For your boho bestie, this necklace will be the first thing they pack for their next beach vacay. With a center initial pendant framed by additional tropical charms like palm trees and starfish, she will be ready to live out her surfer girl dreams. Bonus points for its included little gift box that makes wrapping easy as can be.
Updated on: Oct 10, 2025 07:16 pm IST
With the relentless pace of life these days, from chasing deadlines at work to fretting over what to make for dinner, stress inevitably creeps in. Regardless of the scale of stress, you find yourself in a state of distress. In simple words, stress is a biological and emotional reaction to any perceived threat. Life tends to throw curveballs, making stress appear anytime and anywhere.
Letting stress bottle up and stay for extended periods may have unintended effects on physical health, making stress management a key priority for mental wellbeing.
ALSO READ: Stress affecting liver health? Yoga expert shares 4 breathing techniques to boost natural detox
To uncover some easy stress-bursting techniques, Aakriti Bhanjo, Counselling Psychologist at Rocket Health, shared with HT Lifestyle how to de-stress efficiently.
She shared an interesting analogy on why stress management is essential and explained, “In today’s fast-paced world, our minds are often overwhelmed and overstimulated. Just like a car cannot keep running smoothly without regular servicing, our minds also need intentional pauses to recharge so they can continue steering us through life’s journey.”
Aakriti revealed these 5 quick ways to de-stress anytime, anywhere:
When you make stress management a part of your daily routine, you become more resilient and can navigate stressful moments in your day better without getting too overwhelmed.
Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.
Catch your daily dose of Fashion, Taylor Swift, Health, Festivals, Travel, Relationship, Recipe and all the other Latest Lifestyle News on Hindustan Times Website and APPs.
Catch your daily dose of Fashion, Taylor Swift, Health, Festivals, Travel, Relationship, Recipe and all the other Latest Lifestyle News on Hindustan Times Website and APPs.
As unbelievable as it may sound, we’re actually mere months away from 2026. And while you may not be quite ready to put up your Christmas tree and start shopping for your “Nice” list — after all, Halloween isn’t even in the rearview! — that hasn’t stopped brands from sneakily unveiling holiday drops earlier than ever. We’ll cut to the chase: We’re talking advent calendars.
As it turns out, advent calendars aren’t just fun (which they are); many of these jam-packed sets can actually be a great value if you divide the contents into stocking stuffers for friends, or if you’re looking to try a variety of products from a specific beauty brand. They are also the kind of self-care gift that sparks so much joy, with a little surprise waiting for you every day for the month of December.
So why wait? Go ahead and start treating yourself and your loved ones with this year’s most unique advent calendars. Oh, and be sure to bookmark this page if you’re interested in checking out more oddly specific options as they continue to drop — we’ll be keeping tabs.
At Refinery29, we’re here to help you navigate this overwhelming world of stuff. All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the editorial team. If you buy something we link to on our site, Refinery29 may earn commission.
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If you seem to go through (or let’s be honest, misplace) lip balms faster than your wallet can keep up, this ChapStick advent calendar is for you. Behind the doors, you’ll discover 12 tubes of the iconic lip balm, in flavors like Candy Cane, Gingerbread Cookie, and Sparkling Apple Cider, among other delicious options.
ChapStick The Cozy Countdown Advent Calendar, $, available at Amazon
Who doesn’t love a candle — or 12? This Voluspa advent calendar stars longtime favorites alongside seasonally apropos scents like Foraged Wildberry and White Cypress.
Voluspa Heritage 12 Day Advent Calendar, $, available at Anthropologie
Spoil your pup this season with Bark’s blockbuster countdown calendar, packed with 24 days of treats and toys encased in a whimsical, extra-festive box (that they won’t care about, but you will!).
BARK Howly Jowly Holidays Advent Calendar for Dogs, $, available at Costco
If you want to make 2026 your most productive year yet, this advent calendar is for you. Papier is known for its high-quality, beautifully designed stationery, and this holiday set includes an assortment of mini notebooks, pads, paper clips, pens, envelopes, notecards, and much more are encased in a keepsake box.
Papier 24 Days of Desk Delights, $, available at Papier
Channel your inner sommelier with this elegant assortment of 24 mini bottles. The box whisks you around the world’s most renowned wine regions — we’re talking Italy, Spain, South Africa, Argentina, Australia, and California — across a variety of red, white, rosé, and sparkling varietals.
