Handmade Advent calendar ideas: stylish ways to decorate
In December, there’s the Advent calendar that lets you count the days until Christmas.
You open one box or paper bag each day and enjoy the countdown to Christmas.
You can buy ready-made ones, but many people might prefer to make their own if they’re going to the trouble, right?
In this article, we’ll show you how to make Advent calendars using a variety of materials, as well as how to display them.
Using supplies from 100-yen shops, you can easily create one by hand—so give it a try!
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How-to ideas (21–30)
Advent calendar you can send
Introducing a “mailable advent calendar” you can make using boxes commonly used for online flea market and auction shipping.
First, prepare a mailing box—you can usually buy one at 100-yen shops.
Next, put 24 small gifts into paper bags.
Make the paper bags using origami paper, chiyogami, or pretty wrapping paper.
Don’t forget to label the bags with the dates from the 1st to the 24th.
Then, using double-sided tape, attach them inside the box in reverse date order—and you’re done.
The thrill of opening a bag every day lasts all the way until Christmas! You’ve just got to make one!
Decoration ideas (1–10)
Easy! How to Make an Advent Calendar
When you want to make an advent calendar, it often overlaps with the busy season leading up to the end of the year.
So here are some ideas for an advent calendar you can make easily.
Prepare small bags, stick date labels on them, and put the contents inside.
Close the opening, punch a hole, thread a string through, and you’re done! The key is to close the bag so it forms a three-dimensional triangle.
If the design feels a bit plain, try decorating with Christmas stickers.
You can display them however you like, but hanging them with string makes them perfect as Christmas ornaments, too.
House-shaped Advent calendar
How about making house-shaped Christmas ornaments out of kraft paper? They’re simple and stylish, and if you put candy inside, they become an advent calendar.
First, prepare a house-shaped template and cut the kraft paper.
Next, use a white pen to draw roof patterns, windows, and a door.
Fold it up, apply glue to the tabs, and assemble.
Then punch a hole in the roof and thread a string in your favorite color through it.
Put in your child’s favorite treats, attach another string, and hang it on the Christmas tree.
The window and roof patterns will look cute in a variety of colors, too!
Origami Boots Advent Calendar
A Christmas stocking advent calendar is a festive idea that also works as a wall decoration.
Make the stockings with origami and tuck individually wrapped candies into the pocket-like part.
Write the dates with a pen, add holly made from another small piece of origami, and it’s done! The stockings only take a few folds, so even kids can give it a try.
The holly here is made with small origami paper and red round stickers, but you can also draw it or use other stickers.
Making the stockings in several colors will make the display even more vibrant.
to decorate the tree as an ornament
Designs featuring bags or boxes filled with presents are often used to evoke the Christmas spirit.
How about making an advent calendar part of the decorations, like a small present placed in front of a big Christmas gift? Using boxes can easily look heavy, so I recommend a bag design using items like coffee filters.
Shape them into small triangular pouches and attach ribbons to create cute present ornaments.
The finished pieces are classic choices for decorating the Christmas tree.
hang from a swag
This is a decorative hanging display that also incorporates elements of an Advent calendar to brighten up the room.
Write the countdown numbers on tags and attach small ornaments to make it visually striking as a decoration.
If you use paper bags in the same color as the tags for treats and other goodies, they’ll blend in nicely.
By hanging the tagged bags at random, it adds the action of searching for the day’s number, which should heighten the excitement as Christmas approaches.
Decorate like a tree using masking tape
Since it’s a countdown to Christmas, a Christmas tree shape is probably the easiest to recognize.
Representing a Christmas tree on a flat surface also helps the bags and numbers stand out clearly.
Use masking tape to create tiered “branches” like a tree, and tape the bags onto them.
It’s best to place the date for Christmas Day in the most eye-catching spot.
Another feature of masking tape is that it’s less likely to leave marks when removed, so it could be fun to try something bold like sticking it directly on the wall.