm so pale, everything is way too dark. 😅 They should really make advent calendars in several shade ranges.
I'm sorry that you don't have access to the products that you should be able to access!! they don't deserve your money! sending you love and good wishes friend ❤
I’ve really started taking control of my finances this year. I’ve gotten to a point where I see something I really want, realize I don’t have space for it, and then don’t buy it. I was not this way a year ago and I’m so proud of how far I’ve come
Good for you! I'm doing the same thing, but I'm also trying to move towards minimalism. The prospect of having to house a bunch of new products is enough to say no, even if my budget said yes.
@@tinywalnut6337 Good luck! I know in the end it will be well worth it
Awesome! I too am valuing my space a lot more these days, I’ve realised the less things I own, the less clutter is in my space.
I really hope that this will be me by the end of 2025! Go you 🎉
So proud of you! I too have been limiting my spending! I only really spent some stuff for my pet fish LOL
a traditional advent calendar in my culture, finland, is a picture calendar. in each window you open, there is a small illustration, typically related to christmas or yule as we call it here. they're made by local non-profit organizations and artists, they're also very often free-of-charge. my family has always been on the poorer side, so sometimes we couldn't afford even a simple chocolate calendar for me, so instead i got one of the pictures ones, and they were just as special.
My family has one that’s a little Christmas tree and there’s an ornament in each pocket to hang on the tree. Not sure if it counts as an advent calendar, but we also have a book with doors that has a leading-up-to-Christmas bible story for each day
❤
We never received gifts in our advent calendars as children. The pictures were enough excitement for us. Look, Mommy, there's a kitty!
This is how advent calendars would be in the UK in the 1960's and 70's.
I'm curious as to if you guys have the one's where you flip the illustration? I had one where it was a box and you could pull it out and flip it, and it would be a picture. You could put chocolates in the box but my mom bought nasty chocolate so we just flipped the pictures to see the drawings.
If you really, really want to buy a (stuff) advent calendar, at least buy it AFTER the season, because then they're on sale (-50% usually) and it won't inflate the demand.
Also, I love tea advent calendars. I buy them on sale in january and I get a bunch of different teas to try so cheap.
+1 for the tea advent calendar!!! I’ve done that for a few years and found multiple best assortments!
Tea advent calendars are the cheapest way to try out all the flavours so im a big fan!!!
The only advent calendar I would consider is one with food. I’m a minimalist and I don’t want just a bunch of random crap, but I’ll eat just about anything. Chocolate would be the best 😂
Same tbh, my husband and I buy chocolate advent calendars every year and it really satisfies the craving. If we can find one, we sometimes also buy one with dog treats for our dog, but that’s the most we do!!!
I'm definitely going to be buying my little sister one with chocolate in it when she's old enough to be excited for Christmas. She's 2 (im 20) and she doesn't really understand the concept of Christmas yet lol.
I love the concept of tea or hot cocoa advent calendars
If you're a drinker, a beer or wine Advent calendar is another good alternative.
@@justineonasaltine my cat goes CRAZY for the treats in Trader Joe’s cat treat advent calendar. The only advent calendar I’ll ever buy
shawna youve been a HUGE help with recovering from a shopping addiction. i’ll pick up an object i Want but don’t Need and feel your metaphorical presence telling me not to 🤣 thank you for calling attention to a big overconsumption issue in our culture in such a calm yet sympathetic way. happy holidays 💕
I agree. Listening to Shawna a lot helps to have her present as a voice of reason when we are tempted by stuff we don’t need.
I hear her in my head too 😂
this is genuinely so kind!! Thank you so much, and I'm so proud of you for taking steps to recover!!!!
My spouse died 5/23 & he wasn’t one of those men that pretends he doesn’t know his wife wants a present. He took gift giving seriously. After last Christmas where I got nothing, I decided to buy myself an advent calendar. I normally skip them for the reasons you mention so I was careful in picking. I won’t lie, I spent a ton, $600. But I bought one that supports some of my hobbies. It’s a needlepoint calendar & 12 of the items will be canvases (consumable goods in a sense) and I know based on sneaks it’ll contain some items I wanted, plus supplies I can use for various fiber hobbies of mine. Because of the limited nature I know I’ll be able to trade any canvases I might dislike for something “better” too.
I’m still a little scared since I’ve never bought one of these before, always assuming it’d be a bad experience. But I’m hopeful this will be a Christmas with a few less tears because I have something to look forward to. So they can definitely serve a purpose.
Thank you for sharing. Sending you virtual hugs and positive thoughts 😊
sorry for your loss! R.I.P. to your partner & I hope your families are doing well. keep up with your hobbies. maybe double the joy by creating something for charity or gifts for people & joining a craft group?
@@flyingbird9633 That's a nice idea but I'm a young widow so generally people are uncomfortable with me and don't want me around. At least my hobbies are something I can do solo so there's that. 🤍
@@lspbeautea4791 thank you. Yes, I really do think that some of these things can serve a purpose and prior to this I never saw the point in many of these over the top calendars. There's a market for them though, and for some of us it might be the only surprise gift we get. I think it's just about not going overboard with it and being mindful of what you're spending on. I'll definitely be looking at others as they open them this year and see if maybe next year there's another company I'd like to try to mix things up. Watching reviews really helped me to pick this years.