In Good Taste 2025 Wine Advent Calendar, $, available at In Good Taste
If you’re still figuring out your Christmas tree decor theme, may we suggest going all in on… googly eyes? In this advent calendar, you’ll find 12 utterly adorable, cheeky wooden ornaments sure to make your holidays “googly and bright.”
Brass Monkey Googly & Bright Ornament Advent Calendar, $, available at Urban Outfitters
If you or your chosen giftee is more into whisky than wine, try Flaviar’s highly giftable set of 24 drams, which range from classic bourbon, rye, and scotch to rare Irish, Japanese, and Australian imports, plus two collector’s item glasses.
Flaviar Whiskey Advent Calendar 2024, $, available at Flaviar
We’re living in a veritable golden age of fancy candy, and no one does it better than Sugarfina. This 24-piece set of highly giftable, elevated confections is for the perfect showstopper gift for any sweet tooth on your list.
Sugarfina North Pole Toy Shoppe Advent Calendar, $, available at Sugarfina
This chic assortment of 18ct gold plated earrings, bracelets, necklaces, and more is the ultimate present for jewelry snobs. (There’s also a rhodium plated version for the silver girlies.) Also, while $777 is steep, think of it as $65 per demi-fine piece — or go in on one set with a friend and share the contents.
Missoma Gold Jewelry Advent Calendar, $, available at Missoma
The STEM baddie on your list will love this totally unique advent calendar, which features 24 buildable circuit boards to code a variety of old-school games, including code cracker, wire maze, roulette, and more.
Uncommon Goods Retro Games Coding Advent Calendar, $, available at Uncommon Goods
This luxury pleasure chest is filled with 12 days’ worth of Lovehoney’s most tantalizing products (including three toys that are worth the cost of the whole calendar alone!). Plus, inside you’ll find other bedroom accoutrements like lube, massage oil, bejeweled plugs, and more.
Lovehoney Discover Romance Advent Calendar (12 Day), $, available at Lovehoney
From fashion to travel, all your favorite brands are feeling a little Wicked this season. And while the movie hits theaters Thanksgiving Day, Aldo is bringing the magic all the way through the holidays with an advent calendar filled with Glinda- and Elphaba-approved jewelry inspired by the film.
Aldo x Wicked 12 Days of Accessories, $, available at Aldo
Before Squishmallows, there was Build-A-Bear. The iconic store was a kid’s dream, literally: you build your dream teddy bear, outfits and all, and bring it home with you in a house-shaped box. This sweet advent calendar brings a sliver of that magic with six mini plush teddies and 19 (!) clothes and accessories to personalize your lil’ furry friend.
Build-A-Bear Merry Mission Advent Calendar, $, available at Build-A-Bear
FabFitFun is known for its seasonal subscription boxes, but this festive advent calendar might be the brand’s best box yet. Featuring a mix of beauty products, jewelry, and more from brands like Fenty Beauty, Tower28, and Adina Eden. (The only catch? You have to be a member to take advantage of the deal.)
FabFitFun Advent Calendar 2024, $, available at FabFitFun
Not a coffee person? Enjoy a steaming cup of tea (or 24) with Paris-based tea brand Palais des Thés’ advent calendar. Featuring 24 sachets of loose-leaf teas (including a limited-edition holiday blend), this ultimate variety pack is a tea lover’s dream.
Palais des Thes 24 Days of Tea Advent Calendar, $, available at Neiman Marcus
Calling all #booktok girlies. This advent calendar is full of literary-inspired knick-knacks like bookmarks and page clips, pencils, sticky notes, patches, and more to express your love for the written word.
Uncommon Goods The Book Lover’s Advent Calendar, $, available at Uncommon Goods
For a festive brew, make every morning Christmas morning with this array of K-Cups of Starbucks’ limited-time Holiday Brew.
Starbucks 24 Days Of Joy Advent Calendar K-Cup Pods, $, available at Keurig
Calling all coffee snobs: Behind the 24 drawers of this elegantly presented advent calendar, you’ll find a countdown of artisanal whole-bean brews to ensure your buzziest holiday season yet.
Bean Box 2024 Onyx Coffee Advent Calendar, $, available at Bean Box
Are you ready for this jelly? If you have a thing for tiny jars of French preserves, upgrade your breakfast game with this Bonne Maman advent calendar, which has consistently sold out year after year.
