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Celebrate with surprises for (almost) every day of December! Candy Toys
As soon as December 1 hits, the unofficial countdown to Christmas begins. Make the most of your holiday season this year by crafting one of the cutest DIY advent calendars. These ideas are as fun to create as they are to use, and you can be sure your kids will love unwrapping a new surprise every day leading up to December 25. Best of all, some of these calendars will even inspire your family to embrace the true reason for the season by performing little acts of kindness.
New to this fun Christmas tradition? Here's what you should know: Christmas advent calendars are creative tools used to track the days from December 1 to December 24 in preparation for the big day. Believe it or not, the first-known advent calendar was created way back in 1851 with nothing more than a few chalk lines. But by the 1950s, it had taken on a new look, and the idea of revealing candies and toys was introduced.
Now, advent calendars can be pretty much anything if you put your mind to it. The options are endless! On this list, you'll find chocolate advent calendars, printable advent calendars, and cute toy advent calendars for kids. Many of these projects also double as DIY Christmas decorations. If you're a Christmas fanatic and want to make this year's celebrations more special than ever, read on to learn how to make an advent calendar of your very own.
Bring some Christmas magic to your kitchen with a fun magnetic calendar for your fridge! Add this blogger's adorable printables to a set of magnetic spice containers, then arrange them in the shape of a Christmas tree or star.
Get the tutorial at Somewhat Simple.
To easily create this adorable calendar, wrap some matchboxes in vintage-inspired Christmas paper and attach them to a cookie sheet. A patterned ribbon on top makes the perfect finishing touch!
Get the tutorial at The Craft Patch.
How cute is this tiny DIY tea house?! The design is easy to print and fold, and you can see your variety of teas through the little doors and windows. If you want to take this a step further, tape daily Christmas activity suggestions to each packet.
Get the tutorial at Delia Creates.
The more Christmas trees, the better! Your kids will love spending the days leading up to December 25 adding adorable ornaments to their own special tree. Watch as it grows with decorative, festive cheer.
Get the tutorial at The Craft Patch.
Bring a splash of color to your Christmas décor with this vibrant nativity calendar. It looks even more whimsical when paired with coordinating bottle brush trees.
Get the tutorial at Lovely Indeed.
Fill these playful, pom pom-topped boxes with little treats and prizes for a daily surprise for your little ones. Place them on cake stands or a buffet table for a colorful display.
Get the tutorial at Alice & Lois.
We love a pastel color scheme for Christmas! Hand paint house-shaped boxes and add a sprinkle of fake snow on top to create your own little holiday village.
Get the tutorial at Sugar & Cloth.
Whip up all of your favorite Christmas cocktails with a little help from this beverage-filled calendar. Stock it with 24 tiny bottles of your favorite spirits, or even mini wine bottles!
Get the tutorial at Feast + West.
This colorful garland doubles as a festive holiday decoration for your living room or entryway. And filling these whimsical Christmas lights with little surprises is such a bright idea, too!
Get the tutorial at The House That Lars Built.
The holidays are about so much more than just presents. Embrace the true reason for the season by crafting this pretty calendar that invites kids to perform a different act of kindness every day.
Get the tutorial at Lovely Indeed.
The only thing better than one Christmas stocking is 24 mini ones! There are many ways to hang these cuties: on a simple wooden Christmas tree as shown here, strung up on a festive garland, or lined up along the mantel!
See more at Make It & Love It.
Here's an amazing idea for displaying all those cute photos from the past year. Add them to this calendar that's designed to look like an Instagram grid, and prepare for a lot of "likes" from your friends and family.
See more at Thinking Closet.
These pouches are soft, cute, and just the right size for gift cards. Hang them on a pom pom garland and display the rest in a bowl nearby, or hang them all!
See more at Skip to My Lou.
Here is one is for all the Silhouette lovers out there! Your machine will be busy creating these beautiful, vintage-looking gift boxes. Then, all you need to do is decorate and craft a unique shadowbox display!
See more at Make It & Love It.
Kids will love how tactile and interactive this calendar is. Fill each section of a jewelry organizer with small gifts, color the top with colored paper, and create small marks where each cavity is. Then, ask your kids to tear the paper each day to reveal a different present!
Get the tutorial at Club Crafted.
You can swap out the colors of this modern-looking tree to ensure that it fits in nicely with the rest of your home décor.
Get the tutorial at A Kailo Chic Life.
The 24 numbered paper bags used to create this calendar can be all different shapes and sizes, allowing for a wide variety of gifts. Add candy canes to the longer rectangles, small toys to the squares, and so on.
Get the tutorial at Tell Love and Party.
Minimalists will love these simplistic wooden houses. They'd look lovely grouped together on a mantel, but you could just as easily space them out across an entire room.
Get the tutorial at Your DIY Family.
This show-stopping calendar involves mini felted stockings and a larger-than-life pegboard. Just wait until your holiday guests get a peek at it.
Get the tutorial at Damask Love.
Have a little one at home? This colorful, present-filled felt truck advent calendar will make their holiday season extra bright.
Get the tutorial at Studio DIY!
Rebecca Ravee Norris is a full-time freelance writer with a decade's worth of lifestyle media experience. Based out of the Washington metropolitan area, she writes for a variety of publications, covering everything from beauty and wellness to style and celebrity news. She is a graduate of George Mason University. There, she earned her B.A. in Media: Production, Consumption, and Critique, along with a minor in Electronic Journalism. When she's not working, she can be found with her beloved Jack-Chi, Cash, adventuring with family and friends, working through reps at the gym, dreaming up her next home decor project, testing a new recipe, getting lost in the pages of a book, or catching up on her favorite shows.
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