Your spouse sounds awesome. Tons of hugs to you, I hope your calendar turns out great!
What I don't like with advent calendar is the fact that you have a good chance of not liking A LOT of the products in it. Also, some of the product won't match with you routine and you will let them go to waste just because you won't remember to use them.
Another case scenario, if it's a calendar with products from differents brands: skin breakouts. Introducing new products everyday to your skin is not a good idea.
Just buy yourself a nice product that you know you will use and truly enjoy :)
that's why i never buy the yesstyle advent calendar even though i'm always tempted. i know i have no interest in some of the products. so it would be better to just buy the things i want
Agree!
Halloween is my favorite season. A few ways to help:
1. Put up the decor early. Part of the problem is people feel they have to wait until October and then it's pack it all in one month. I put up the spooky things in September and feel a lot less pressured. Get to enjoy it at leisure
2. Theme. There are some things that are specific for halloween. However an orange pumpkin can be for all of fall. If you need a pumpkin decoration look for the one that can last a full season instead of part. The difference between a plastic carved pumpkin and full one is amount of use
3. Day after Halloween sales. If there was a thing you really really wanted, check again right after the holiday and get it 50% off. You have it for next year.
thanks for your suggestions!
It’s hard for us Halloween year round people at this time of year. It is only out for a select time , for everyone else you can buy stuff whenever. It is the same thought “do I really need this “
Someone gifted my cat an advent calendar with treats. Very thoughtful, but cat didn’t like the treats. Gift giver was frustrated they didn’t just get a regular bag of treats instead. The gift was “for the cat”, but the vector was meant to bait the human brain away from the rational choice.
We've had an advent calendar like that before. The dog liked the cat treats as well as the treats in the dog calendar, thankfully. 😂
I had this with my old Saint Bernard. I was honest and said thank you, but he loves liver or chicken hearts as his treats. I said I will try and keep what he likes and regift what he doesn't. I had to regift the whole thing to a dog that likes most treats. I am not sure if the honesty was appreciated 😂
I've recently seen advent calendars that are activity based rather than item based. Each day has a suggested activity like "sing carols together", "watch a holiday movie", "talk about a happy holiday memory". Something like that could be a fun way to enjoy that anticipation of "what's it going to be today" without adding more stuff to your environment. Additionally, I have a lot (A LOT) of journaling supplies. This year I think I'm going to pull together some of my lesser used items & have a daily draw where I either must use that item in a spread or it's time to get rid of it. Sort of a combo of using what you have & decluttering.
Specific Halloween deinfluencing recommendations - spend more time doing Halloween activities using the stuff you already have, take advantage of what local businesses and events will be offering! Go to a Halloween-themed concert (I just played a couple of these 👀) look for a decorated bar, library, museum, etc. and when you go you can craft a Halloween-themed look from makeup and clothes you already own...have a scary movies night with friends, tell scary stories around a campfire, instead of a boo basket for your kids or partner or whoever, spend some time carving pumpkins and/or baking - lower-impact consumerism and higher-impact quality time.
I agree that it's pretty much what you said about Fall, celebrate the holiday by doing instead of buying 🎃👻
thanks for all the suggestions Alexa!
I miss when advent calanders were just fun mini chocolates :(
Like there's probably still downsides to those but it's just...lil bit of chocolate in the holiday season. Guarenteed to be used, nice bit of novelty that's quite cheap.
I encountered variations of food Advent calendars last year : one with cheese, another with madeleines (small French sponge cakes - some had a chocolate layer). I liked those.
@@octoberna7949
It’s still like that at most grocery stores. 😁
They still are just not from make up companies lol.
@@DamonAkuma92 I know, hence '"just" lol
THAT LIPSTICK is phenomenal on you!!!
Is it weird that I’ve used advent calendars as a stocking stuffer for my family? Aka I open it (knowing what’s inside and what matches with my family’s taste) and I distribute what I think suits my family members best. A small gift for each one 😊
That's such a good idea!
@@analaginhas1134 I think that’s the only way to do it! I certainly don’t need all these minis!
I made my husband an advent calendar of consumables and handmade items…basic things like toiletries, candy, gum, handmade socks, coffee, etc. He loved it, especially since we don’t exchange Xmas gifts. I bought myself a mystery yarn advent, too. Every day was a bit of yarn and a piece of the pattern , or an associated tool, and the idea was you’d knit with that bit of yarn every day and get time to catch-up on the days when it wasn’t yarn. I ended up with a beautiful hat, mitten, and cowl set. But I wouldn’t want 25 days of of makeup or something like that where I probably wouldn’t like or use a lot of the items.
Cool! The advent calendars for yarn can be pretty expensive though! I bought a sock set this year to try to offset the FOMO of the yarn advent 😅
@@sarahburkhardt2037 yes, they can be very expensive. This one wasn’t, that’s why I chose it, and it was still beautiful. From Darn Yarn in Canada.
The advent calendar could be great to buy a couple and put the products in gift bags for family and friends. You could always pick something out for yourself. 😉 I do this with bulk candles and other Christmas goodies from Trader Joe’s. Like the 3 hand lotion kit, or 3 candles ect. No one needs all of that. But women in my family do like one hand lotion one candle. Just an idea and hopefully a way to save and possibly treat yourself. ❤
I do the same thing 😄
Oh oh oh! I want to tell you about the advent calendar we have this year!!!
