DIY: Farmhouse Advent Calendar + Free Advent Calendar Printables

Love is a great motivator. It prompted me to make a Vampirina-inspired pumpkin.

And it’s prompted me to create the Farmhouse Advent Calendar I’m sharing with you today. I wonder what crazy thing I’ll make for my granddaughter next?

She’ll be three in December so she won’t understand the concept but at least she’ll have fun opening the day’s goodie bags with her mom. I like the idea of those two starting the Advent calendar tradition. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. 😉

At the end of this post, I’m spreading the warm and fuzzy love by giving you all the free printables I used in this project. You’ll get the calendar cards, activity cards, and even the “Merry Christmas” phrase I used.

Who’s your favorite blogger now?!

A few creative notes:

I used transfer paper and ironed the cards on burlap bags so this calendar could be used year after year. You don’t have to do that if you don’t want to. An alternate suggestion, attach the cards to your bags and display them on the wall or mantle. No ironing involved.
I used twine and a blank canvas to create a hanging area for this calendar because we currently don’t have a mantel. You don’t have to use a canvas. Throw the bags in a festive basket and call it a day. Or hide them around the house. Let your creativity flow!

Whatever you decide to do, I hope this post inspires you and helps you have a very merry Christmas.

Materials I Used:

Printable Advent Cards + Activity Cards + Christmas phrase (printables can be found at the bottom of this post) Note: When cut out, each numbered Advent card measures approximately 3 x 3 inches.

Transfer Paper for inkjet printer

24 burlap bags

scissors

inkjet printer

iron

twine

staple gun + staples

18 x 24 canvas

measuring tape

mini clothespin clips

pencil

black Sharpie marker or acrylic paint

Instructions:

Completely read through the instructions on the transfer paper package before you start. Find out if your image has to be printed mirrored or not.

Use your inkjet printer to print out the Advent calendar cards. Cut each one out.

Heat your iron to the recommended setting (found on the transfer paper package).

Transfer each card to a burlap bag.

Tip: You can find a short video clip of this tutorial at the top of this post.

If you plan on hanging the bags on a canvas, lay them out first to see where you want them. Use a measuring tape and pencil to mark spaces and to keep things even.

Attach twine to your marked areas from one side of the canvas to the other. Use your staple gun to secure the twine onto the back of the canvas.

Print out the farmhouse style “Merry Christmas” phrase (found at the bottom of this post). Use a pencil and bright light to trace the outline onto your canvas. Color the area in with a black Sharpie marker or acrylic paint.

Remember, the font doesn’t have to be perfect. An imperfect look gives it that farmhouse, vintage vibe. If you mess up, cover the font with a bit of white acrylic paint and start over.

It’s going to look great when you’re done.

Does the font look familiar to you?

It’s Rae Dunn inspired!

The name of the font is The Skinny and it’s available to download for free! I’ve noticed that some crafters don’t share the specific fonts they’ve used and that’s a pet peeve of mine.

And because it’s a pet peeve, you’ve got the skinny! LOL

Moving on…

Attach a mini clip to each burlap bag.

Print out the Advent calendar activity cards (found at the bottom of this post), cut out, and insert one into each bag. Add a small treat if you want. I included a blank activity sheet in the download so you can write-in your own Christmas activities. I thought you’d like that part. 😉

Hang your Advent calendar bags up and admire your work!

Thank your lucky stars you didn’t have to design the Advent cards. Or the activity cards. Or the Christmas phrase. Cause I know you don’t have time like that!

Since the Advent printables took me a lot of time to create, I ask that you please only use my downloads for your personal use. Don’t sell them, redistribute them, or upload the printables anywhere. Those are all copyright violations (which is bad).

You can find our Image and Printables Terms of Use here.