Advent has become one of my favourite times of year. There’s something special about those four weeks leading up to Christmas—a period of anticipation, preparation, and increasingly in our household, creativity. With our 2.5-year-old daughter now at an age where she can participate in crafts and understand the concept of counting down to something exciting, this year’s Advent season feels particularly meaningful.
Steve and I have been intentional about creating Advent traditions that go beyond simply opening chocolate each day. Whilst there’s nothing wrong with chocolate advent calendars (and we have one of those too!), we wanted to incorporate activities, crafts, and traditions that make the season feel special and create lasting memories. As a family that values creativity, sustainability, and hands-on activities, Advent crafts have become central to how we celebrate this season.
Understanding Advent
What is Advent?
Advent is the period of four weeks before Christmas, beginning on the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day. Traditionally a season of spiritual preparation in Christian tradition, Advent has evolved to encompass various secular customs focused on anticipation, family time, and festive preparation.
Why Advent Matters
In our increasingly fast-paced world, Advent provides a structured way to slow down and savour the approach of Christmas rather than rushing headlong into it. The daily ritual of advent activities creates touchpoints throughout December, helping children (and adults) manage the excitement and anticipation.
Advent in Our Family
We approach Advent as a season of creativity, connection, and preparation. It’s when we make decorations, create gifts, engage in festive activities, and build anticipation for Christmas Day. The crafts and activities we do during Advent often become the decorations, gifts, and memories that define our Christmas.
Creating an Advent Calendar
Beyond Chocolate
Whilst our daughter has a chocolate advent calendar (vegan, naturally), we’ve also created an activity-based advent calendar that’s become the centrepiece of our December mornings. Each day reveals a small activity, craft, or experience rather than just a treat.
Our Reusable Fabric Calendar
We invested in a reusable fabric advent calendar with pockets that we can fill differently each year. It hangs in our living room, and each morning our daughter chooses the correct numbered pocket to open. Inside, she finds a small note describing the day’s activity or a tiny item related to a craft we’ll do together.
Filling the Calendar
Planning what goes into each pocket takes thought, but it’s become something I enjoy. I aim for a mix of:
- Craft activities we’ll do together
- Small outings (looking at Christmas lights, visiting a Christmas market)
- Baking projects
- Acts of kindness or giving
- Simple treats or small toys
- Festive films to watch together
- Christmas books to read
The variety keeps each day interesting and ensures we’re not just consuming but also creating, giving, and experiencing.
Advent Crafts for Young Children
Paper Chain Countdown
One of our first Advent activities is creating a paper chain with 24 links—one for each day until Christmas. Our daughter helps choose the colours, and we make the chain together using festive craft paper and child-safe glue sticks.
Each evening, she gets to remove one link, providing a visual countdown to Christmas. It’s simple, but she absolutely loves the ritual of tearing off each day’s link and watching the chain get shorter.
Handprint and Footprint Crafts
We create several keepsake crafts using our daughter’s handprints and footprints—reindeer made from footprints, Christmas trees from handprints, snowmen from thumbprints. These become decorations for this year and treasured keepsakes for the future.
A set of washable, non-toxic craft paints is essential for these projects. We’ve learnt to do messy crafts in the kitchen with plenty of wipes nearby and our daughter in clothes we don’t mind getting paint on!
Salt Dough Ornaments
Making salt dough ornaments has become an annual tradition. The dough is simple—flour, salt, and water—and our daughter loves helping mix and knead it. We use cookie cutters to create shapes, make holes for hanging, and once baked and cooled, we paint and decorate them together.
These handmade ornaments go on our tree each year, and it’s lovely watching our collection grow. Some are beautifully painted; others are enthusiastically splattered with paint by a toddler. All are treasured.
Paper Plate Crafts
Paper plates are wonderfully versatile for Christmas crafts. We’ve made paper plate Santa faces, wreaths, snowmen, and angels. These crafts are age-appropriate for toddlers—simple enough to be achievable but engaging enough to hold their attention.