We have A LOT of tea. More than my bf and I manage to find time to drink. And I am in fact a fan of advent calendars, and especially the tea ones since they don't leave you with a bunch of stuff and don't feed into any sugar cravings.
So I figured instead of buying more tea, I will use what we already have and make an advent calendar out of it.
So now we will have a reason to sit down and enjoy tea, while we drink up what we already have, save money and it is as zero waste as you get it. I make the calender now (Oct 28th) so I can 'forget' what tea I put on which day and also be surprised.
I like my shampoo brush/scalp massager, dealing with dandruff and itchy scalp it has helped so much with not getting a lot of stuff under my nails when washing the hair. I bought it on a whim but I have been loving it since I bought it a few years ago.
Same! I bought a cheap one at Ross for this purpose. I also started using Glycolic acid on my scalp before washing my hair which has taken care of the flakes.
How did stuff get under your nails? Did you scratch your scalp with your nails when you washed your hair? Sorry if the question sounds stupid, it's just that I keep my nails so short that that it never occurred to me that people with long nails had the option of washing their bodies with their nails instead of finger pads.
It sounds painful.
I love your channel Shawna. I’m 2-3 yrs into healing my relationship with money! It’s definitely not an overnight fix but the personal growth feels amazing.
For me, a lot of the appeal of Halloween is the nostalgia/childlike wonder, and I feel like appreciating the things you already have can lean into the nostalgia. Something new isn’t going to have a memory, something old that you have can have that nostalgia year after year. That being said, I’m always tempted by cute Halloween stuff (like the holiday felt birds at Target) and I tend to leave stuff up year round because i like the maximalist look. (It has been easier to say no to stuff recently because I’m maxed out on stuff and love everything I currently have)
Super cheap (but a bit of effort) calendar suggestion!
I have made calendar for some friends where I have a big jar with flake salt at the bottom as cheap fake snow and a tiny 1$ Christmas house and maybe string lights, then I fill it with folded notes. I have taken inspiration from menta health calendars, so the notes are a collection of “challenges” like 😅 “make the doctors appointment you have been postponing” “change your bedding” “meal prep a good lunch for tomorrow” and “go for a little walk and feed some ducks”. I didn’t think people would actually follow though, but my friends have sent updates though December. I have also included notes with compliments. Some of my friends have kept the notes and reuse the calendar year after year 🫶🏻
The beauty advent calendars are also never really a good deal. Most of what's in there consists of low value items and/or items they want to get rid of because they're not selling well enough. It's basically a way to off-load the stuff no one wants...and many of which might not even suit your needs or preferences at all. You'd probably spend less money (and end up less cluttered) by just buying what you really wanted. The same mentality also goes for mystery boxes and many "value" sets.
I exchange selfmade advent callendars every year with my twin sister. We fill them with sweets but also small things that we know the other one will like or find practical :) The big advantage: We won't get 24 (I'm German, Christmas is at the 24th here) new things that we probably don't like or need but only a few things that we most likely will have use for as we know each other really well. It's a nice mix of things (who needs 24 new pieces of jewelry, nail polish or cosmetics at once?) and we don't have to spend lots of money to make sure that we won't get only cheap crap. The problem with store-bought advent calendars is, even the price of cheap things adds up so you spend a lot of money for basically nothing and most likely will be disappointed.
Of course, you need a family member or friend who is willing to participate in an advent calendar exchange ...
A jewelry travel organiser is, of course, more useful to people who wear a lot of jewelry :) My in-laws live across the country and if we visit them, it's usually for several days to a week and for occasions like Christmas, so I often bring a small variety of necklaces, earrings etc. (I _could_ only bring one set, but I don't wear jewelry every day and want to use the occasions that I get!). I would not buy an organiser but I've already thought about sewing one. Sewing has been my hobby for decades and I probably would not have to buy anything but just use material from my stash.
Oh, one hack for necklaces which like to get tangled if you store them in a little bag: You can open the necklace and slide it through a straw, then close it again. That way, there is less material to hang around losely and you prevent tangling!
I love making an advent calendar for my husband and I every year for Christmas. I started it when we first moved out together. I bought some sturdy gift bags years ago that I reuse (24 small bags, 1 larger bag for Christmas day). I do a combination of small treats (think mini candy bars, chocolate kisses, etc) and special treats (a chocolate orange, movie theatre candy, etc). Then I either have a joke, a fun fact, or activity in the bag as well. It's a bit of a pain to put together, but it's so nice for the month.
this sounds so sweet!
Honestly advent calendars (other than chocolate) are STRESSFUL! December is already busy, it ends up being just something else to do by the end of the month.
Advent calendars are such a waste. I used to have major problem with hoarding beauty products and being obsessed with all of the beauty subscription boxes. Many of the items ended up being wasted because they just weren’t something I would have normally used in my routine. And having so much is overwhelming. It’s better to just keep your go to products and have a simple routine. Learned that after years of throwing money down the drain!
