What would be the run-up to Christmas without an advent calendar! And they can become even more personal and better if you make and fill them yourself. We have put together instructions for three simple advent calendars that you can make yourself to delight your family, friends or colleagues.
The Novus J-29 hand tacker makes particularly light work of fastening the little bags to a piece of wood or coat hanger. There are no limits to your imagination. You can use fabric or paper bags that you decorate and fasten to your hanger with stapler and ribbon. Cut out particularly pretty tags for the 24 numbers with the Dahle 505 rolling trimmer. The rolling trimmer is a talented all-rounder with inserts for different cutting styles:
- Straight cuts
- Wavy cuts
- Deckle edge cuts
- Perforation
- Folds
You can cut our template for the 24 advent calendar numbers using the wavy cut feature on the Dahle 505, for example.
Turn 24 paper bags, decorative tags, wide gift ribbon and a coat hanger into a lovely advent calendar in a flash. It not only offers ample room for different gifts; it is also an eye-catching feature in the Christmas season.
What you need to make the advent calendar:
You can make your own simple paper bags by cutting out squares of parcel paper measuring 20 cm x 20 cm and rolling them up to form an ice cream cone. Staple the tip at the bottom and the seam at the top.
Then, again, take the paper numbers from our template and staple them together with a piece of eucalyptus or fir twig to the top of the cone. You might want to wrap the gifts in serviettes to make sure they are not visible from above.
This advent calendar gives you a decorative eye catcher and you can choose a colour scheme to suit your taste. Before starting, the best thing to do is a take a gentle stroll through the woods. Keep a lookout for a pretty, somewhat thicker branch. Also, make sure the branch is big and sturdy enough to bear the weight of 24 small surprises during the advent season. If you want, you can also cut a fir tree shape out of a wooden board, to which you can then staple the gift bags.
1. Make 24 bags
First cut 24 rectangular pieces from the fabric. Make 24 bags by sewing or stapling the fabric seams.
2. Glue on the numbers
Use a hot glue gun to stick the numbers onto the bags. Silver or gold numbers from the crafts shop are particularly lovely in the advent season.
3. Fasten the bags to the branch
Spread the 24 bags evenly along the branch and staple them on. You can choose whether to stick with consecutive numbers or whether to confuse them on purpose.
4. Fill the advent calendar with 24 small surprises
And finally, the most important step: Place a small surprise in each bag. This original advent calendar is lovely to look at and makes the run-up to Christmas even more exciting.
As soon as you've made your advent calendar, you need to fill it. There are all sorts of options for the 24 gifts. To stop your home-made advent calendar becoming a stressful affair, we have put together a couple of ideas for you. Is it for colleagues, mum, kids or your partner? Thinking first of what the recipient of the gifts particularly likes is a huge help when looking for specific small gifts. Alongside sweets, nuts and fruits, gifts with some reference to hobbies are a good idea.
For colleagues
Generally, you wouldn't give a home-made advent calendar to a colleague, although your favourite colleague would probably be delighted. Alongside bought sweets and home-made cookies, why not go for cool gadgets that make everyday office life more fun:
Particularly strong coffee to get through the day. Gift a matching funny mug. Or how about unusual pen holders, colourful office equipment or a USB desk ventilatorfor particularly hot days in the office – all cool gift ideas for colleagues.
For DIY enthusiasts
Is the recipient a DIY enthusiast? Then how about adding a few highlights to some sweets. New crafts scissors, for example, or masking tape featuring their favourite motif, patches for their home-made clothing or a hand lettering set.
For spa enthusiasts
Friends who love chilling out will always love samples of unusual shower gel, bubble bath, mini soap, hand cream, or a fragrant candle.