Non chocolate advent calendars

[HeyThatsNotMyName]

This year, I'd love to have advent calendars that don't involve chocolate every day in December! However, I have no idea what type of calendars are available for both adults and children. What have you bought before in the past that have gone down well with the recipients?

I've had picture ones and activity ones (where there's a fun thing to do every day) and toy ones (like Lego or Playmobil) and ime they only want chocolate
The picture ones were boring, the activity ones were a pita after a while (quite often we didn't feel like doing the activity) and the toy ones are just too damn expensive.
I have learnt my lesson: €1.99 chocolate advent calendar, job done.

My son used to like the Lego ones.

Dd has a fabric calendar made for her my one of my parents friends. In the past I put chocolate coins, small things (like rubbers, etc) in it. This year I'm thinking about little clues to where a gift is hidden.

DS (2 at the time) loved his Playmobil calendar last year (as did I tbh!). I had a Sanctuary one (which I got for my pre-xmas bday from my mum ), it was ok but I still have a lot of the products and threw some out as I’m not really a ‘smellies’ type.
DS also has a wooden calendar in which I put pieces of paper with activities written on. Eg bake cookies, watch Elf, go to see the lights at X etc.

(Activities obviously planned in advance in accordance with my diary - so i’ll have ingredients in, crafts planned, be planning to get the tree already that day etc)

Oh hang on, I've had a tea one in the past that was actually lovely - a different fancy tea bag to try every morning :D

The Marks and Spencer beauty advent calendar is normally pretty good (and good value compared to the Liberty/Space NK calendars which normally go for £150+!). Last year DP had a beer calendar which was a hit (around £25 or so I think) and DS has a playmobil one which was great (he didn’t even mind the window where it was only one half of a fence...). Thinking of getting DS a play doh one this year.

Dd2 has had a couple of Playmobil ones that she enjoys.
Last year she got a Wilko's brick one (less than half the price of a Lego one but just as much fun), and she liked building the little parts of the big scene each day. She's put the bricks back in the right windows so she can do it again this year.

I got dd1 a smiggle calendar a couple of years ago, before I knew what smiggle was. I thought it would be perfect for a teenage girl who loves stationery. I was wrong. She did laugh a lot though, as she opened up a bouncy ball or a pot of bubbles.

Dd1 got a candle one last year, which was a much better fit for a teenager.

I don't know what to get them this year.

Wilkos Lego is rubbish it just falls apart

As a child I loved the old fashioned picture ones as long as there was a bit of glitter on the front. I still love seeing those as was such a major part of Christmas for me. I had a chocolate one once and saved all the chocolate until Christmas Day. I never wanted one again, I preferred the picture ones.
I've got a wooden one I usually fill will chocolate coins or similar for the children but I really like the idea of placing an activity in there too. Baking cookies, seeing the lights, watch a Christmas movie etc. Thanks pp for that one

I got a mini activity one from the International Elf Service last year. It was fab. Hang on, let me find the link.

A Christian bookshop will have beautiful advent calendars. Or you could buy or make an advent candle to burn each evening...

It's this one which was brilliant for my 4 and 2 year olds. I'm going to get this year's too.

Over the last few years my dc have had:

Smiggle
Lego
Mega bloks Minions
Mega bloks TMNT
Playmobil
Playmobil 123
Barbie

This year they've asked for:

Lego Friends
Hot Wheels
Scheich Wildlife

Advent calendars have become far too commercial. They cost a fortune too. An advent calendar used to be about the countdown to Christmas and a period of reflection and now it's become yet another commercialised grabby item. £35 for an advent calendar? And that's one of the cheaper ones!

If you love the really traditional ones with nativity scenes and a bit of glitter sprinkled on them, buy them from a local church. I still ove those more than any chocolate calendar. The excitement of opening a door and finding a camel or a sheep or three wise men!

I've actually just written about this on another thread. I'm only doing chocolate ones this year. Last year my dc had a toy make up one and a peppa pig one, but I've decided not to this year. I feel like I want them to just have that overwhelming excitement you get thinking about how many sleeps until Father Christmas is here. Lay in their wee beds all cosy and abs daydreaming of the big day. I felt a bit of magic was taken away last year with them basically getting a toy gift every morning of December.

I had a lovely picture one for the kids this year. It was from the little shop they open in the church after Mass.
Unfortunately my mum insisted on buying fucking chocolate ones anyway

We have a reusable one - a wooden nativity scene with little compartments to open each day. Each has something to hang on the scene (a sheep/star/king etc) and space left for a sweet/choc if you want to put something in.

@Giraffeski I love picture ones now, when I was small I always wanted a chocolate, which is why I buy my dc choc ones. Probably when they're older they'll resent me for not getting them a Lego advent calendar 😂

I love the picture ones, but my DS and DD fight over them. Does my head in

@Dontletthebastardsgrindyoudown hah, they'll probably hate me for it! My mum overdoes Christmas in my opinion anyway, my husbands family have a much more frugal approach (I realise that makes them sound like misers but they aren't), one thoughtfully chosen present is enough, that sort of thing. They do however place great emphasis on spending time with family and having fun which I have come to prefer to opening piles and piles of gifts.
My mum provides heaps of stuff that we never use or want, saying things like 'I know you said you don't have any room but I saw this .... giant toy kitchen(we already have one)/keyboard (we have a piano and dc are having lessons)/insert inappropriate large gift of your choice
Of course we are polite and don't moan- but I wish she would dial it back and the advent calendars are symptomatic of this. She knows I don't want them to have chocolate ones ( the youngest is 3 so don't really like chocolate every day anyway) so her buying them feels like her yet again ignoring my wishes.

But. Sorry to hijack the original thread, I love my picture advent calendar anyway. I have seen a website which sells picture advent calendars. Can't remember name of it though so can't post a link which is possibly not that helpful

I wish I’d stuck with the choc ones or better yet known where to get the picture ones at the start. It’s very hard to go back from the lego ones and I agree that some of the magic gets lost in getting a present every morning. DS1 has autism and not doing something that he’s come to expect will probably result in a meltdown every single morning (which is a whole other kind of advent calendar )

WhSmiths do picture ones usually.
Crayola do a nice art one
Making your own is an option you can also do your own lego one buy small set and give couple if pieces a day. Hobbycraft sell decorate your own boxes for advent then u can use them every year.
Lakeland have done some nice ones but expensive

This is the website!!!

www.traditionaladventcalendars.co.uk/advent-calendars/nativity-religious-advent-calendars.html