Halloween girlie chiming in! I’ve been collecting since I was 15, I’m now 43. (I literally have a call, cauldron, from party city from when I was 15 and use it every year. ) I’m also a holiday designer professionally. Here’s my advice on scaling back and INTENTIONALLY consuming. Pick a theme and slowly build on it each year. Treat every item you purchase as an heirloom piece. Does it fit your vibe or theme? If not, it’s just extra. Will it truly inspire joy year after year? If not, you won’t love it and it will just be clutter. Holiday decor is my BIGGEST temptation! (I made it my profession, so clearly I adore it!)
But in truth, more is not always better. Sometimes it overtakes the EXPERIENCE. in the end, our memories are all we are left with. Memories are our legacy. Not stuff. Keep in mind a theme and be strict with yourself. I recommend only purchasing what is honestly and truly magical and special to you. Give yourself a cap on the number of new items you are willing to bring in each year. Remember that you are being constantly marketed to and that your emotions are being used against you in the corporate psychology of consumerism. The buying can actually decrease the magic! Don’t be swayed by trends. You honestly won’t be happier with a new theme every year. I follow my fellow decorators and often feel my stomach turn with how I am constantly being sold to. Use what you have and love it.
Trends don’t equate happiness.
This goes for Christmas as well. You don’t need a whole new theme each year. Add an ornament or two and let your tree be a treasure of memories vs a soulless reflection of consumerism. I’ve done it both ways. I cherish my traditions over trends.
Just my (very long) two cents. 😉🎃
i mean, for the yesstyle advent calendar, the influencers unbox it ahead of even preorders. so you can absolutely know what evey product is ahead of time
Travelon has a 2in1 small zip jewelry/electronics case and I adore it. It has just enough space for a couple jewelry sets on one side and I can fit my chargers on the other… I also use the jewelry side for my French hair pins, Bobby pins, and rubber bands.
Girl, that lip colour looks STUNNING on you
5:44 love the tea calendars 🫶🏻 usually by one for me and some friends on 1st of December, then they are priced down and it’s a nice way to sample different teas though December 😊
I did buy a Halloween hand soap at TJMaxx a year or two ago. I just refilled the dispenser (a cute mummified cat) for this year. I do like cutesy Halloween stuff, but if I do buy anything new, I look for something I can reuse every year and will fit in with what I already have.
Trying to deinfluence someone who is devoted to halloween is difficult, one might lose a finger. I suppose I would ask if the purchase was to be used year round or just seasonally. Do they have a place to display or store the item? Does the item have a purpose? Is the item replacing something you already have? Would you be willing to release something else you own to bring the new item in? Most importantly, does this fit in with your current halloween decor or clothing style? I bought Halloween themed pillow covers two years ago and I use them to store my out of season clothing, they make me smile and have a useful purpose.
I've gotten a yarn advent calendar from a small business/indie yarn dyer. For me it was ok because i was supporting a local business, I could afford it financially, and I had a pre-existing plan. I don't buy any "corporate consumer" ones, and I'm limited to one/yr.
The only Advent calendar i would consider if it was food items, since I will eat it so it wouldn't clutter up space. I would love for a cheese advent calendar.
I’m so glad I saw this video. I pre ordered the Look Fantastic advent calendar last month (which hasn’t been dispatched yet) this bought me to my senses and I’ve cancelled the order. No idea why I thought I should have been spending £100 on advent calendar
Have you done a video on influence baby items?? I'm about to be in my second trimester & I really love to see baby shower hauls, "pack my hospital bag", "first time mom items", etc. but these people are CLEARLY in a different tax bracket then I am.. some of the stuff is SO overpriced unnecessary!!
I have the scalp massager and also use it once a week at most for a more vigorous shampoo moment. I like it a lot when i use it and realize it was marketed as such a "gimmick" for hair growth but oh well. Idk if I would rebuy it.
Oh, and quitting ALL sulphate containing shampoos cured my, and my daughter’s itchy scalp. We’ve been using the same sulphate free products for years now and will never go back. I don’t have to wash my long hair nearly as often either, which is great.
I travel with jewelry a lot, and I use a small plastic tupperware container I got from a friend a while ago. Its great for jewelry because the lid claps shut and the container is strong, it's great for travel because the container is small (bout 3.5in by 2.5in, ish) and fits in hand luggage. I don't use large hard bracelets or what have you, so it fits all my earrings/necklaces/whatever else perfectly
Home decor for all the seasons and holidays. And gift ideas. I’ve got a problem buying both. Over the last couple months it’s been a LOT of money ramping up for Christmas. I of course wasn’t keeping track, or I wouldn’t have spent so much. My husband brought the amount to my attention and I was appalled. I went through everything and found all the receipts and returned everything that I possibly could. I kept a few items, but a good majority went back. I just feel sick how much money was spent. There’s plenty of people suffering right now, and I’m over here spending stupid money on decorations for my house for a holiday three months from now. 😮
For deinfluencing Halloween, I would probably focus on costumes and decor. I would have questions like, "Do you really need to buy the new trendy Halloween costume that probably will be out of trend soon? Especially when you have one or more costumes you definitely love that you can wear again?" Or I would even encourage people to go thrifting and put together their own unique Halloween costume, or see if they can assemble a Halloween costume with clothes and makeup they already have. Because I know for me that costumes are a big deal for me and I love wearing a different one every year, but with having to tighten my finances this year I may need to consider reusing costumes more often. Not only that but I think other people don't care as much if people reuse costumes from previous years than you might think.