Bonne Maman 2025 Limited Run Edition Advent Calendar, $, available at Amazon
Got a sweet tooth? This mouth-watering gift box is filled to the brim with fancy dark, milk, and white chocolates — garnished with caramel and almonds — for a daily dose of decadence.
Godiva Limited Edition Advent Calendar, $, available at Amazon
Dermstore’s advent calendar is a beauty lover’s dream: It’s packed with goodies from the retailer’s most beloved brands across skincare, hair, and more — and at a serious steal.
Best of Dermstore 2024 Holiday Chest, $, available at DermStore
If MAC makeup is on your wish list this year, this gilded advent calendar will surely delight this season. Behind 24 doors, you’ll find mini- and full-size lipsticks, eyeshadows, glosses, and much more.
MAC Cosmetics 24k Holiday Advent Calendar, $, available at MAC Cosmetics
Been a little naughty this year? This Victoria’s Secret advent calendar includes 12 pairs of lacy underthings for a sexy surprise behind every door.
Victoria’s Secret 12-Pack Thong Holiday Advent Calendar, $, available at Victoria’s Secret
Take a two-week culinary journey throughout Japan with Sakuraco’s advent calendar, which includes tasty surprises encased in a traditional ryokan-inspired box.
Sakuraco 14 Days of Traditional Japan Advent Calendar, $, available at Tokyo Treat
Ensure a prosperous 2024 by warding away this year’s bad juju with 24 days of assorted crystals to keep in every room. This set contains a variety of gorgeous gems from Brazil, India, Argentina, and Madagascar. Your crystal-obsessed bestie will love it.
Shop Free People
Free People Crystal Advent Calendar, $, available at Free People
A nail polish advent calendar — what more could anyone ask for? Make this season your most well-manicured yet with this set of nail tools, polishes, decals, care products, and more. Perfect for your at-home mani night.
Olive & June Christmas Calendar, $, available at Olive & June
This advent cal of Lego minis of iconic characters and trinkets from the Harry Potter universe is sure to warm the heart of its recipient — yes, even if they’re a Slytherin.
LEGO Harry Potter 2024 Advent Calendar, $, available at Amazon
For a truly wild unboxing experience, this festive box of 24 holiday-themed socks is basically the “ugly Christmas sweater” of advent calendars.
Happy Socks Advent Calender Socks Gift Set, $, available at Happy Socks
Whether you split it up as high-brow stocking stuffers or gift the whole monty to your resident puzzle guru, the New Yorker‘s advent calendar is among the most dazzling ways to count down the month of December. (Bonus points if you throw in a gift card to their local craft store so they can frame their finished product.)
New York Puzzle Company New Yorker Advent Calendar: 2nd Edition, $, available at Anthropologie
Canadian brand David’s Tea has reprised its bestselling advent calendar this year with 24 festive blends sure to delight any tea snob.
David’s Tea 24 Days of Tea Advent Calendar, $, available at David’s Tea
The Kiehl’s advent calendar is always one of the most hotly anticipated items of the gifting season, and they’ve done it again with this year’s calendar. In addition to having excellent packaging, it’s also a great way to nab $293 worth of skincare for just $148.
Kiehl’s Open For Advent-Ure Gift Set, $, available at Kiehl’s
The only thing better than Ladurée’s delectable pâtisserie? This charm bracelet advent calendar. Behind each door, you’ll discover adorable enamel charms and tassles to add onto the included chain bracelet over the course of 24 days.
Meri Meri x Ladurée Advent Calendar, $, available at Anthropologie
We haven’t forgotten the felines of R29! Make December the best month ever by treating your cat to 12 days of brand-new holiday toys.
Petco Merry Makings 12-Day Cat Toy Advent Calendar, $, available at Petco
Could it *be* any more festive? We think not. For Friends superfans, we love this keepsake-filled advent calendar with mini notepads, erasers, magnets, and more featuring nods to the show’s most iconic holiday episodes.
Urban Outfitters Friends Advent Calendar, $, available at Urban Outfitters
For the gamer in your life, this retro-inspired Super Mario advent calendar will basically feel like getting an IRL floating Super Star. From tiny figurines to cute accessories, this is a prezzie sure to delight.
