Homemade Advent Calendars for Adults to Make

 


We've got lots of ideas for homemade Advent Calendars for kids to make - but what about if you want to get involved and make a special Advent Calendar for the kids yourself? These ideas for DIY Advent Calendars are all intended for adults to make for the children in their lives.

Inspiration for Homemade Advent Calendars for Adults to Make

If you want to make an Advent Calendar to put out for the kids, your first decision is to keep it small and simple or really go to town with the design! What you choose to do will depend very much on how you intend to fill your Advent Calendar. Tiny envelopes will be enough to conceal a mini picture or message (perhaps one of our Advent Calendar Printables). Bought envelopes are a quick and easy solution, and you can add your own stamp on them by designing numbered labels (or printing out some of ours). If you want to enclose bigger Advent gifts and treats you will need to think bigger with your calendar too!

Also see:

A Mini Envelope Advent Calendar

We start with a lovely idea for mini-envelopes. These are simple squares cut from good quality paper before the corners are rounded. Fold carefully and hold together with a little round sticker. Tuck in a little Christmas picture and message.

Making little envelopes for a homemade Advent Calendar
Making little envelopes for a homemade Advent Calendar

How to display them? You could glue them into the shape of a Christmas tree or wreath. Or simply line them up inside a frame like this, adding a few ribbons for embellishment. This Advent Calendar is perfect for older children, who won't be as disappointed not to be receiving chocolates!

Mini Envelope Advent Calendar

Advent Calendar Envelopes Pegged to a Line

Here an assortment of different sized envelopes, all red, have been decorated with ribbons and baker's twine then pegged to a line.

Advent Calendar envelopes pegged to a line
Advent Calendar envelopes pegged to a line

This would look so pretty strung up in the kitchen, and of course can be tailored to suit your own Christmas decoration colours and the size of the gifts you want to include. If you have more than one child, you can peg 2 envelopes together too.

And here's a clever variation! An assortment of simple brown envelopes have been decorated with a black sharpie. A hole has been punched in the top and they have all been strung from a branch, complete with evergreen foliage. This would look great as part of a rustic Christmas decorative scheme!

Simple envelope Advent Calendar strung from a branch
A simple rustic envelope Advent Calendar strung from a branch

Brown Paper Bag Rudolph Advent Calendar

This one's my favourite! It will take a lot more work to put together, but isn't it wonderful? If you have a cricut machine or similar you could use it to cut out the reindeer antlers and the wonky eyes and red noses, which will save a lot of time. Then it is simply a question of stuffing your brown paper bags (or envelopes), folding them down and attaching the decorations. Will you will be able to save the Rudolphs to use again next year? You might be able to rescue a few if you ask your children to be careful opening them!

Rudolph Advent Calendar

Wrapped Parcels for a DIY Advent Calendar

Even simple parcels wrapped up and labelled can be a really effective Advent Calender. This one is proof that you don't need to go to town! Slip a book or small gift inside a white paper bag or wrap in white paper, then attach a label cut from brown card and marked with black sharpie. Simple, rustive and very effective. A sprig of artificial greenery pegged to each one would look great, too.

A Simple Advent Calendar With Paper Bags and Labels
A simple Advent Calendar with paper bags and labels

Here's a variation on that idea. If you keep the weight of your parcels down, you can simply fold the top of a paper bag over a string and seal with a pretty Christmas sticker. This one is a quickie idea!

Brown paper packages hanging from string
Brown paper packages hanging from string

And here's another variation on the same idea. Gifts are simply placed into brown bags and red envelopes, embellished with ribbon and tucked into a basket. I think the kids would really enjoy rifling through their basket of loveliness every morning - how exciting! And this idea is great for when you have more than one child. Simply label their individual basket or give them their own colour of parcel to look for.

