The holiday season will soon be upon us, which means it’s time to start preparing for one of my favorite Christmas traditions – making homemade advent calendars!
As you probably know, advent calendars are used to count down the days leading up to Christmas. Store-bought ones are fine, but there’s nothing quite like a homemade advent calendar filled with thoughtful gifts and surprises for your loved ones.
In this post, as a professional custom advent calendar printing manufacturer, I’ll walk you through how to make a homemade advent calendar for the 2024 holiday season. Whether you want to DIY advent calendars for your kids, spouse or even pets, you’ll find tips and inspiration here!
Why Make Your Own Advent Calendar?
Here are a few of the reasons I love crafting homemade advent calendars each year:
Customization
One of the best things about DIY advent calendars is getting to customize them. You can personalize them to the recipient’s style and fill the compartments with gifts that are uniquely tailored to them.
Cost Savings
Store-bought advent calendars can get pricey. Making your own allows you to save money while still creating a meaningful gift.
Bonding Activity
Involving your kids in making the advent calendar and brainstorming gift ideas is a great holiday bonding activity. Plus, they’ll be even more eager to use the calendar you created together!
Tradition Building
When you DIY advent calendars each year, it can become a wonderful family tradition that brings excitement and anticipation for Christmas. Kids will look forward to it, and it’ll create lasting memories.
Now that you know why homemade advent calendars are so special, let’s get into the fun part – actually making them!
How to Make a Homemade Advent Calendar?
Gather Your Materials
You likely already have a lot of things around the house that you can repurpose into a creative calendar. Here are some supplies that tend to work well:
- Cardboard (cereal/shoe boxes or thick cardboard sheets)
- Construction paper
- Craft supplies (glue, tape, scissors, markers)
- Small bags, boxes or jars
- Holiday-themed decor (ribbons, stickers, etc.)
Depending on the style of calendar you have in mind, you may need additional materials like wood, fabric or other embellishments too.
Pro Tip: Save items throughout the year that you think would make good advent calendar gifts like stickers, bath bombs or trading cards. That way you’ll have a stash of fun surprises ready to fill your calendar!
Pick a Calendar Style & Prep Materials
Now it’s time to decide what design you’d like for your advent calendar and do any needed prep work on materials.
Some popular options include:
Drawers or Shelves
Use a cardboard box or wood to create rows of compartments for gifts. Add festive scrapbooking paper, glitter and other embellishments.
Envelopes
Make a display with varying sized envelopes in fun patterns. Place treats and trinkets inside each numbered envelope.
Hanging Bags or Boxes
Fill small bags, boxes, sacks or even ornaments with goodies. Attach them with clothespins to twine strung across a wall.
Take measurements of your base materials like wood, boxes or envelopes. Then cut them to size using utility knives, circular saws or paper cutters.
Use this time to paint or decorate the base structure however you wish too. The possibilities are endless!
Add Compartments & Numbers
With your base structure complete, the next step is adding compartments and numbers.
For drawer or envelope-style calendars, neatly stack rows and columns to form compartments. Use a ruler and pencil to lightly sketch numbers 1-24.
If you’re making hanging boxes or bags, determine placement and spacing before actually attaching boxes and numbering them. We want the weight distributed evenly so the display doesn’t sag or fall over time.
Use permanent markers, festive stickers or other seasonally-appropriate craft supplies to label compartments 1-24. Get the kids involved by having them decorate and add numbers.
Fill Compartments with Gifts
Here comes the really fun part – filling the numbered compartments with surprises!
I like to start brainstorming early, keeping gift ideas in the notes app on my phone anytime inspiration strikes. Think about the recipient’s hobbies, favorite snacks and color/style preferences.
Gifting advent calendar ideas:
- Gift cards
- Holiday candy/chocolates
- Bath bombs or lip balm
- Stickers, temporary tattoos
- Hair accessories, socks
- Small LEGO sets
- Holiday-themed playing cards
- Mini notebooks and pens
- Puzzle books, mad libs
Get creative and have fun with it! Just make sure gifts can easily fit inside the compartments you’ve created.
Fill each numbered compartment according to when you’d like the recipient to receive that item. Keep track with a checklist so you don’t lose track.
Final Advent Calendar Touches
Once all the gifts are in place, you probably can’t wait to see the expression on their face! But before unveiling your creation, here are some final touches to add:
- Secure a “Do Not Open ‘Til December 1st” sign to the front
- Tie pieces closed with ribbon, twine or burlap
- Hot glue decor like bows, greenery and embellishments
- Place under the tree or in their bedroom for a joyful Christmas surprise!
Watch their anticipation and excitement build daily as they open each numbered compartment counting down to the 25th. It’s sure to be treasured for years to come!
Make it a Memorable Family Tradition
Handcrafting advent calendars each holiday season can become a beloved tradition everyone looks forward to.
Let the kids take ownership over certain elements like decorating, picking out gifts or arranging final displays. Seeing their hard work & thoughtfulness will mean so much too.
Capture the moments of advent calendar making and gift revealing by taking pictures and videos to look back on. Record their reactions opening calendars you made specially for them!
Most importantly, have fun spending quality bonding time together in the spirit of the holidays. Crafting DIY advent calendars filled with thoughtful surprises embodies what this season is all about.
Now that you know how to make a homemade advent calendar for all your loved ones, it’s time to get creating! What will you put inside theirs this year?