Tell me about your advent calendars.

[pinkksugarmouse]

It’s not a thing I do but then there isn’t anything in any calendar I have seen that suits me. I’m allergic to alcohol. I’m a soap & water girl no cosmetics and don’t wear makeup and I am vegan so that cuts out a lot of the food ones.
But I watch YouTubers who open advent calendars and find it fascinating and do you think they (or maybe last years one) is value for money?
Please stay nice. It’s meant as a lighthearted thread.

There are some nice candle ones that are vegan friendly or if you like collecting certain things I’ve seen people loving funko pop ones, Lego, miniature food etc

I prefer an old fashioned one with just pictures behind the doors...but DH arrived home last week with both a Tony's Chocolonely and a Percy Pig one so I've joined the chocolate for breakfast club, not complaining too much!

It’s just no for me to be honest but I am curious about other peoples traditions. I consider myself to be an anthropologist and nosey. 🤣

My malteasers one is lovely.

I also have a Sherlock Holmes one, with a different mystery to solve each day. I forget most of the solutions during the year so its repeated fun.

I have three 😊

All are just picture ones. Two are from charities I support and one was a gift from DH. I adore picture advent calendars and keep them and look through them every year. They were my happiest bit of Christmas as a child and still rank in the top 5.

I have a picture one. It’s lovely. My adult DDs also have picture ones. They are the only ones I’d ever get.

I've got a cheese one this year. For OH I've done a basket full of different things and bits. Last year mum got me a pop funko nightmare before Xmas one. Still very happy with it. I'm allergic to chocolate so it keeps things interesting

Slightly different but I have an advent candle and I love lighting it every night (and then forgetting for four days and having to catch up!)

I have an Angela Harding art one I use every year. DHs mum also bought us a Hotel Chocolat one this year, so that's nice

Here’s mine. Just little pictures, nice and corny.🎄

I’ve got a jigsaw one with little puzzles to do every day. I love it!

I have a beautiful fabric one shaped like a Christmas tree with Christmas pictures embroidered on each pocket. My mums German pen pal sent it for me when I was tiny. DD has one from hobby craft that I personalised for her with my cricut. Hers isn’t as fancy as mine but she loves it. I’ve filled them with chocolate coins, mini choc santas and little packs of haribo.

We have this one, it was made for me and my little brother by my gran, we shared it until I moved out and then when I had my eldest it was passed down to us, we've been using it for 9 years. We do a mix of sweets and chocolate, and they each have a cheap chocolate one from Aldi (Jurassic world this year, very festive 🙄)

We adults don't have one, we did last year, but haven't bothered this year. I think you can get advent calendars for almost anything, last year FIL sent OH one full of fishing tackle!

That’s absolutely gorgeous, @Sidking - you must have really loved it. And still do, I expect!

I made this one for then very little Gdcs a few years ago - it’s huge, just fits nicely on the back of their kitchen door. I did some of the pockets in green and didn’t knit the ‘ribbon’ -the rest took quite long enough, what with all the pockets and little inserts - I stitched on a tartan ribbon instead.
Gdcs love it, though, so it was worth it.,

We have a reusuable one where you put little presents in. It was very fun when DD was 3 and excited about a bouncy ball.

Now DD is 10 she stil expects us to find 24 exciting presents 🤦‍♀️

@GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER Thats gorgeous Where is it from?

I have two. One is a little German mini record player with different discs for each day - Christmas toons obvs. It’s not strictly an advent calendar as you don’t open a door each day but you do put on a different daily disc.

My other one is a Bonne Maman jam one. I wouldn’t usually bother but Ocado was selling them off cheap on 2 Dec so thought why not? Day 1 was a spoon and each subsequent day has been a mini pot of jam - all quite different eg grapefruit & dragonfruit, plum & lime blossom etc. Will share with family who all like jam.

DC (19 & 16) have Tony Chocolonely ones they are enjoying.

My 12-year-old daughter has two - one ordinary chocolate one and an Essence DIY make-up calendar that had to be imported from Germany (thankfully my parents and best friend live in Germany and my friend was visiting London before Christmas so managed to bring it after my parents bought it). It's great value for money if you can get it imported 😂 It cost 20 Euros snd has loads of nice cosmetics. Apparently Essence is very "in" among preteens/teens nowadays

@Withholdingvitalinfo My other one is a Bonne Maman jam one. I wouldn’t usually bother but Ocado was selling them off cheap on 2 Dec so thought why not? Day 1 was a spoon and each subsequent day has been a mini pot of jam - all quite different eg grapefruit & dragonfruit, plum & lime blossom etc. Will share with family who all like jam

This sounds amazing! Do you mind saying hoe much you got it for? I would love one of those

how*

Sure - it was £6 reduced from £24

I’ve got a book one, DH got for me (I don’t usually have one), it’s got books and treats so a book every other day.

I got DH a tool one he was really excited about that, the dc have a Lego one, a book one and a stationary one eldest has a make up one.

I’m a bit bah humbug about the modern trend for advent calendars full of mini things. I’m not religious and I know when Christmas is, so as an adult it just seems a bit wasteful in terms of packaging to buy an advent calendar

I like the idea of the ones for children where you build a bit of a scene every day, but the ones where you get a bit of stationery or plastic tat they probably don’t really want…I’d rather buy a child one decent toy instead. I have a wooden, painted Hobbycraft calendar in my classroom that I fill for my pupils, depending on the class I have, depends on what goes in there. In the past, there have been seed packets, gemstones, Christmas tattoos, treat activities, etc.

The adult ones with cosmetics, candles, alcohol etc., I can see why people get excited about them, but I find myself reading the list of items that you get inside and then decide that I’d rather spend my money on a couple of full sized products that I actually want.

I’m probably a bit miserable.

@JenniferBooth , that’s just a pic of the knitting pattern - Gdcs have the one I made. I expect the pattern’s still available, if you Google Sirdar Advent Calendar or Alan Dart ditto (the designer). It’s very time consuming but worth it.

PS, there’s a stiff cardboard backing to it. But the pattern worked very well.