For Halloween decor maybe there could be a discussion over getting trendy or micro-trendy Halloween decor or focus on buying/storing/using Halloween decor that is more timeless and will get more use. Or maybe even using stuff you have at home to make Halloween decor. My kid and I had so much fun making little mummies and ghosts out of toilet paper tubes and toilet paper that we have hung up in our yard and house now.
Thoughts:
Advent calendars: you could make them in a white elephant or secret Santa style. It’s still a surprise but more personalized, still get to enjoy the fun each day. You could make one at the end of this year to open next year if you don’t have someone to swap with. If the trash production is something you want to avoid, make or buy one and then reuse it each year (like you would with a stocking)
Travel organizer: I agree , I wouldn’t buy one but enjoy the one I got. I go on longer trips to see family and definitely love for that. Mine is like a soft drawstring pouch with internal pockets to keep things separate. Pill organizer would 100% be a great alternative
Autumn sweaters: I love my Christmas sweaters, pop off and enjoy fall your way. But like with workout clothes, set your storage box and don’t get more than that (hard sided box so you can’t stretch it!) keep what you’ve got to pull back out and wear each year. Do not go buy one each year you won’t wear through them that fast
Halloween: same as above, set your hard sided storage boxes, don’t go past that. Reuse each year
4:16 I’ve tried a few advent calendars in the past and the only one that I genuinely loved and used every product was the Trader Joe’s skincare calendar. The variety was incredible, it was all stuff I would use, and some lasted me 6-12 months as part of my daily skincare. The facial sunscreen specifically is formulated specifically for their advent calendars and worked SO WELL for me (I’m a mail carrier with sensitive skin , so I always need a good SPF). It was $25 and I definitely got more value than that out of it.
Kelly Gooch does great breakdowns of "value" sets and their costs
I grew up with a homemade advent calendar -- a wall hanging with a miniature stuffed Christmas tree, made out of felt, and 24 little pockets. Each pocket held a bauble (for the little tree) and a candy (for me). It would be so easy to make something like that with slightly larger pockets as a gift for adults -- fill the pockets with things you, your partner or your kids would love, gifts or food or tickets to a show or IOUs for something non-Holiday themed that you know they'd like to do later in the year.
About Advent calendars I suggest getting all the little things you normally don’t allow yourself to buy and pack little presents for yourself. Or ask someone to pack it for you so you get a surprise every day and a guarantee that you will love everything you get.
I try to stick to the consumables for advent calendars - that way I don't have anything actually left at the end of the period. This year, I got a tea advent for myself and a dog treat calendar for my dogs.
My favourite advent calendars are £1.99 from local post offices. They have a nice illustration then just paper doors showing cute mini illustrations. Sometimes if its a particularly lovely one I reuse them a second year. I also made an advent calendar one year by getting a nice branch from the park, cleaning it, letting it dry then I wrote numbered quotations and encouraging words on paper tags and tied them to the tree and read one each day of December. I've never understood those hugely overpriced makeup calendars.
Omg. The Bonne Maman advent calendar. I think it was day 10 when I started having anxiety about another, albeit tiny, jar of preserves. Apparently, I can each a whole lot less jam than I thought.
I have the Dyson Airwrap and the Dyson Corrale and LOVE THEM! For me personally, I feel they were worth the costs. I use them every single day, usually more than once a day. It works great on my hair, but that being said I have had multiple family members and friends who have tried them both and they did not work well on their hair. I'd highly suggest anyone interested in either of the Dyson tools to find someone they know who owns one and at least try it out once. While they do work great on most hair types they definitely don't work great on all. As with most things, especially higher cost items, what's a waste of money to some is well worth it to others.
I look forward to reading advice on how to de influence others on purchasing seasonal decor.
Growing up we had very little money to spend on seasonal decorations and our home was generally decorated with things we made during school (I was in prime decoration making years in the 80s fyi) now my mother, who has always enjoyed decorating, overbuys (in my opinion)seasonal decor to “make up” for her/our youth. I’m in my mid 40s, and It’s difficult going out with her because I’m always saying; “mom, you have xyz already…” she doesn’t listen. I let her do her own thing, but I wish I knew a constructive way to help remind her that she doesn’t “need” these new things every year. And I’m talking EVERY year new items!
These videos are so interesting to me as someone living in south america. A lot of these trends are not accessible to me. Where i live buying
Something new is sometjing that is very last resort, fixing it or passing it to family members/friends is usually the norm. We learn to be resourceful because one day that one imported item that you need wont be available anymore and you have to make do. No hate to my gringos ❤
With the weather changing and it getting darker earlier, I’ve been finding myself bored more easily and I’ll waste time scrolling. Your video gave me an idea to make myself a fall/winter advent calendar for free and easy activities I can do. Thank youuuu
I'm not the biggest Halloween person, but I think the best way to de-influence it is to ask how you will feel about buying a bunch of Halloween-themed items by the time November rolls around. I know that I'm mostly only into Halloween stuff in October, maybe late September. But once we're well into November people usually move on from it.
Not to be contrary but when I need to replace a holiday item, I do it after the holiday when it’s cheapest and put it away for the following year. Other than replacements, I try not to buy much new stuff.
