Can you believe that it’s almost December? We’re getting excited to do some holiday upcycling and thought we’d kick it off with the top 5 best DIY advent calendars. Advent calendars are fun to make and receive and really build excitement up to Christmas. We’ve made one using muffin pans but also want to share some great ideas using clothespins, matchbooks, tin cans and newspaper. Read on to see our list of top 5 best DIY advent calendars.

Muffin Advent Calendar

Our homemade muffin advent calendar was super easy to make. You will need 1-2 muffin trays, wrapping paper or other paper, a mug to trace circles, a pair of scissors, numbers and a glue stick. Our trays make 12 muffins each so we needed 2 trays. Find a cup or mug that is slightly larger than your muffin tray circles. Use it to trace circles on paper. Cut out your circles and number them. We chose to print out numbers and glue them on. You could also stamp, or write numbers directly onto your advent circles. Add your advent treats to the muffin trays and put glue on the perimeter of your paper circles to attach them to your trays. Voila, a muffin advent calendar!

Clothespin advent calendar

Next up on our list of the best DIY advent calendars is this gorgeous clothespin advent calendar. To make this, find a scrap piece of wood and paint it white. You will use this wood as the base of your clothespin advent calendar. Next stamp numbers horizontally along the painted wooden board using acrylic paint. Paint clothespins red and white and allow them to dry. Once dry, glue them to the board using wood glue. Add strips of washi tape to the top of the clothespins for effect. Wrap your presents in brown paper and tie them with string. This type of string is called baker’s twine and comes in a variety of colours. Hang your wrapped packages from the clothespins and admire your handiwork.

Source: Ramme Alvor

Matchbook advent calendar

Our next feature for the top 5 best DIY advent calendars is this matchbook advent calendar. This advent calendar features a lovely twist on the original. Rather than sweets and treats, the daily advent matchbooks contain names of friends. Write 24 friend’s names on pieces of paper and put them in the matchbooks. Cover the matchbooks with paper or thin birch plywood paper. Add numbers and a design to the matchbooks. Tie a branch up and attach the matchbooks to the branch. Add a box with blank postcards under the advent calendar. Each day as you open your matchbook it will reveal a friend’s name, you then write that friend a postcard from the box of postcards below. This matchbook advent calendar is all about sending your friends a good old fashioned piece of snail mail, too sweet!

Source: The Merrythought

Tin can advent calendar

We love that this advent calendar uses the readily available material of tin cans. This tin can advent calendar makes our list of best DIY advent calendars because it looks great and is easy to make. Simple and effective is often the best way to go. To make your own, gather enough tin cans and sand the edges so that they are no longer sharp. Then paint your cans a glossy red. Spray paint would work well for this. Next, drill holes in the sides of your cans and twist wire to make handles. Cut number silhouettes out of white vinyl stickers or use other numbered stickers. Suspend a branch and add nails to hang your tin can advent buckets from. This tin can advent calendar has traditional treats inside and also slips of paper with ideas for fun family activities.

Source: Skip to My Lou

Newspaper advent calendar

A list of the best DIY advent calendars wouldn’t be complete without this stunning newspaper advent calendar. The black and white motif is dramatically gorgeous and we love all the details with the different bits of paper. To make these awesome advent pouches, roll up pieces of newspaper and sew a zig-zag stitch along the bottoms and sides. Stuff the treats inside and then close the mouth in the opposite direction to the base of the pouch. Seal it by sewing a zig-zag stitch along the top. Cut free-form flags from black and white star paper. Decorate cards with washi tape and add a numbered sticker. Punch holes and add metal eyelets. String your newspaper pouches with baker’s twine. Our favourite details is the old-fashioned punch labels. If you have an old-school labeling machine be sure to use it to add the vintage tape messages.

Source: Casa di Falcone

There you have it, our top 5 best DIY advent calendar ideas. Will you be making an advent calendar this year? Let us know in the comments if you have other upcycled advent calendar ideas!