25 doorsWhat’s inside →DIY advent calendar:
two buys and a sheet of labels
Choose what goes behind the doors. We match it to an empty calendar it fits, a pack of 12 or 24 that fills it, and labels with their name on. 26 kits, from craft beer to dog treats.
Matched by the Advent Center editorsLast update 11 November
26 kits, each one two buys
Drinks
- Needs a bag · 12 or 24 doors
Beer
A different beer behind every door, can or bottle.
- Needs a bag · 12 or 24 doors
Wine
A small bottle of red, white or fizz each night.
- Fits a card box · 12 or 24 doors
Gin
A different gin each evening, a 5 cl miniature at a time.
- Fits a card box · 12 or 24 doors
Whisky
A dram a day from a tasting set of miniatures.
- Needs a bag · 12 or 24 doors
Energy drinks
A can a day, with the flavours mixed through the month.
- Fits a drawer · 12 or 24 doors
Coffee pods
A different coffee every morning, a pod at a time.
- Fits a drawer · 12 or 24 doors
Tea
A different tea each day, wrapped so it stays fresh.
Food
- Fits a drawer · 12 or 24 doors
Chocolate truffles
Wrapped truffles in mixed flavours, one or two to a drawer.
- Fits a card box · 12 or 24 doors
Hot sauce
A small bottle of hot sauce a day, mildest first.
- Needs a bag · 12 or 24 doors
Instant noodles
A different packet of noodles each day, from mild to fire.
Beauty and home
- Fits a card box · 12 or 24 doors
Sheet masks
A sheet mask a night: flat and light, and one fits any box.
- Fits a drawer · 12 or 24 doors
Nail polish
A new colour behind every door.
- Fits a drawer · 12 or 24 doors
Lip balm
A lip balm a day through the cold weeks, flavours mixed.
- Fits a card box · 12 or 24 doors
Hair clips
A claw clip or a scrunchie each morning.
- Fits a drawer · 12 or 24 doors
Tealights
A scented tealight to light each evening.
- Fits a drawer · 12 or 24 doors
Bracelet charms
The bracelet on day one, then a charm a day to hang on it.
- Fits a card box · 12 or 24 doors
Socks
A pair of daft socks every morning.
Play and hobbies
- Fits a card box · 12 or 24 doors
Building bricks
A small building set a day, each one a model of its own.
- Fits a card box · 12 or 24 doors
Pokémon cards
A booster pack a day.
- Fits a card box · 12 or 24 doors
Toy cars
A little car every morning, and a garage full by Christmas.
- Fits a card box · 12 or 24 doors
Small toys
A small toy each morning before school.
- Fits a card box · 24 doors
Miniatures
One sprue a day, wrapped and numbered, from a box of miniatures.
- Fits a card box · 12 or 24 doors
Golf balls
A golf ball a day, for the ones that go in the lake.
- Fits a card box · 12 or 24 doors
Fishing lures
A lure a day from a mixed tackle kit.
Pets
- Needs a bag · 12 or 24 doors
Dog treats
A treat or a chew a day, out of reach.
- Fits a drawer · 12 or 24 doors
Cat treats
A lickable treat tube each evening.
How to make one that works
1. Fit the box to the thing
Size is where a home-made calendar goes wrong. Drawers take small things, card boxes take a miniature or a card pack, and cans and bottles need bags. The builder picks the size for you.
2. One pack, mixed
A variety pack does the hard part: 24 different things that cost the same and fit the same door. Shuffle it before it goes in, so no week is all one flavour.
3. Save the best for last
Door 24 is the one they remember. Put the best of the pack there, or one thing from outside it: the bracelet the charms hang on, the box the lures go in.
DIY advent calendar ideas, by who it is for
- For adults
- Something they would buy for themselves on a Friday: beer, wine, gin, whisky, coffee pods and hot sauce. Twelve doors suit the bottles; 24 suits the coffee.
- For her
- Small things she would use up: sheet masks, nail polish, tealights, hair clips and tea, or a bracelet that fills up with bracelet charms as the month goes.
- For him
- A pack of the thing he already likes, opened one at a time: beer, whisky, hot sauce, golf balls, fishing lures and socks.
- For teens
- Things they trade, collect or wear the next day: Pokémon cards, hair clips, nail polish, instant noodles and socks.
- For kids
- One small toy a morning: small toys, building bricks, toy cars and Pokémon cards. Check the age on every pack.
- For toddlers
- Nothing from a party-bag pack: the parts are small. Board books, bath toys, stickers and one thing to do each day are safer, or a calendar made for under-threes.
- For a dog or a cat
- A treat a day, hung where they cannot reach it: dog treats and cat treats.
- For a partner
- Notes, plans and small dates rather than things: a digital calendar for couples is free and takes ten minutes. Or one of the kits above with a note tucked into every door.
Or a calendar you build a piece a day
All build-it-yourself calendars25 doors
24 doors
24 doors
24 doors
24 doors
24 doorsFrequently asked questions
How do you make a DIY advent calendar?
Buy an empty calendar sized for what goes in it, one pack of 12 or 24 of that thing, and number the doors. A drawer takes a tealight or a coffee pod, a card box takes a booster pack or a miniature, and a can or a bottle needs a bag. Fill it the night before 1 December.
Match a box and a packWhat do you put in a DIY advent calendar for adults?
Most of the 26 kits here are for adults: beer, wine, gin, whisky, energy drinks, coffee pods, tea, hot sauce, sheet masks, socks, golf balls. The rule that works is one thing they already like, in a different version behind each door.
Is a DIY advent calendar cheaper than a bought one?
Often, and you can see what you pay for: the pack costs what it costs in the shop, and the empty calendar is the only extra. A wooden one costs more once and comes back every year. A bought calendar wins where the brand puts in minis you cannot buy loose, which is most beauty calendars.
Beauty calendars you can buyWhen should I start making it?
Order both halves by about 25 November so they arrive before door one, and fill the calendar on the 30th. Anything still on its way can go behind the last doors.
12 or 24 doors?
Twelve for things that cost more each, or that nobody wants every day: wine, whisky, booster packs. Twenty-four for small daily things. A 12-door calendar can run 13 to 24 December, so it still ends on Christmas Eve.
How do I number the doors?
The builder prints a sheet of labels with their name on, 12 or 24 to a page. If you only need the numbers, the plain sheet is a PDF.
Door numbers 1 to 24 (PDF)