@@BuyLessJess This might be a good strategy for certain things, but when it comes to any kind of personal care items I would recommend against it. I've recently had to learn the hard way with the Bath And Body Works products Shawna mentioned. They really market in a way that tempts people to overbuy, which I did last Christmas (expecting to use them this year). I just looked at them and realized that some unused body creams had separated into liquid and chunks in a matter of less than a year. Their body creams used to have a shelf-life of a few years! I stored them in a cool, dark place and everything.
The workout clothes section reminded me of a pitfall I’ve run into: be realistic about how often you *actually* do laundry. Do not base this on how often some ideal version of you does laundry. Similarly, do not buy workout clothes for some idealized version of you. Curate your wardrobe to what you actually do already on an average day (not just your best days!) and what you have solid plans to do in the near future.
I actually only do laundry once a month or so, and it works fine for me! Part of it is that I have a lot of clothing (probably too much), but a lot of it is just knowing whether or not something needs to be washed after I wear it. Some stuff needs to go in the hamper immediately. Other stuff, like jackets and sweaters, can get quite a few uses in before they need to be washed.
As a member of the "very short" hair community (ranging from buzzcut to Beatles), I can say that ive never had to deal with Dyson hair tools or the urge to get them. I will say though, the routine trims can add up; even though they arent as expensive as a regular womans haircut. But my urge to buy is less on hair tools, more on hair styling gels. I dont currently have a hair gel, and never used one, but the back of my hair naturally sticks up in a very awkward way and im wondering if i should buy some idk.
My wardrobe is mostly black with neutral tops and sweaters/jackets 😂 everything matches each other. love your videos. I am currently going through my babies stuff to get rid of non-neutral clothes/items so we don’t travel across country with stuff we may not need to use again (don’t know what our 2nd little gender will be). your videos remind me of how I used to be before being wasteful with money/space/etc. you’re reminding me to be mindful. ❤ thank you
I would like to defend myself about the dyson airwrap, I do not actually own styling tools! The thought in my head often is that I should invest in one good quality piece instead of buying several tools and discarding them. The price tag is the reason why I haven't bought one (I'm lucky enough to be able to afford one within my budget). My head is just trying to trick me into thinking it's the price of two larger hair appointments and if I could style my hair, I would be happier with it (and spend less on the hairdresser).
I’ve been working on decluttering my room and I’ve realized I don’t need so many things 😅 these videos help me
How do you deinfluence a parent who seems to hoard decor? And she won't let me help get rid of the clutter because she's still mad that my dad once got rid of some her things 30 years ago. There are so many unnecessary piles and bins, like she has gifts that aren't for anyone in particular, but they are around just in case she has to give someone a gift. She'll find something for a good deal and a lot of times it just ends up never used, taking up space or forgotten about.
I need to stop buying new notebooks 😂
I already have enough that could last me at least 5 years
This is too relatable lol... stationary is definitely my vice, especially everything Happy Planner, their marketing team knows exactly how to exploit my weaknesses 😂
In the past I’ve bought advent calendars with treats for the dog, might just do a diy blind bag to reduce the plastic waste
Gosh, I work out 7 days a week and I have 2 set, thermal Leggings for colder runs and normal. I invested in Lululemon and sweaty betty, I wear them 2 days in a row and wash them and I must of washed them over 200 times and they still look good. You don’t need lots of workout sets!
I found I only ever wanted to wear the ones that make me feel good, so gave away all my other ones.
I bought a beauty/skin care calendar a couple of years ago from Cult Beauty in London. But I shared it with my daughter who was 25 at the time and her girlfriend so it was 8 items per person. Also, my Mum bought advent calendars for my kids when they were little. My daughter's was the story of the Nutcracker Ballet and the story was broken up into 24 little books, which you could put on the Christmas tree as decprations. My son got the story of Christmas. My kids are now 27 and 20 and we still have them.
You are a genius! I love the tip for storing jewelry. I almost bought a travel case but I don’t travel that often. I’m loving your channel ❤
I love my travel jewelry organizer. As someone with very few pieces of jewelry it works well as a substitution for a jewelry box. The size is smaller than other methods of storing jewlery that I've used and the way my case displays my pieces works well for me. I have a scalp massager as well. It seems to only work well for removing dirty and sand from my kids' scalps; there was no difference on myself though.
to answer your question re Halloween, I am not biiiig on Halloween but I like to "decor" my office with seasonal decor. However, I have things I can use over and over and they can still make sense. I have a pennywise figurine, a little ceramic ghost, and 2 strings of light with lil ghosts as well as glow in the dark pumpkin. Passing Halloween, I can still use the glow in the dark pumpkin, and I have 3 others ceramic ones, smaller with a plaque with something written on it re Fall. That's it.
What I am trying to say is, if you must get something, try to be strategic about it, something that is timeless and can take lil space, be re-used and maybe even overlap with other themes.
I use a hair massager/shampoo brush religiously for one reason and one reason only: my hair is stupid long. it's far easier to get at scalp buildup with one of those than it is to maneuver around knee-length wet hair with just my fingers lol. but if you can hold up a high ponytail with a standard size hair elastic you're probably fine!
