November 17, 2024, 4:06 pm | Read time: 4 minutes
In addition to Advent wreaths, fairy lights, and nutcrackers, many people also love an Advent calendar in the run-up to Christmas. In this article, myHOMEBOOK reveals which calendars will be popular in 2024 and how you can implement them.
The origins of the Advent calendar can be traced back to the 19th century. Sometimes, it was a simple chalk mark on the wall in anticipation of Christmas. The Advent calendar has changed a lot since then. In addition to classic chocolate calendars, in the 21st century, there are also calendars filled with care products, toys, or vouchers. However, the best calendars are the ones you make yourself. If you are looking for ideas for Advent calendars in 2024, you will find some inspiration here.
1. Sustainable advent calendar
Admittedly, the Christmas season is not particularly known for being frugal or even sustainable these days. Quite the opposite: advertising campaigns have turned the Christian festival into a cult consumer experience. However, to protect your wallet and the environment, you can at least make your Advent calendar sustainable. One way to do this is to use clean jam jars as packaging. Alternatively, scraps of fabric or recycled paper can also be used to wrap the little surprises.
To make a homemade Advent calendar look Christmassy, you can decorate it with fir branches, pine cones, and red ribbon. A bright or dark shade of red is particularly popular this year. The advantage of this idea is that you can not only use the Advent calendar in 2024 but can also fill it again in the coming years.
2. Hanging calendar
A classic Advent calendar is usually upright. So, how about hanging the calendar for a change? That sounds more adventurous than it really is. All you need is a large branch. You should dry and clean it well if you have found it on the forest floor during a walk in the woods. Once it is clean, you can attach it to the ceiling using strings. The little doors hang down from the branch, also attached with string.
With fir branches, fairy lights, Christmas baubles, and other ornaments, a hanging calendar can make quite an impression. It is best placed in front of a wall or window – this way it also serves as a Christmas decoration in the room.
3. House calendar
The motif of a house is particularly popular in 2024, both as a decorative element and as an Advent calendar. A homemade calendar with a wintery Christmas village look involves a bit of crafting – but it’s worth it! Making the houses is not too complicated. Basically, the houses are cubes or cuboids whose upper sides are formed into a roof. You can decorate individual houses with windows, doors, roof tiles, and more using pens.
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Creative filling material for the Advent calendar
As a rule, the real challenge of a homemade Advent calendar is not making the doors but filling them. Classics such as chocolate, lip balm, and toys (for children) always work, of course. The content of the little doors depends first and foremost on the person receiving the gift. But what ideas are there for filling the 2024 Advent calendar?
Rather than gifting material goods that may not resonate, consider offering the gift of experiences. Wellness, baking cookies, going to the movies, eating out, and a parachute jump on the 24th? As these gifts are a bit of a burden on the wallet, you can, of course, plan fewer doors or prepare lots of get-togethers at home.
Or how about the following idea: an advent calendar full of beautiful memories from the year 2024. In principle, this is a photo calendar. To round off the contents of the little doors, you can write a few kind words about the moment for each photo – i.e., each memory. For the 24th door, a disposable camera makes a perfect gift to capture new memories. Alternatively, you can put a small photo album in the last door to stick all the photos in. The individual photos can be put into envelopes and either given away in a box or strung on a string to create a garland.
The contents of the little doors can, of course, also be adapted to the interests of the person receiving the gift. A gardener will certainly be pleased to receive good seeds for the coming year. For someone who plays an instrument, you can give sheet music in each door. Cooking enthusiasts, on the other hand, will receive a new recipe to try out every day.