Crafts To Make With Things Around The House: Advent Calendar DIY

This craft came about when a friend on Instagram asked if I wanted to join a Holiday Craft and Home Tour Train. So fun, right?! Of course I said yes. I had an ornament idea in mind, but had no luck buying the supplies I needed. After failing to secure the supplies for the ornaments I originally wanted to make, I remembered that I hadn’t bought my usual Trader Joe’s Advent calendar. Since the pandemic hit, the lines at Trader Joe’s have been really long and I have mostly avoided going there! So what a perfect time to make my own Advent calendar. Bonus- my kiddo and I have been working on counting and this ties in so well!

I made a trip to Michael’s craft store and bought some supplies. However, once I got home and started to map out how I wanted the item to look, I ended up using mostly supplies I already had! Does that ever happen to you? I think just the act of walking around Michael’s helped me to hash out the idea. That’s usually how I work- gather inspiration, sit and play with materials to execute my idea!

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Step 1: Gather Materials.

Once I had a rough idea of what I was doing, I remembered a frame that’s been sitting in my basement. I actually have two. I found them left out for trash one day. It was when we lived in California, and I dragged them up to Seattle! I knew they would come in handy at some point, plus they match the DIY Ornament Ball Wreath I recently shared. Cardboard canvas, paint samples, pins, and homemade tassels as ornaments. The gold star for my tree topper is the only item I ended up using from my Michael’s trip!

Step 2: Paint Background.

After I measured the opening of the frame, I painted an all white background.

Step 3: Draw A Tree Shape

After the white paint dried, I used the star as my guide to draw the shape of my triangle. I wasn’t very detailed at this; didn’t measure my angles and my shape is a bit wonky.

Step 4: Paint Your Tree

This green is one of the samples we got when we were picking exterior trim for our house. I keep the samples around for crafts like this.

Step 5: Cut The Cardboard

After the green paint dried, I placed the frame on the cardboard to cut the excess. I hadn’t cut it until this point in order to have a place to set my paints and other supplies on either side and then scoot the whole thing out of the way when I wasn’t working on it.

Step 6: Pin The Numbers

I played with the layout of the numbers for a bit before I actually pinned them. I wanted to make sure that they all lined up well.

Step 7: Have A Helper Inspect Your Work

I like to take a step back to see what is working and what’s not. I could see the lumps and bumps in my lines, planned how I would paint in the star, checked on tassel placement. My little guy approved overall 🙂 This ended up being one of those crafts you make with things around the house. I still linked supplies below, just in case you don’t already have them.

Materials

Frame (similar)

Tassels I made mine only because I finalized my idea after my trip to Michaels! But you can find some cute ones already made!

Round tags I made mine with some cardstock I had on hand.

Round tags to place on tassels Once again I made mine, but there are options ready-made to save time!

T Pins After having placed a few tassels on the tree now, the T pins move around. I may need to put another layer of cardboard.

Star stickers (similar)

Green Paint (similar)

White Paint (similar)

And if you are looking to buy an Advent calendar, here are some sweet options. Click on each picture to learn more.

Don’t leave just yet!

Before you go, you need to see what the others created for the Holiday Craft Train and Home Tour!

First up is Mindy. I first came to know her from photos of her beautiful bathroom. She was the brains behind this all. I was super excited when she asked if I was interested in joining. She had just finished her powder room as part of the One Room Challenge and I couldn’t wait to see what she had in mind for holiday decor. Check out her blog for her Pottery Barn dupe snowflake tutorial and her Instagram account for her latest projects.

Ellice shared her DIY pom pom garland for the tour and really wowed us with her Reels skills! Take a little scroll through her Instagram account for beautiful, soothing images and specials on her candles. The hand poured candles come in scents like Patisserie and White Tea and Ginger. Yum!

Sherry is celebrating her first Christmas in her newly built home! So excited for her! Can you guess from the picture below which items are DIY? Visit her Instagram account to see and make sure to watch her saved “2020 Xmas” highlight.

Romeeta shared three different DIY crafts; the garland and bells shown here as well as a beautiful wreath. You can see how she styled this garland in her Story Highlights over on her Instagram account. Make sure to check out her One Room Challenge posts where she lime washed her bedroom- the color is stunning!

Nicole created some fun Nordic inspired trees using scrapwood from her stash. She made two different versions and both are so cute. Check out her DIY coffee table, doggy lean-to, and other projects over on Instagram. Below is a picture of her cute pup, Birdie! Ho could I not include that photo?

Abby rounded out the week of holiday DIY with her cute tassel tree. She is currently going through a new home build and I honestly don’t know how she found time fit in this craft, but glad she did! Her home is so close to finished; make sure to visit her on Instagram for the behind the scenes peeks at the work wrapping up.

A Bit More Holiday Fun

In the last couple weeks I’ve been looking at ton of holiday related content. How about you? In addition to the DIY’s above I’ve been doing some shopping…

Juliet of Make Mine A Spritzer, put together the best gift guide! She rounded up her home essentials and they are items that make great gifts year round! I basically want one of everything she listed. Look how sweet her porch is with her signature blue door. Make sure to follow her on Instagram as she shares delicious cocktail recipes and glimpses of her beautiful home.

Besides shopping, of course I am looking at more DIY projects. For any sewing experts out there, Carol made the cutest gnome pillow. I’m seeing these gnomes everywhere this year! She outlines the steps so clearly, I feel like even I, a sewing novice, could attempt this. The coiled hands and pom pom nose are too cute! Over on Instagram Carol shares about her on-going home renovation, her jewelry making, and day-to-day musings.

Thanks so much for reading! Hope you found some holiday inspiration. Drop me a line to say hi. I appreciate hearing from you!