A basket of wrapped gifts for a DIY Advent Calendar
A basket of wrapped gifts for a DIY Advent Calendar

Adapt this Easter Countdown Idea for Christmas

This is actually an Easter countdown (the clue is in the Easter eggs!) but it would be simple to adapt for Christmas, and the finished result looks just like a stable. Top it with a bright gold star and add small picture of the baby Jesus on the 24th container, and you have a lovely Advent Calendar. Toilet rolls are simply cut in half and glue-gunned to a strong piece of corrugated card. A little paper straw has been used as a base for the Easter eggs and to cover up any rough edges.

Adapt this Easter Countdown idea for Christmas
An Easter countdown made from toilet rolls!

A Miniature Stocking Advent Calendar

If you are handy with a sewing machine, it won't take you long to stitch up 24 little Christmas stockings to hang on a line! A simple fur "garnish" has been glue-gunned around the edge of the stockings and felt-like number stickers used to label them.

A garland of miniature stockings
A garland of miniature stockings!

How About Mittens?

Little mittens strung on a line make a cute variation of the same type of Advent Calendar. Stitch your own or buy 12 little mittens in Christmas designs and use ribbon or wool to hang them up. These numbers are simply stickers.

Mittens on a line for an Advent Calendar

And here's a fun variation made from a selection of "real" mittens and gloves! Jumble them up and write the number on a simple label tucked inside. Collect different sizes of gloves when you spot them in appropriate colours, or "borrow" them from family members and use a safety pin to hang them up. Just make sure you don't use any fingerless gloves! When they have been emptied, they can go back to keeping fingers warm.

Woollen gloves and mittens for a fun homemade Advent Calendar
Woollen gloves and mittens make a fun homemade Advent Calendar!

A Forest of Trees Advent Calendar

Here's another very quick and easy idea for making your own Advent Calendar. I like this idea because you can adapt the size of the tree to the size of the gift! However, I do think you might have a problem with younger children lifting up the trees to peek underneath! Perhaps you could sneak the gifts under the cones the night before.

Cut semi-circles of paper in different colours of green and white and wrap them around to form cones. Add a numbered sticker and decorate however you wish before displaying on a tray or piece of card. Sprinkle some glittery snowflakes, perhaps?

Paper cone forest of trees Advent Calendar
Paper cone forest of trees Advent Calendar

Colourful Tissue Paper Advent Parcels Tied Up With String

Bundle up your gifts in tissue paper and tie the ends with string or ribbon for another easy DIY Advent Calendar idea. Choose the colours to match your decorations. You could go traditional with green, red, white, gold and silver, or go bright like here!

Colourful tissue paper parcels for Advent

Simply write numbers on the parcels for each day. You could tie them all together in one long line if you like, for added fun - but it might get a bit messy!

Stitch Shape Parcels for a Pretty Advent Calendar

Here is another of my favourites! Choose from our Christmas templates to cut 2 pieces of brown paper, then stitch them together on the sewing machine with white thread, popping in your gift or message before you sew it all the way closed. Attach numbers and hang from a garland or stack in a basket. Make sure you change your sewing machine needle before you next sew fabric as it will be blunted by sewing the paper!

Stitched shapes stacked in a basket for an exciting Advent Calendar
Stitched shapes stacked in a basket for an exciting Advent Calendar

A Simple Craft Stick Advent Calendar

This idea is so simple that you could enlist older kids to help you make it - although you will have to be sneaky writing on the back of the craft sticks! Cut 24 little sprigs of greenery, real or artificial, and glue-gun them to large natural-coloured craft sticks. Use a sharpie to write a number for the day at the bottom, and a treat or message on the back. Hang them up so that the message is hidden. Children simply turn the craft stick around each morning. This one would only work for kids with discipline. I know that my own children would have snuck a look at all the craft stick messages when I wasn't looking!

Craft sticks and evergreens for an extra simple Advent Calendar!
Craft sticks and evergreens for an extra simple Advent Calendar!

 

More DIY Advent Calendars

Homemade Advent Calendars
Homemade Advent Calendars for Kids to Make

Not just for children, our pretty origami Advent Calendars too are fun for adults to make too.

Origami advent calendars
Origami Advent Calendars


 

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