Nintendo Super Mario Advent Calendar, $, available at Amazon
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by Alex Billington
September 24, 2025
Source: YouTube
“Do I remember the future?” Rich Spirit has just unveiled the first look teaser trailer for an acclaimed new documentary film titled BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions, created by filmmaker Kahlil Joseph. This first premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, and has been playing everywhere else including Berlinale, NYFF, TIFF, Vanoucver, London, and IDFA. It’s more of a video essay than a doc with a narrative – taking viewers on a profound visual / intellectual journey through Black history and beyond. “A film and filmmaker that refuses to be contained.” Kahlil Joseph’s BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions rewires history, memory, and sound into a cinematic experience unlike anything else. Adapted from his seminal video art installation, the film interweaves fictional and historical characters in an immersive story that spans 247 years across land and sea – inspired by the entirety of the “Africana” encyclopedia book in this teaser. In its mix of fictional & documentary forms, the film is inspired by W.E.B. Du Bois, Marcus Garvey, Saidiya Hartman, and others thinkers, juxtaposing their ideas with archive material & images. This film is a must watch for cinema nerds.
Here’s the first look teaser trailer for Kahlil Joseph’s doc BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions, on YouTube:
Original intro via TIFF: “Celebrated artist and filmmaker Kahlil Joseph revisits and expands upon his eponymous two-channel ‘fugitive newscast’ installation that was showcased at the 2019 Venice Biennale among other prestigious venues, in this galvanizing, shape-shifting exploration of Black history, identity, and possibility. Joseph enlisted several prominent Black scholars and thinkers to co-write the film in an act of collective fabulation. Formally audacious and conceived as a cinematic experience that mirrors the sonic textures of an album, the film fluidly moves between modes, creating its own free-associative logic that mixes personal memoir, speculative narrative, archival footage, social media samples, and citations of work by other great artists.” BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions is directed by the artist / filmmaker Kahlil Joseph, making his feature directorial debut after many short films & other video projects. It’s produced by Onye Anyanwu, Kahlil Joseph, Amy Greenleaf, Nic Gonda. This initially premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. Presented by Rich Spirit. Kahlil Joseph’s BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions doc film will open in select US theaters this November 2025. Stay tuned for more updates. Anyone intrigued?
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Cardi B, Sombr, Doja Cat, and Lorde have made use of the city’s spontaneous energy to give their fans unique experiences
The day after the MTV Video Music Awards, Doja Cat told her fans to meet her in Union Square in New York City. There, an old school phone booth was set up (sponsored by Spotify) where fans took pictures and picked up the phone to hear snippets of her new album, Vie. Doja Cat herself stopped by that afternoon, decked out in an Eighties-inspired outfit that fits her new music’s sound and aesthetic, to pass out roses and greet the massive crowd that took over the park.
These days, that’s a pretty standard scene in NYC: Artists have become infatuated with the city once again and are promoting their albums with unique pop-up experiences and promo tactics that lean into the chaos. Back in April, Lorde doubled down on her big move to Manhattan by inviting her fans to join her in Washington Square Park. So many people flooded the space that the cops shut down her appearance before she could even leave her apartment. She showed up that evening to dance to her new single, which was filmed for her “What Was That” music video.
In late August, Sombr shut down part of Canal Street to perform songs from his debut album, I Barely Know Her, which was released a few hours later. The 20-year-old singer grew up just a few blocks away from where the stage was set up, referring to the portion of the Lower East Side he shut down by its modernized nickname “Dimes Square.”
Another New York native, Cardi B, took a more humorous approach to promoting her long-awaited sophomore album, Am I the Drama? Wearing a Rasta beanie, sweatpants, and a sweatshirt, she laid out physical copies of her album (and all its different covers) on a black comforter while waving around incense sticks for a viral video. Every New Yorker is well acquainted with the dudes hawking everything from purses to Blu-Rays on busy streets.
These situations feel a little less curated and stiff than a pre-scheduled appearance at a pop-up merch experience or hyper-secured CD signing. Each of these artists are leaning into the spontaneity of the city, giving their fans short notice for unique experiences. Plus, the excitement always pays off: It’s difficult to not draw a crowd in the city, even if it’s just based on passersby trying to figure out what the hell is going on. And for the fans who did skip work or school to swing by, it definitely makes for a good story.