ADVENT DIY

Yes. I do realize how completely random this DIY is today. I’ve been trying to get back into blogging like I was last year but every post just feels soooo strange as a starting place. You know how when you wait too long to respond to something someone has said and then you’ve waited like way, waaaay too long? And anything you said at that point would just be so, so awkward? That’s what’s happening right now. I’ve waited too long to say anything and now it’s all super weird. But the best way to begin, is to begin. So… we begin with a super rad, easy and FUN DIY that is definitely NOT weird.

Christmas is my jam. I absolutely love the hustle, bustle and the planning involved in it all. And let’s face it, it’s a totally welcome distraction from the impending reality that I’m running out of time to complete all those 2018 goals I had. (Lose 30 lbs? Ummmm…yeah, no.) Advent calendars are totally the mother of all Christmas crafts/gifts. They’re not just one gift, they’re TWENTY FOUR gifts. That’s 24 times the planning, 24 times the shopping and 24 times the joy. Sign me up.

I always knew when I was blessed with a little Miller baby someday, I’d be doing the whole advent thing up like the crazy Christmas mom I’ll be. But as I’m still waiting on one of those little blessings, I couldn’t hold back my advent enthusiasm any longer. Dave and I typically head out of town at least once during the holiday season and we are always looking for ways to keep his sweet mama from missing us too much while we are gone. Hello, advent calendar! We had the idea in 2017 but after a month of searching high and low for an advent calendar with adequately sized slots, we were ready to throw in the holiday themed towel! Have you seen pre-made advent calendars? The holes are typically 1 inch by 1 inch. What sort of gift can you fit in there? Nothing an 85 year old woman would be too excited about.

So as with most things, necessity was the mother of invention here. We found a canvas shoe rack (Links to products below) with exactly 24 HUGE slots. It’s like they were made for an advent DIY.

This project is super, super easy and 100% customizable to any need/age/budget. We spent about $100 on the one pictured below, but that includes a nice day 25 gift that isn’t pictured. You could very easily do $1 a day and then a couple bucks on decor/wrapping paper and keep the budget fairly low. And if you’re a business professional, scroll to the bottom of the post for ideas on how to turn this into a fun, marketing event.

I start by laying out the gifts we purchased. We have hand lotion, Christmas tissues, various cookies and candies, some Hallmark Christmas ornaments (purchased last year during the after Christmas sale!), pen, decor, soap, chapstick, her favorite coffee pods, a cute felt bird, a bag of edible “coal” my hubby thought was hilarious and some cinnamon apples – to name a few. Again, totally customizable.

Next I lay out all the decor. Of course you don’t have to decorate your advent calendar, but it’ll be so much more fun if you do! I grab various things from the dollar spot at Target for decorating purposes and actually had lots of these left over from last year. You could print some of your recipients favorite Christmas images from the internet and turn those into decor. I printed these colorful numbers that you see above to use for each day. I buy packs of clothespins to hold the decor to the front of the shoe rack. You could use fabric paint or markers for a more permanent decoration too. I love having flexibility each year so I try to use things that just come right off.

Above you can see how I decorated this particular calendar. I have to admit, the 2017 version was much more elaborate. I spent several hours on that one but this year I just didn’t have as much time to devote to the project so I kept it fairly simple. Once the decor is done, you just fill the slots with the gifts! I try to put the Christmas decor gifts near the top so they can be used all month long. I’ve also tucked a bible verse for each day into the slots for her to read. Your imagination and creativity is truly the limit here. So many options and possibilities.

Here’s a look at the completed project for 2018. Now, just to move this baby over to her house… that’s the hardest part, to be honest. If you’re assembling in a location that isn’t the final destination, be prepared to have to do some minor damage control when you’ve moved it… some decor usually falls off and some of the gifts make it heavy to transport.  Where are those elves when we need them?!

Who in your life would love to receive a fun advent calendar like this one? (I mean, who WOULDN’T though, right?) Drop me a comment below and let me know if you do the whole advent calendar thing and what in the world you stuff in those 1in x 1in slots besides candy!

Happy gifting, friends!

Stacey

Let’s get down to biz. If you’re a professional of some type, with clients, this would be a WONDERFUL marketing ideas. We are actually doing a client version that will be showing up on our business pages December 1st. For that version, we’ve got small gifts in each slot for our clients – car wash coupons, local restaurant gift cards, local coffee shop gift cards, small treats, little bottles of alcohol. Each day we will go live (video) as we draw the name of a 2018 client and then deliver a gift to them. Day 25 drawing is for a bigger gift – we are doing a whole house power washing for that day’s drawing. This ticks off all the points of a good marketing promo – video, blog, giveaway, client involvement/engagement. Can’t wait to start that process on Dec 1st!