How to Create a Paper Christmas Calendar

"O du fröhliche, o du selige

Gnadenbringende Weihnachtszeit!

Welt ging verloren

Christ ist geboren

Freue, freue dich, o Christenheit!"

As I'm listening to this famous German Christmas Carol which talks of Christ's birth, I remember the Christmasses of my childhood. Beautifully decorated houses with advent wreaths and Christmas trees and the smell of Christmas cookies baking in the oven. If we were lucky - and many times we were! - it would snow on the days leading up to Christmas and we could build snowmen and use our sleds to slide down the local sledding hill.

Another thing that was a constant companion of those Christmas days were the different advent calendars that we had in our home. My mother hung up a beautiful nativity scene where the stars were put up one by one as the days went by. 23 stars and one special one in the form of a shooting star. We also had a classic calendar with 24 numbered small bags with treats inside. And, of course, we all had our own classic paper christmas calendar with the 24 or sometimes 25 doors to open.

What is a paper Advent Calendar?

In contrast to other Christmas Calendars that are filled with sweets or small gifts, a paper Advent Calendar is 'empty'. Since it is made of two simple sheets of paper, there is nothing inside for you to take out. However, there are drawings or messages hidden behind each of the 24 windows (or doors) that you can see on the decorated top layer of the calendar. These doors are pre-cut or punched into the thick top paper so you can open them without any troubles. Once open, you can then admire the hidden picture.

The first door is open

How to create your own paper Christmas Calendar

In Switzerland it's very simple to buy a paper Advent Calendar. Most retail stores have a selection for sale in November. The same is true for most European countries. But what about those of us living in countries with different or no Christmas traditions? Or what if we're tired of buying those over-commercialized Christmas products?
The good news is: it's fairly easy and straightforward to design and create your own paper Christmas Calendar. All materials needed are easy to get and you'll just have to add some of your time and creativity. Et voilà!

Materials you'll need

This list is meant as a starting point for creating the calendar. You can always add things depending on your design and skills!

1 sheet of thick paper (thick sketching paper or similar)
1 sheet of thin paper (printing paper or similar), same size or smaller than the thick paper
a pencil
a black felt pen, non smear or waterproof
coloured pencils, watercolours, brushes, felt pens, etc.
paper glue
a window
a cutter
a piece of thick cardboard or old wood

Steps to creating the Christmas calendar

Choose a Design: First, you'll be creating the top layer for your calendar. This is the decorated part of the calendar. You can choose any theme or picture you like. A snowy landscape, a starry sky or a funny looking reindeer. You can also make an abstract painting or just draw boxes of different colours. I chose a snow covered house for my design.
Make a Sketch: With the pencil sketch your picture and mark where you'll want the windows or doors to open. This doesn't necessarily has to be actual doors or windows of the drawing but could also be 24 squares distributed over the paper. Mark the windows with the black felt pen. I then drew my whole picture with black felt pen since I wanted to simply colour it later.

I drew a wintery house with lots of windows

Start painting/colouring: Using your coloured pencils or watercolours paint the whole picture or just the parts you want to be colourful.

Starting to add some colour

Finish your picture: Make sure it looks just like you wanted!

the final version of the main image

Mark the locations for the inside pictures on a second piece of paper: The easiest way to do this is to put the thinner paper for the inside pictures on top of the thick paper with the main picture and place both on a well-lit window. Then you simply trace the locations of the windows with a pencil. This way, you'll know exactly where to draw the small inside pictures!

marking the locations for the inside pictures

Draw the inside pictures: Using coloured pencils or watercolours or similar, paint a small picture into each of the spaced marked on the thinner paper. These will be the pictures one sees after opening the doors of the calendar.

the inside pictures (on the right)

Cut out the windows: Using a sharp cutter, cut out the windows on the main picture. Remember to always leave one side intact so the windows can be opened like real windows!
Glue the papers together: Using a glue stick, glue the two papers together. Make sure the inside pictures align with the windows. I recommend using glue stick and not liquid glue since the latter tends to wrinkle the paper when drying!
Admire the finished product!

All done!

Now that you're all finished, the calendar is ready to be hung up or gifted to the lucky person receiving it. It can be hung on a wall or window. I like it on my window because the light shines through the windows giving it this special touch.

On December 1st you (or whoever received the calendar) can start opening the windows, one each day until Christmas arrives.

Other crafts and decorations for the Christmas season

If you liked this craft idea for the Christmas season, I'll leave you a few more recommendations for Swiss Christmas crafts and hope they'll bring much fun and joy to you!

Advent Wreaths: These beautiful wreaths are crafted from fir or pine tree branches and decorated with four large candles, nuts, and other Christmassy items.
Swiss Christmas Cookies: Christmas in Switzerland is not complete without a wide selection of different Christmas Cookies. My personal favourite is the Mailänderli.
Candle Dipping: Yes, this is a thing in Switzerland. It's usually a public community activity which means you'll get to meet lots of neighbours and other people as well!

A Humorous Guide to Switzerland

Search This Blog