Pom-Pom Decorations
We’ve created garlands and decorations using pom-poms in festive colours. Our daughter loves the sensory experience of handling the soft pom-poms, and gluing them onto card or threading them onto string (with supervision) develops her fine motor skills.
Nature Crafts
During our walks with the dogs, we collect natural materials—pine cones, interesting twigs, holly (carefully, as the berries are toxic to pets and children), evergreen branches. Back home, these become the basis for various crafts—painted pine cones, natural wreaths, table decorations.
A craft storage organiser with compartments has been invaluable for keeping our collected natural materials, along with buttons, ribbons, and other craft supplies, organised and accessible.
Advent Wreath Tradition
Creating Our Wreath
We’ve adopted the tradition of an Advent wreath—a circular wreath with four candles (traditionally three purple and one pink, though we’ve simplified to four white candles for safety and simplicity). Each Sunday of Advent, we light another candle.
We made our wreath together using a foam base, evergreen branches from our garden, and decorations our daughter chose. It sits on our dining table throughout Advent, and the weekly candle-lighting has become a meaningful ritual.
Safety Considerations
With a toddler and pets, candle safety is paramount. Our wreath sits in the centre of the table, well out of reach. We only light the candles when we’re all sitting together for a meal, and they’re never left unattended. We’ve also discussed fire safety with our daughter in age-appropriate terms.
Daily Advent Activities
Week One: Preparation and Decoration
The first week of Advent focuses on preparing our home for Christmas. Activities include:
- Decorating the Christmas tree
- Making paper snowflakes for windows
- Creating a festive garland
- Crafting Christmas cards for family
- Making gift tags
- Decorating the mantelpiece
- Creating a winter scene in a jar
Week Two: Giving and Kindness
The second week emphasises generosity and thinking of others:
- Making treats for neighbours
- Creating bird feeders for garden birds
- Choosing toys to donate
- Making cards for elderly neighbours
- Baking biscuits to share
- Creating care packages
- Donating to a chosen charity
Week Three: Experiences and Outings
The third week includes special outings and experiences:
- Visiting Christmas lights displays
- Attending a local Christmas market
- Taking a festive walk to spot Christmas decorations
- Visiting a garden centre to see decorations
- Having a special hot chocolate outing
- Attending a Christmas carol service
- Watching a Christmas pantomime or show
Week Four: Final Preparations
The final week focuses on last-minute preparations and building excitement:
- Wrapping presents together
- Making Christmas Eve boxes
- Baking Christmas treats
- Writing thank you notes for gifts received early
- Creating Christmas Eve traditions
- Final decoration touches
- Preparing for Christmas Day
Craft Supplies and Organisation
Essential Supplies
Building a collection of craft supplies has made Advent activities much easier. Our essential supplies include:
- Coloured card and paper
- Child-safe scissors
- Glue sticks and PVA glue
- Washable paints and brushes
- Markers and crayons
- Glitter (used sparingly and carefully!)
- Pom-poms, buttons, and embellishments
- Ribbon and string
- Cookie cutters in festive shapes
- Stickers
A comprehensive children’s craft supplies kit provides most of these basics in one purchase, which is more economical than buying items separately.
Storage Solutions
Keeping craft supplies organised prevents the frustration of searching for items mid-activity. We use a dedicated craft storage box with compartments, and I keep a separate box specifically for Christmas craft supplies that comes out each Advent.
Preparation
I’ve learnt that a bit of preparation makes craft activities much more enjoyable. I pre-cut complicated shapes, set out supplies before announcing the activity, and have cleaning supplies ready. This preparation means I can focus on enjoying the activity with our daughter rather than scrambling to find scissors or clean up spills.
Managing Advent with a Toddler
Realistic Expectations
Crafting with a 2.5-year-old means accepting that results will be imperfect, the process will be messy, and some activities will hold her attention longer than others. The goal is enjoyment and connection, not perfect Pinterest-worthy results.
Flexibility
Some days, our planned activity doesn’t work—she’s not in the mood, we’re too busy, or it’s just not the right day. We’ve learnt to be flexible, sometimes swapping activities or simplifying plans. The advent calendar is a guide, not a rigid schedule.
