NYX Wanderlust Advent Calendar 2016

It's always nice to see a drugstore brand come out with an advent calendar, so I was excited to receive the NYX Wanderlust Advent Calendar ($50 CAD) in the mail. 

The calendar features 24 days of NYX inspired by international destinations like Seoul, Rome, Manila, Stockholm, Monte Carlo and more. The graphics in the calendar are fun but not childish and the calendar itself is a good size (not difficult to carry home from the post office). 

I don't think I have enough self control for advent calendars because I ended up opening 12 of the 24 days by December 3rd. And from there, I just wanted to see what was in the rest of the box. I couldn't even make it half way. 

What's inside? 12 NYX eyeshadows and 12 of the NYX Soft Matte Lip Creams (mini). The Soft Matte Lip Creams are 12 of the 34 permanent collection shades, while the eyeshadows are of similar quality to those found in NYX eyeshadow palettes. Both are of wonderful quality (see swatches). In a nutshell, the Soft Matte Lip Creams smell like vanilla, dry down completely and wear for 5 hours with eating. I'll swatch the Soft Matte Lip Creams all in a later post. The eyeshadows are pigmented, smooth and blendable - lightly powdery but nothing overbearing. 

The mini Soft Matte Lip Creams are adorable but the individually packaged cardboard eyeshadows are not practical. I depotted all of them into a metal palette because if I hadn't they'd be collecting dust somewhere at the back of my collection. 

Shades included in the NYX Wanderlust Advent Calendar: 

Addis Ababa - bright fuchsia

Cannes - matte muted mauve

Copenhagen - matte rich plum

Manila - coral with pink undertone

Milan - medium blue-toned pink

Monte Carlo - deep cranberry red

Morocco - matte coral orange

Prague - matte merlot

Rome - medium nude with red undertone

Seoul - violet

Stockholm - medium beige pink

Trasylvania - matte deep violet

Is the NYX Wanderlust Advent Calendar worth it? Yes. Absolutely. The mini Soft Matte Lip Creams are 58.75% of a full size that retails for $6 each, so the 12 mini lip products are valued at $42.30. Eyeshadows included in the set are 120% of the size of NYX Shadow Refills ($4 each), which means that the 12 included in the set are valued at $57.60, bringing the total product value of the advent calendar to $99.90. 

Overall, you'll be overwhelmed if you love the NYX Soft Matte Lip Creams and Eyeshadows but underwhelmed if you're looking for product variety. As someone who has never tried the Soft Matte Lip Creams, I'm a happy camper.