Be honest now, opening the door to your Advent calendar every day still fills you with joy, doesn’t it, no matter how old you get?
Maybe it taps into something from when you were little or maybe, you just love counting the days down to Christmas! Wondering what your next calendar-sized treat, be it something sweet or something useful, can help get your day off to the right start.
Most people buy their Advent calendars from a shop. But there’s also another option, if you’re a bit crafty, fancy something a bit different or want to personalise the experience – you could always make a homemade Advent calendar.
How do I make my own DIY calendar?
The thing about making a DIY advent calendar is you can be as creative as you like with it! And, the even better bit? You can reuse lots of materials you’ve got scattered around your home to help make the structure (give or take a few pieces).
6 ideas for the structure
- Grab a noticeboard and then stick lots of miniature envelopes to it, which will effectively act as your doors.
- Turn old boxes and tubes into individual present holders.
- You can also do the same with jars and stationery drawers.
- Grab bits of card or paper and pin them along a string (because doors don’t always have to contain a treat, they could carry a positive quote, a funny phrase or an act of kindness instead).
And if you’re wondering, ‘How do you make an Advent calendar out of cardboard?’, then make sure you have lots of toilet roll and kitchen roll tubes at the ready, as they’re the secret to creating a quick and easy DIY advent calendar. For instance, you can:
- Grab your toilet roll tubes. Flatten and glue the one end and then stick them vertically, one-by-one to a flat board. Then pop your ‘presents’ into the top of them.
- Kitchen rolls do the trick too, and you don’t need as many of them as toilet roll tubes! Instead of sealing up the one end, you could cover both ends with circles, then turn them horizontally and stack them up in the shape of a triangle Christmas tree, or any other shape!
What can I put in my own calendar?
Ooohh, now that’s the question! You can put whatever you, or the person you’re making it for, likes into your DIY advent calendar.
The wonderful thing about making your own Advent calendar is a) it looks homemade and b) you can put exactly what you’d like in it or, if you’re making one for family or friends, what’s going to light up their face every morning.
Ideas for what to fill your own Advent calendar with
You could make a calendar:
- That caters for people’s dietary needs – for instance, each door could contain a vegetarian, vegan or free from recipe, ingredient, snack or something else to nibble on. While we’re on the subject of food, you could even make a tea bag Advent calendar for tea lovers! Simply pop a different flavoured tea bag in each tube or behind each door, or whatever you’ve used to create your calendar. (This article features a list of festive teas).
- For the ultimate beauty junkie – you could cram it full of products from their favourite brand or up-and-coming products they haven’t had chance to try yet. Don’t forget natural beauty ranges either!
- That contains pamper products – such as mini soaps and travel shampoo, lip balm, bathing products and moisturisers people may not necessarily treat themselves to.
- Full of just skincare items – these products could cater for all different things, or target certain areas, e.g. dry skin, sun protection or rejuvenation.
- That contains zero waste products – such as reusable products – i.e. cotton pads, cleansing cloths, exfoliating mitts, bamboo plasters – and items that come in minimal or recyclable packaging.
- With lots of hair-related products in it – such as mini hair accessories, travel shampoo and conditioner, or hair-cleaning bars, conditioning mask sachets, and more…
- Just for men – focus on ‘manly’ products, such as shaving cream, moisturiser, hair cream/gel, mini deodorant, soap bars, shower gel.
- Just for women – think hair, skincare, beauty products, or just stick to one topic to make your calendar follow a certain theme.
Want to have a go at making some of the gifts you pop inside your homemade Advent calendar? This article talks you through six homemade gifts you can make using essential oils. In the meantime, we hope you have lots of fun making your own DIY Advent calendar!
