Modern Advent Calendars

The Quirky

Library Cards & Pockets Advent Calendar from Spotted Sparrow £29.75

Buy it: This calendar isn’t just for Christmas, it’s reusable. You get 24 library cards and pockets hanging on festive baker's twine. You can write a festive activity on each card. They give you a list of suggestions, but you can make them as absurd or traditional as you like.

Don’t buy it:  Where’s the sweet edible treasure? Definitely one for lovers of all things retro as oppose to consumers of a more commercial Christmas.

Library Cards & Pockets Advent Calendar

The Cool

Star Wars Lego Advent Calendar £24.99

Buy It: 24 galactic gifts – one for each day – including iconic mini figures, vehicles and accessories from the Lego Star Wars universe.  I think I’ve just died and gone to space.

Don’t Buy It: If you’re not a Star Wars fan, forget it. You’ll only be causing a great deal of pain to someone who lives and breathes all things intergalatic, and that’s just not fair.

Lego Star Wars Advent Calendar

The Classy

Beschle’s Santa Claus Advent Calendar from Harvey Nichols £25

Buy It: This is a classy reinvention of the trusty chocolate advent calendar but gone is the cheapo chocolate. This calendar, which is exclusive to Harvey Nichols, takes it up several notches with delectable truffle from the eminent Swiss chocolatiers, in a selection of mouth-watering flavours such as milk chocolate, white chocolate, dark chocolate, honey and fig. Breakfast is served.

Don’t Buy It: Poncy? Just a bit. It’s 24 small chocolates for £25. You'll feel cheated if, like me, you have tendancy to sneakily pull out the tray of chocolates.

Beschle's Santa Claus Advent Calendar

The Simple

Christmas Chalkboard Advent Calendar from M&S £8

Buy It: Counting down the days until Christmas is a joy in itself. Kids used to get excited way before the days of Playstations and pester power. This advent calendar takes us back to basics. Chalking off the days until Christmas will encourage the whole family to appreciate the day of celebration to follow.

Don’t Buy It: Chalking off the days? This is supposed to be a Christmas countdown not a prison sentence. The fact is, when faced with all manner of weird and wonderful advent calendars, this is going to be the last one on your list. Sad, but true.

M&S Christmas Chalkboard Advent Calendar

The Fancy

Villeroy & Boch Nostalgic Advent Calendar from John Lewis £280

Buy it: The mature advent seeker will like this one. It’s tasteful, decadent and something to show off at a dinner party as you carefully hang an ornamental bell on an advent hook. It’s glazed in porcelain don’t you know? Just don’t let the kids near it.

Don’t buy it: If hanging things on an ornamental tree is your idea of fun you clearly never had a Cadbury advent calendar as a child. If you drop one of the 24 delicately detailed, hand painted ornaments on the floor, it may be the last time you get so extravagant over advent.   

Villeroy & Boch Nostalgic Advent Calendar

The Beauty Addict’s

L’Oreal All I Want For Christmas Advent Calendar from Selfridges £80

Buy It: Ok let’s get the bad news out of the way first. This calendar has already sold out. However, it’s still worth a mention as it’s almost certain to be out again next year. Designed exclusively for Selfridges, the 24-door calendar features minis from YSL, Lancôme, Giorgio Armani, Kiehl's, Shu Uemura, Viktor and Rolf and Stella McCartney behind each door. It’s enough to make a girl weep tears of joy.

Don’t Buy It: It’s sold out. Which means everyone has one. Which means it’s no longer special. Or maybe we just couldn’t find any fault with this calendar. Roll on 2012 stock.

L'Oreal All I Want This Christmas Advent Calendar

The Darn Right Insane

Selfridges Miniature Shoe Collection Advent Calendar £18,000

Buy it: Spare £18k? Great. Now the small matter of money is out of the way, we can tell you how great this calendar is. Teeny weeny versions of shoes from Maison Martin Margiela, Dries Van Noten, Rupert Sanderson, Alexandre Birman, Casadei, Charlotte Olympia, Repetto and Fendi to name a few. Helen Attwood, Footwear Buying Manager said: “This bespoke cabinet is a one of a kind item and a shoe obsessive’s dream.”

Don’t buy it: Why? Because you can’t. Now go home, open a tiny paper door and eat a stale chocolate like everyone else.

Available at Selfridges, London only.

Selfridges Miniature Shoe Collection Advent Calendar

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