Regarding dyson Airwrap - I do own one, bought it second hand, but as it has been used 3 times before my purchase, I still spent 500 USD (more or less, depending on exchange course). I had the opportunity to test it before I bought it. As I live in 4 season climate and have chronic sinusitis I need to dry my hair after every wash. Even during summertime. Having really long and thic hair, it took me 2,5 hours to dry my hair with normal 70 USD hair dryer. Now it takes me 25 min. So for me these 500 USD were a good investment and I don’t regret spending them, however it is still a lot of money for me. In my country for some people it might be their monthly income. Anyway, to summarize - for me it was great purchase, I have more time now, but if you don’t have super long hair taking much time to dry I would really reconsider this purchase.
Here is a tip for workout clothes. This only applies if you work out at home like I do. Workout clothes get gross and sweaty, so they basically double as house cleaning clothes. I do my chores and then I work out, and then I get changed out of those grubby clothes and into something comfy or nice. So basically I never worried about the style of clothes I used to work out in, but just separating them from clothes that I want to look and feel nice when I am finished with all of my chores and my exercise.
So for the removal of excess... I keep a seasonal wardrobe. At the end of every season I pull out the storage cubes and things go into or out of rotation. You can do that for every category. And make wardrobe color choices etc for the next season by shopping your stash first.
I do travel for long periods of time, like visiting family for a month, but the travel jewelry cases don’t fit the kind of jewelry I like to wear so it’s still a bit of a waste
I buy advent calenders with single tea bags. This is something I can use and I got to taste the upcoming limited editions so I would not buy one I do not like. Loved that one.
I agree that scalp massagers are only useful for some. As a girl with a super oily scalp, the scalp massager helps so much to get in there and clean it properly. I live a super active lifestyle too though, hence why it’s so useful for cleaning my scalp. I thought about getting one for 3 months before making the purchase for sure!
I have one of those scalp massagers and I kind of hate it. Idk if all of them are like this or just my Walmart one, but the one I have the ends are pointy and not rounded. I have such sensitive skin because of eczema and dandruff, using that thing felt like I had no absolutely no skin left. I felt like it took off too much skin and my scalp was raw afterwards. I didn’t like the feeling. It was useful when I had tendinitis in my shoulder and could lift my arm without pain, especially for long periods of time. It was more effective using that thing than only one hand, but it’s quicker to just use both hands when you have the option.
I am going to stick up for the air wrap here, it was a very considered purchase due to the price but I absolutely love it and use it every day. I did keep my other tools (hairdryer and straighteners) a proper hairdryer makes things quicker than the one that comes with the air wrap, although I do use it for travel to save space. Also I have very thick curly hair and if I want it straight the air wrap cannot do that. I absolutely agree that hair type plays a massive part - I don't think it would be useful if my hair was thin or fine as I have heard that the curls don't hold as well and I use the brush attachment to get my hair dry quicker because my hair is so thick. Also FYI Dyson have an outlet on eBay where they sell refurbished - I got mine from there and it saved me hundreds (I have had it for a year now with no problems)
I have dry scalp, so I use one of those scalp massager things everytime I wash my hair. It stops me from scraping my fingernails across my scalp to remove dead dry skin. Mine is a 5 USD one from Ulta, but I have seen ones I think would work just as well at the Dollar Tree. Not really different than what you were talking about, but hope someone finds it helpful anyway. I also find shampoos and scalp scrubs that have tea tree oil in them to be helpful.
I have no idea about outside of the UK - but since I was a very young child (I’m old now) chocolate advent calendar have been a MASSIVE thing here - they still are the most accessible type of calendar and we always loved getting to pick the brand of chocolate we wanted that year. They were relatively inexpensive as a child and really build you up to Christmas - I have no idea when the product calendars became a thing but it’s really unnecessary and sometimes cost more than actual Christmas gifts. Just a whole other chunk of money to spend - the same with when Christmas Eve boxes became a thing 😢
I agree about the consumable advent calendars. I loved getting a different shaped chocolate every day as a kid. And the David's Tea one is great because its a small amount of tea, and you can decide if you want to order a full amount of each flavor if you like it
First of all, I’d like to say I love your videos, and I generally watch almost all of them. They’re really helpful to think critically about what I’m buying. In this video, I thought your comment on “if you have space in your wardrobe, you are more likely to fill it” is spot on! That being said, I have a Dyson, and agree, it’s $$$$$. BUT - I asked for it for Christmas last year (2023) from my husband and told him to use my account on Sephora when they had their 25% off sale. This is the best hair tool I have ever bought and I use it every time I wash my hair, unless I’m wearing it naturally (which is wavy). It has completely replaced everything else and also saved me a LOT of time. People at work always ask me how my hair looks so good and I’ve even been stopped in a store 😂 If it broke, I would 100% replace it.
Is it a necessity? No. Do I love it? Yes. I am at the age (millennial, early 30s, married with no kids and we both have full time jobs) where I want to be able to enjoy things and am financially able to treat myself. If people are putting it on credit and going into debt, that is a different story. I think this does align largely with what you say in that if you can’t afford it don’t buy it. Just wanted to share my thoughts!
I use a scalp massager almost everyday to scratch my scalp lol! But I also use it to work in dry shampoo or oil depending on the day but it is like integral to my life at this point! I think it works product into my scalp much better than my hands!
