Day 9 - DIY Advent Calendar

Advent Calendars are no longer limited to a chocolate shape behind a cardboard door, year on year they become more convoluted, exciting and most importantly – expensive.

With brands like Marks & Spencer, Boots, Look Fantastic and Nars getting involved the quality is sky-high which can make it less affordable.

As much as the hype around these products is super exciting, creating your own advent calendar is something unique you can do for yourself or as a gift.

Traditionally each day is just a little thing, so I’ve rounded up a few ideas to get you thinking about how to make your own 12 day version:

1. Chocolate

Pretty standard, why not pick up some fun-sized sweets in the supermarket and stash one away for each day in advent?

2. Candles

Universally loved, why not pick up 12 small candles to create a real scented experience?

This six-pack from Yankee come in Festive scents, two packs of these would sort your out for a 12 Days of Christmas.

3. Wax Melts

In a similar vein to candles, but a bit stronger in scent. I always find that wax melts last me ages, so although you might open one each day – they can last a lot longer. You can pick these up in B&M and they’re super affordable with a decent range of scents.

4. Alcohol

Hey, advent calendars are for treats! Why not check out what your Asda or Tesco has in their loose beer or cider section? You can always get some exciting fruity ones that are a little bit different.

5. Crisps

I made Simon a crisp calendar one year, he’s a total snack fiend so I just picked up his favourite flavours and popped them into bags and let him choose one day. Another super easy and well-received idea!

6. Freebie

A freebie advent calendar involves a bit more forward planning than the others but can be super creative. There are always targeted ads on Facebook and Pinterest and there are whole groups dedicated to hunting down these deals. From perfumes to CB oils and eye creams, there are dozens of these floating around on your timeline; and once you spot them it’s hard not to sign up to them all.

Is a DIY advent calendar something you’d think about making as a little bit of fun?