The opportunity to receive small gifts every day is not only an exciting anticipation of Christmas, but also a real New Year's fairy tale for a little family member. The kid will like to open the boxes every morning and get a gift or creative task out of there. The editorial staff of the site "bestx.htgetrid.com/en/" will help to understand the questions: what is an advent calendar, how to choose it, how much does it cost, what mistakes can be made when choosing?
Content
Advent - waiting for the holiday
The preparations for Christmas, which begin on December 2 in Europe, are called Advent. An integral part of the preparation is the calendar, which sets the appropriate mood. Recently, interest in this tradition has awakened among the Orthodox.
The homeland of the diary is Germany. It was invented in the 19th century. Parents took a thick double cardboard, made 24 windows or pockets in it, which they filled with sweets. Every day the child took a sweet present from there and counted how many days were left until the main holiday. True connoisseurs of the fairytale tradition can order a gift from Germany.
Advent calendar is sold in all European countries, and is widespread in Russia. Many are engaged in handicrafts, involve children in this process.
Who should you give the Advent calendar to?
It is believed that counting the days before Christmas or New Year is interesting only for kids. Many adults also do not mind plunging into a fabulous atmosphere, again feeling like carefree children. A great gift for romantic girls, especially if it is not with sweets, but with cosmetics or samples. Many cosmetic companies release a men's calendar. The best ones are calendars presented with love!
When to give an Advent calendar?
The timing may differ from Europe. In Catholic countries, crafts are made or bought at the end of November. And from December 1, the countdown of the days until Christmas begins. In Russia, this holiday is not the main one. Many people give a calendar for the New Year, so as not to languish in anticipation of the holiday, but to continue it.
Statistics
In 2018, the portal "statista" conducted a study, during which it was revealed:
- 47% of the adherents of the tradition buy Advent for themselves;
- 18% make a calendar with their own hands;
- 15% receive it as a gift;
- 20% of respondents do not support the ceremony.
Types of Advent Calendars
The answer to the question: what kind of calendars are there is as follows: they differ in the number of days and in the content. From this, the selection criteria are formed.
By the number of days:
- 24;
- 31;
- 16 (16.12-31.12);
- 14;
- any number at the choice of the manufacturer or customer.
By filling:
- with gifts or toys;
- with chocolate;
- with tasks;
- with stickers or magnets;
- with cosmetics;
- with the office.
Specifications
| Characteristic | Description |
|---|---|
| Design | Advent calendar is tied to the New Year or Christmas, the decoration is done accordingly. |
| Topic | The calendar should be united by a theme.For example, a sweet diary filled with cosmetics or figures from the Harry Potter movie. |
| Compartments for gifts or assignments | Numbered boxes, pockets, envelopes, etc., in which gifts or tasks will be stored. |
| Filling | Sweets, toys, cosmetics, perfume (samples), wishes, riddles, tasks, office supplies, etc. |
Advent calendars from famous brands
The best manufacturers of cosmetics, chocolate, toys always prepare gifts for customers. There are both budget and premium books in their assortment. It's hard to say who is doing better. It is worth starting from the preferences and interests of the person to whom the gift is intended.
| Brand or store name | Description |
|---|---|
| OZON | You won't be able to buy a calendar in a regular supermarket. It is usually ordered online or purchased from large chain stores. There are many gifts in ozone with different fillings. The daily "Chudiki" is popular. You need to open one window every day and glue the figure on the postcard. If everything is done correctly, you get a New Year's wish. |
| IKEA | IKEA is the place to buy everything for your home. The stores have a huge number of houses, caps, envelopes, bags that fold into one original calendar, made by hand. |
| LINDT | Chocolate is a favorite gift for adults and children. LINDT chocolate bears are a separate kind of pleasure. The brand offers to choose sweets to your taste: with mint, with sea salt, with different cocoa content, etc. |
| KIEHL'S | KIEHL'S always prepares the most beautiful cosmetic calendars for the New Year. The kits include travel care products, creams, etc. |
| BALMANI | Traditionally, there are not many doors in the calendars from Balmani, but impressive gifts are hidden behind them. These are moisturizing shampoos, conditioners, hair sprays, combs, etc. |
| MARKS & SPENCER | The brand surprises with calendars in the form of elegant Christmas trees and classic boxes. MARKS & SPENCER always carefully selects the filling for its admirers. |
| Amazon | There are a lot of gifts on Amazon. Popular Models: Funko Advent Calendar $ 38.49, PLAYMOBIL Advent Calendar - Santa's Workshop $ 22.69, Nintendo Advent Calendar Super Mario $ 49.99, Melissa & Doug Countdown to Christmas Wooden Advent Calendar $ 14.99, etc. |
DIY calendar
An Advent gift doesn't look like a regular calendar. Creative natures who want to give free rein to imagination make it with their own hands. It can be textile in the form of a canvas with socks, pockets, handkerchiefs, etc. There are paper, cardboard, plastic sets. Calendars from rolls of toilet paper rolls look spectacular. The diary is created from any available means, and the process of making it is exciting!
