One of the best things about the beginning of December is pulling out the decorations and getting ready for the holidays. Advent calendars are a fun way to keep track of the days you have left until Christmas. I remember, as a kid, moving the little star from day to day and getting more and more excited as it got closer to the 24th and 25th.
The one that I have created her takes the form of the Nordic Christmas Calendar and starts counting on December 1st and ends with Christmas day. The materials used will depend on how you want your calendar to look. They can be made of painted wood, fabric, paper, and more. As always there is no wrong answer. Here I have chosen to go the fabric route and make good use out of my random scraps of trim and batting. If you are not comfortable with a sewing machine, you can use a fabric glue. I do not recommend letting the little ones construct this one. They will enjoy supervising and decorating the little tree though, I am sure.
You will need:
¾ yard green felt
¼ yard white felt cut into 2’’ by 2’’ squares
Various colored scraps
Trim scraps
Puffy fabric paint
Ribbon
Pipe cleaners in red and white
The process I used:
1.
Draw your tree pattern and cut it out of your green felt. I folded my felt in half to make sure both sides are the same when cutting. Sewing them together around the edge with extra batting left over from a quilt I’m working on giving it some stability as well as a little depth with some simple quilting.
2. You will want to write the numbers from 1 to 25 on the 2’’ squares with the puffy paint and allow to dry completely.
3.
Cutting ornament shapes from smaller scraps of felt, we placed them on the tree and topstitched them down. Again, you can glue them in place if you do not want to sew. Less is more at this point since you will be adding the date pockets on top of these guys. once the numbers are dry, you can place them on the tree to test your layout.
4. Attach your trim. I used hot glue for this since I used sequins and wanted them to lay on top and not press into the tree.
5. Finalize position of the date pocket and attach them to the tree at the sides and bottom. I top stitched them but glue can be used here as well.
6. Twist together red and white pipe cleaners, fold in half and twist again. Bend into candy cane shape.
7. Attach ribbon to the top of the tree and to the candy cane. The ribbon needs to be long enough to reach all pockets easily. Add a loop of ribbon to top as a hanger.
8. Tuck candy cane into the pocket to mark the days and enjoy for years to come.