Your videos have really helped me a lot with not buying clothes and make up that I don't need, I think the next thing I need to work on is not buying stuff for the home and just overspending around Christmas in general. When I've researched beauty advent calendars our (UK) ones do seem to be more usable, just mini versions of stuff you might already buy however still not worth it, and the PLouise one (don't know if that's available worldwide) is terrible.
We have a refillable advent calendar we got 2 years ago. We often did toy ones prior to this for my 3 kids. 2 years ago I filled it with candy (like a hersey kiss each). last year I got them a microscope and each day they got a new slide for it (from a set). the microscope was a planned gift so it was a pretty fun activity each day to check out. It was a purchase but I felt better about that than junk. not sure what we will do this year yet. maybe an activity each day. like one day will say " do a random act of kindness" another day "movie night and pizza" etc
growing up i had a re-usable christmas calendar that was made of wood with little draws in it. my mum would fill it with sweets and trinkets, like hair clips and hair bands. now we buy paper ones that show religious scenes. i love opening the door and seeing a tiny little painting, and you can re use them! they make a good backdrop for the mini nativity we have :)
My zero cost Advent Calendar that we do as a family is a Movie Advent. I fill the vintage door calendar thing with holiday movies and tv specials based on our schedule for the month and at least my youngest child watches that show or movie on that day (hopefully). This builds tradition and nostalgia for those shows and movies that we watch every year and we often watch together, so it's family time too. In our house, the calendar comes with the Scout Elves and so there's also the tie-in that the Elves can use "bringing movie snacks and excited to watch today's movie" as a ready made theme for a day or two.
Not only did you deinfluence me from the shark hair wrap(Dyson was far out of my budget) but you also convinced me to declutter all the tools I dont use and the scalp Massager I never use.
My scalp massager is a god send! For curly hair it works very nicely to actually scrub my scalp without tangling too badly so to each their own!
if there’s an advent calendar from a brand you like, with lots of tiny sample size things that you potentially won’t like, take whatever the amount of the advent calendar would be and put it towards one single product that you know you would enjoy instead! I know it’s not a “dupe” for the fun of it, but if you are trying to consume less, buying a single product that you know you would enjoy and use is a much better use of the $$, usually $25+
Years ago I bought a sewing panel to make a wall hanging Advent calendar that has 25 pockets. I put a mini Christmas tree ornament and a couple of chocolates in each pocket (one for each of my children). The ornaments went on our tree and they enjoyed their chocolate.
I love the idea some people mentioned in these comments of doing activity Advent calendars!
I think for the Halloween stuff it depends on how much it fits your vibe and if you’re going to use it year-round. I work at a haunt so during October, that’s basically my whole personality haha. Plus, I regularly wear/enjoy spooky things year-round, so if I’m buying a pair of skeleton earrings or something, I’m definitely still going to be wearing them in February or July.
okay so i have a lot of feelings about advent calandars. i find the holiday season INCREDIBILY DIFFICULT, and i need help getting through it. i used advent calandars for that a lot of times (beauty/tea ect) i have bought the same one for a few years ( sukoshi mart! ) but htis year i have had some shopping issues and i noticed i didn't always love everything in my calandars so like last month i bought a bunch of stuff from my favourite stores and wrapped it up in the hopes that by the time december rolls around ill forget what excatly i bought so i get that suprise factor and i already have stuff for that time of year so won't buy anymore around that season. i know i still want a calandar that wont go away but also want to be sure ill like what i is in there.
While there are no pictures for the Yesstyle advent calendar, there is actually a list in the product description with all of the products included! It also says how much the products are worth in total. So customers actually can see what they're buying and can make an informed choice! (It's still really expensive and I doubt consumers need that many skincare and Make-up products though)
I really appreciate your videos, and this is another great one. I just wish to add one piece of info for the YesStyle calendar - there is a list of things you get in it on their website, but not in the main description. I got the calendar this year because I really liked almost all of the products, even though I agree with you that it is quantitatively really a lot. But I do like the opportunity to see what’s in it so I can decide if I will really use everything.
Personally I love my scalp massager! When I moved, I left mine in my boyfriends shower and was seriously missing it so much that I went back to get it 😂
My two specific reasons for loving it:
1. It lathers my shampoo much better than my fingers. I have curly/wavy hair, so I co-wash and this means that my usual shampoo is not a very sudsy one.
2. Saves my nail polish when I have my nails painted. I am lazy and will only paint my nails once a week, but will wash my hair twice a week. I noticed that, by avoiding using my fingertips during the sudsing, the nail polish lasts longer.
I picked up my first ever advent calendar this year and I don't feel too bad about the choice since they're smaller paper products like bookmarks that I will use until they fade, but I definitely talked myself out of at least three yarn advent calendars because I knew for a fact I wouldn't be using those skeins anytime soon. They sound so promising, but I just cannot really justify it to myself when I don't use particular colors too often.
If you really want one of the expensive advent calendars I think a good solution can be to share it with someone, so it’s “12 days of Christmas” in stead of 24 or 25 things.
Quite easy to do if the calendar is a collection of individual boxes, not doors in one box. Or if you live with the person you share it with you can just open every second day 😊
If anyone is looking for a super cute food related advent calendar, my family and I got a mini jams one! It was delicious, got us a bunch of nice glass jars, and was really fun! Most were a hit too so we didn’t waste too much either!