When I was a kid there wasn't much that matched the excitement of counting down the days to Christmas. While I did it by marking x's on the calendar, today many families have embraced the advent calendar. You can find a wide selection of advent calendars in the store but they can be quite easy to make at home. We've selected 10 of our favorite homemade advent calendars to share with you.
If you are a crafter you have probably collected dozens of Mason jar craft ideas. But what about the oft-forgotten lids? Ashley made Mason jar lids the star in her 12 days of Christmas advent calendar. You'll never look at those lids like they are leftovers again.
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The base for Courtenay's ridiculously easy DIY advent calendar may take you a bit of time this year but that's mostly going to be waiting for the paint to dry. Once it's ready to go the rest of this impressive advent calendar is a snap. The best part? At the end of the season you can store the base and next year all you need to do is stamp and stuff your bags. Easy!
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Need some incentive to get your kids out the door in the morning? Then you'll want to check out Reese Dixon's outdoor advent calendar. Again, you'll be putting in a bit of construction time this year but it's sturdy enough that you can store it. Next year you just need to take it outside and voila! You're done!
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If you meant to start constructing your advent calendar weeks ago only to discover that it's suddenly the night before your little ones expect to see on in the house, Tabitha's burlap advent calendar is for you. All you need is some burlap, stencils and twine and you are ready to rock. Bonus? You can totally sing to yourself while you make it, if you don't mind taking a some small liberties with classic lyrics. "Brown burlap packages tied up with string…"
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I've lived in some teeny-tiny apartments and I know how difficult it can be to find room to decorate for the holidays. If you are pressed for space you will love MJ's over the door advent calendar. She used an over the door shoe holder to create her advent calendar and I'm left wondering why I had never of that of doing that.
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Another great idea that uses a household item to made an advent calendar is Carolyn's mini muffin tin advent calendar This one will come together so quickly that you could make one for each of your children like Carolyn did. Just remember that if you plan to make cupcakes during the holidays you'll need to stock up on some extra muffin tins.
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We all know what it's like to see something we adore in a store or a catalog and think, "I can make that!" Rach had that exact thought and the result was this beautiful Pottery Barn-inspired Christmas tree advent calendar. It may have taken her a little bit longer to finish than she originally anticipated but it was worth it. I think hers looks even better than the one she saw at Pottery Barn.
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Sometimes simple things are the most charming. Val's card stock tag advent calendar is simple, fast and is very charming. You can make new tags every year, but I'd tuck them away and save them. You may not reuse them but if you save them each year you'll have a great collection of tried and true ideas at your fingertips.
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Envelope activity advent calendars are a classic choice for a very good reason -- they are awesome. You can make your own like Amanda did or use plain envelopes that you jazz up with stickers and stamps. Amanda also included her list of activities and I'm so stealing her suggestion to have a picnic by the Christmas tree.
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Do you want to make an activity advent calendar but don't want to be stuck to a strict advent calendar of activities? Then you want to make Jess's advent activity jar. I've made something similar myself and I'm going to share a tip with you -- color-code your sticks based on activity length. You don't want to pull out a fabulous activity that takes 3 hours on an already busy night.
Have you made your own advent calendar? What's your favorite advent activity?
Be sure to check out the rest of the posts in our 12 days of Holiday Crafts series.
Karen Ballum is a Community Moderator on BlogHer.com. She also blogs at Sassymonkey and Sassymonkey Reads.