It is good to involve children in the activity. Let it be simple figures, which then mom or dad will fill with tasks and prizes. You can tell the child that Santa Claus asked to prepare houses in which he will put gifts and cards with tasks at night. Below are tips and tricks for making calendars. It is not necessary to be completely guided by them, this is only the basis for your own unique gift.
Fabric calendar with pockets
Doesn't take up much space. Decorate a wall or door. The pockets are filled with gifts, sweets or assignments. The product can be used next year as well. Older children can sew pockets to the canvas, and the younger ones can glue numbers on them.
Recycling
The idea of reusing objects is interesting. Compartments for storing sweets are made by painted plastic glasses, toilet paper rolls, tin cans, etc. Items are hung on a rope or become parts of a tower or a Christmas tree.
Bright envelopes
Another option for New Year's wall decor is bright envelopes. United by one theme, they will be a wonderful home decoration for the holiday.
City made of paper
Toddlers who love handicraft will love the idea of creating a fairytale city. The number of days before the New Year is the number of houses.As in all other cases, there are absolutely no restrictions here. It can be a city based on your favorite fairy tale or completely fictional.
You can create containers for storing gifts from:
- matchboxes pasted over with colored paper and folded into a chest of drawers or a house;
- cups of yoghurt;
- capsules from kinder surprises or disposable shoe covers;
- pouches with lacing;
- holiday packages of different sizes;
- socks or mittens on a rope or ribbon;
- balloons;
- paper caps ...
Paper cones
Figures folded from paper using the origami technique look interesting. It is not difficult to make cones out of cardboard or paper and invite children to paint them or glue them with an applique on a winter theme. The blanks can be placed on a table or shelf in any sequence or hung by a rope.
Children love the flashlight decorations. If you illuminate them with an LED strip or a garland, the decor will become even more spectacular. You should not choose heavy gifts as content, otherwise the blanks may break.
Small bundles on clothespins
If the baby is still small, but wants to participate in the process, it is not necessary to make some kind of complex figure. A regular roll of paper, suspended from a ribbon with a clothespin, will do. Beautiful wrapping paper, colored clothespins, bright strings and mother's help will help the child effectively decorate the house.
Bank of secrets
For those who do not have time to create complex compositions, but want to do something with their own hands, an ordinary glass jar is suitable. Each gift must be put in a paper bag, write a number and placed in a container. An advent calendar that doesn't take up much space is ready.
Paper candy
A filled candy calendar is easy to make from wrapping paper or colorful fabric and toilet paper rolls.
Sequencing:
- Wrap a piece of paper or cloth around the core. The material is well glued with PVA glue. The dried glue becomes transparent and the fabric becomes stiff.
- Tie either end.
- Fill the blank with sweets, prizes, and a task.
- Tie the other end.
- Sweets are hung on a rope, they are used to decorate a Christmas tree, or glued to a piece of cardboard to hang on the wall.
Quests instead of surprises
The calendar will become even more interesting if you need to complete simple tasks to get the sweet prize. We can say that Santa Claus prepared them.
Some ideas:
- Complete the maze. The theme of the competition must be winter.
- Connect the drawing point by point and voice what happened.
- Count and write down how many trees, snowmen, houses, sledges, etc. are shown in the picture.
- Guess riddles.
- Draw, cut out snowflakes and decorate the room with them.
- Make a collage on a winter theme.
- To invent and draw what Santa Claus loves to eat.
- Make a map by which Santa Claus can get from Veliky Ustyug to the house where the baby lives.
- Draw a cartoon.
- Find out what each family member's name means.