Involvement
Our daughter is genuinely involved in our Advent crafts—she’s not just watching me create things. Her contributions might be enthusiastic glitter sprinkling or wonky gluing, but they’re real contributions that make the crafts authentically hers.
Celebrating Imperfection
The lopsided paper chains, the salt dough ornaments with too much paint, the cards with scribbled signatures—these imperfections are what make our Advent crafts special. They’re evidence of a toddler’s participation and creativity, and they’re far more precious than anything shop-bought.
Sustainable Advent Practices
Reusable Elements
We’ve invested in reusable Advent items—our fabric calendar, our wreath base, storage boxes for ornaments. These items are used year after year, reducing waste and building continuity.
Natural Materials
We prioritise natural, biodegradable materials where possible—paper rather than plastic, natural decorations rather than synthetic, homemade rather than shop-bought.
Minimal Waste
We’re conscious about not creating excessive waste. Craft projects use materials we already have or natural items we’ve collected. We avoid single-use decorations and focus on creating things that will be treasured or can be composted.
Experiences Over Things
Many of our Advent activities are experiences rather than things—walks, outings, baking together, reading stories. These create memories without adding to material clutter.
The Role of Advent in Managing Christmas Anticipation
Channelling Excitement
Advent provides a structured way to channel our daughter’s growing excitement about Christmas. Rather than just waiting impatiently, she has daily activities to look forward to and participate in.
Teaching Patience
The daily rhythm of Advent teaches patience—Christmas is coming, but not yet. Each day brings us closer, and that anticipation is part of the joy.
Creating Meaning
Advent activities give depth and meaning to the Christmas season beyond just presents. Our daughter is learning that Christmas involves creativity, generosity, family time, and preparation—not just receiving gifts.
Involving the Whole Family
Steve’s Role
Steve has become surprisingly invested in our Advent traditions. He’s taken ownership of certain activities—he’s the master of salt dough ornament baking, and he leads our Christmas lights walks. His involvement makes Advent a family endeavour rather than just something I organise.
Extended Family
We sometimes invite grandparents or other family members to join us for Advent activities. Making crafts together or attending a Christmas market as an extended family creates shared memories and strengthens bonds.
Including Pets
Our dogs and cats are part of our Advent season too. We make special treats for them, include them in family photos with our crafts, and ensure they’re safe around decorations and materials. They’re part of our family, so they’re part of our celebrations.
Looking Forward
As our daughter grows, our Advent traditions will evolve. She’ll be able to tackle more complex crafts, participate more independently, and perhaps develop her own Advent traditions to add to ours. What I hope remains constant is the spirit of creativity, anticipation, and family connection that defines our Advent season.
Steve, who initially thought Advent was “just a calendar with chocolate,” has become one of its biggest advocates. He’s already planning activities for next year’s advent calendar and has strong opinions about which crafts should become annual traditions.
Final Thoughts
Advent has transformed how we experience December. Rather than Christmas feeling like it arrives suddenly after a frantic period of preparation, we now have four weeks of intentional, joyful anticipation. The crafts we create together become our decorations, our gifts, and our memories.
The beauty of Advent crafts and traditions is that they don’t need to be elaborate or expensive. Simple paper chains, handprint crafts, and collected natural materials can create just as much joy as costly purchased decorations. What matters is the time spent together, the creativity shared, and the anticipation built day by day.
Whether you’re celebrating Advent for the first time or looking to refresh your traditions, I encourage you to embrace the creative possibilities of this season. Let your children lead with their ideas, accept imperfection, and focus on the process rather than the product. The wonky ornaments and enthusiastic glitter explosions are what make Advent crafts truly special—they’re evidence of childhood, creativity, and family time well spent.
As we enter this year’s Advent season, I’m looking forward to our daily crafting sessions, the excitement on our daughter’s face as she opens each pocket of the advent calendar, and the gradual transformation of our home as it fills with handmade decorations. These four weeks of preparation and creativity have become as treasured as Christmas Day itself.
