Handmade Advent Calendar

Create a unique handmade Advent Calendar using mini boxes and decorative scrapbook paper!

December 1st is just a few days away, marking the first day of Advent Calendars! Our family loves this tradition and looks forward to it every year. I wanted to share with you one more handmade Advent Calendar I created using tiny boxes and paper. This calendar was so much fun to create – I didn’t have any plan in mind, so there isn’t a step-by-step tutorial, just pictures showing how it all came together!

When I found the paper stack “Celebrate Christmas” by Echo Park Paper Co., I knew it would be perfect for this type of Advent Calendar. The stack even came with a sheet of paper divided into 2″ squares with numbers 1-24 on it. The mini boxes I had purchased for my other Advent Calendars fit these paper numbers perfectly! The boxes also fit perfectly on a random wooden sign I had purchased on sale from Joann Fabrics months ago! So needless to say, this calendar just fell into place and I’m so happy it did because I love it!

Creating the winter wonderland on top of the calendar out of paper was my favorite part. The paper stack came with such sweet Christmas stickers I wanted to use them somewhere on the calendar.

Below you can see how my Advent Calendar started out – as a sign for carrots! I often buy these types of signs when I find them on super sale at Joann Fabrics – always with the intention of making them into something completely different.

I covered the top half of the sign with snowflake paper from my paper stack and then filled the bottom with tiny boxes. I made the boxes the same way I made them for the Advent Calendars I shared a few weeks ago. This time, instead of using the printables I created, I used the numbers found in the paper stack. Washi tape, also from Echo Park Paper Co., worked perfectly as little tabs on each box. Once all the boxes were assembled, I attached them to my frame using Scor-tape. They have been holding on well so far. I do recommend attaching the boxes on the sides as well for more stability.

Creating the winter scene was done by trial and error. I found that folding white sheets of cardstock and layering them on top of the boxes worked the best for creating the snowy hills.

Once the snowy hills were in place, I added some stickers from the stack and then used my Cricut Explore to make trees and snowflakes in coordinating colors. Adding the stickers did make my snowy hills want to fall over, so to fix this, I added folded paper rectangles in back of the heavy stickers to support them.

I love how magical this calendar turned out. It can be hung or leaned against the wall. You can create something similar using any size wooden frame. I normally do 25 boxes for my Advent Calendars, but only 24 boxes would fit. Depending on the size of your frame, you may be able to do a different arrangement and fit 25 boxes.

Do you count down to Christmas with an Advent Calendar? There really are so many different kinds out there – both handmade and store-bought. All have their own unique charm!

While December 1st marks the official countdown to Christmas, we have been preparing for our holiday parties and festivities for a few weeks now. I sent out invitations for our holiday party a couple weeks ago using Paperless Post. I use them every year for our party and love how quick and convenient sending the invites are. This year I used the invitation “Christmas Cascade”. It is so cheery! It’s so helpful to be able to message all of my guests at once using the event page and keep track of who is coming and bringing what. Staying organized is so important – especially this time of year!