Beauty advent calendars are everywhere this year and while they can certainly be pricey, one student created her own for only £10.
Super savvy Steph Bamber decided to make her own beauty advent calendar after seeing how expensive the ones on offer were and decided to fill it with samples she picked up throughout the year.
The university student, 24, posted a picture of her impressive homemade advent calendar to money-saving community LatestDeals.co.uk, writing: "My advent calendar bought from the works...
"Covered the drawers with free wrapping paper from Poundland last year (they wouldn't scan so they gave it free) and glued it with free pva glue from O2 Priority back in the Summer... Going to fill it with free beauty samples I've received over the last few months".
Her crafty calendar soon went viral among the money-saving community and now the retail worker explained how she managed to make the reusable wooden advent calendar for a mere £10.
She told Latestdeals.co.uk: "I first had to find somewhere selling a blank advent calendar that I could fill in, but I wanted it to be a reusable wooden one as opposed to a cardboard one.
"I found that The Works had the 25 drawer cabinets in their regular stock range and realised they would be ideal for Christmas calendars.
"I purchased one, and at the till asked if there were any special offers on them. The cashier said they were £15 each or two for £20, so I bought one for my other half too."
Customising it to her taste, thrifty Steph used leftover wrapping paper she got for free from Poundland last year to cover the drawers and handcrafted her own numbers after she couldn't find any in stores that went to 25.
The Bournemouth native then filled each drawer with beauty samples, miniature products, and trial sizes that she gathered up for free over the last few months and the results were incredible.
And if you're wondering where you can get your hands on the products to fill the calendar, Steph shared her top tips for sourcing free gifts.
She began: "Keep an eye out for any adverts that pop up on your newsfeed on Facebook, as sometimes they ask you to sign up for a free perfume sample or a trial sized product.
"Also, sign up to Debenhams Beauty Club, it's free and every few weeks they have a new sample that you can go down and collect by scanning your card.
"Thirdly, always ask for any samples when making a purchase in a department store, they're always more than happy to give you some!" she added.
"Lastly, Feelunique have a pick and mix sample selection on their website where each month you can select five sample products to receive - it's a one off cost of £3.95 for shipping and handling but you get that back in the form of a voucher, then you can use it against all future purchases."
Get crafting!
Featured Image Credit: Latestdeals.co.ukTopics: Hair and Beauty, Christmas, Style News, Make-Up