Ranking of the best advent calendars
Below is a rating of high-quality New Year's books with gifts, their description, advantages and disadvantages. Customer reviews helped to compose it. The review will guide you in price, answer the question: which one is better to buy?
Advent calendar "Freaks"
"Chudiki" is a small wall poster from the famous illustrator of children's books, Leonid Shmelkov, which consists of 31 divisions. The essence of the game is to stick the figure in the correct place. By December 31, you will get a New Year's greetings with a wish. Average price: 433 rubles.
Advantages:
- bright interesting design;
- low cost;
- a large number of days.
Disadvantages:
- no gifts or sweet prizes.
Advent calendar with LED light
Wall calendar equipped with LED lights. In the center there is a New Year card framed by 24 pockets. You can put sweets or tasks with wishes in the pockets. Height - 62 cm, width - 75 cm, depth - 2 cm. Attached to the wall with metal fasteners. Average price: 1490 rubles.
Advantages:
- interesting design that creates a New Year mood;
- batteries included;
- beautiful lighting.
Disadvantages:
- there are no sweets or gifts included.
Advent Calendar: Harry Potter 24pc (Pkt POP)
Fans of the book or movie series will be delighted to receive the Harry Potter universe as a New Year's gift. The calendar is presented in cardboard boxes with surprises inside measuring 4.45 cm. Material - vinyl. The series was developed by Funko. Average price: 3 990 rubles.
Advantages:
- figures inside the boxes, which can be played after the holiday;
- a complete gift for Harry Potter lovers.
Disadvantages:
- Relatively high cost.
"New Year is about to ..."
In the book, the animals prepare to celebrate the main celebration of the year. But there were a number of surprises that can interfere with the New Year's mood. The child is offered to help the heroes of the calendar cope with difficulties by completing tasks.
There are 14 windows in the book. For such a number of days, the baby will open the compartment and help the inhabitants of the apartment. When the child copes with the task, he sticks a sticker to the corresponding number. Average price: 693 rub.
Advantages:
- low cost;
- several children can play at once.
Disadvantages:
- no sweets or other gifts.
ADVENT with HARIBO
Every year the HARIBO company publishes sweet books with more and more goodies. A great gift for adults and children. Package weight: 350 gr. Average price: 950 rubles.
Advantages:
- designed for any age;
- tasty contents of the cells;
- lack of lactose and gluten;
- inexpensive for the price.
Disadvantages:
- there is no pronounced element of the game.
Playmobil Christmas - Santa's Workshop
Santa's Workshop is a mind building kit. Includes 106 plastic parts and 3 mini-figures. Both boys and girls from 4 to 10 years old can play. Average price: 2 389 rubles.
Advantages:
- you can play the constructor even after the New Year;
- development of logic, fine motor skills and thinking.
Disadvantages:
- relatively high cost;
- may not be interesting for children over 10 years old.
"Marie"
The calendar in the form of bags with numbers on a hemp rope is a real New Year's decoration. Prepare any place in the house for the holiday. It will be pleasant for both children and adults to get sweets and small gifts from there. The set consists of 24 items. 11 cm wide, 14 cm high. The total length of "Marie" is 3 m. Average price: 1490 rubles.
Advantages:
- beautiful New Year's decor;
- surprises and sweets inside;
- low cost.
Disadvantages:
- not suitable for playing after the holiday.
LEGO Cities construction set
Plastic box with 5 minifigures and 342 parts inside. Will be a good present for children from 6 years old. The kit includes instructions. Develops logic and thinking. Compact package measuring 36x27x7 cm. Average price: 990 rubles.
Advantages:
- suitable for playing after the New Year;
- low cost;
- develops logic and thinking.
Disadvantages:
- you can not buy a set for small children due to the large number of small parts.
Advent with its traditions appeared not so long ago. Thanks for the emergence of the custom should be little Gerhard, who could not wait for the onset of Christmas. Every day he approached his mother with the same question: “when?”. As a result, the Advent calendar appeared.
Advent calendars are gaining popularity every year. Again we borrow from Western traditions, but I like the idea.It is magical to create an atmosphere of expectation of a holiday for a child. Indeed, I looked for ready-made calendars in stores and to no avail. But on the Internet there are many tips for creating them. Most of all I liked the idea with assignments. First, the child develops by playing. Secondly, many children are impatient and may open several prepared gifts at once. And so, you can encourage the child for the correct implementation or hide gifts every day, and in tasks make hints where they are hidden.