Make your own christmas advent calendar with me!

 
Overnight, despite all odds and lockdown measures, a sense of Christmas has crept in. The lights are up, people’s noses are pink from the cold and there’s a feeling of grace and awe and togetherness. While I don’t celebrate Christmas in a traditional way having had a very non-conventional life I do love the idea that it is another opportunity to celebrate love in all its forms and to make certain those we love, know it.
 
This weekend I’ve handmade a very sweet little Christmas tree from foraged branches covered in moss, holly and pinecones and turned it into an advent calendar with tiny chocolate parcels, love letters, as a surprise for someone special, and you asked me to show you how, so here we go:
 

PREPERATION:
A week earlier I went for a long walk with my friend Nadia and together we foraged for twigs, pine cones and holly from the nearby parks and wilds. Finding things in nature is literally the most satisfying thing so that part in itself was so fun.
That same weekend I ordered red and white twine and little cardboard pillow boxes from Amazon in anticipation of my advent calendar project. I also went to my favourite bulk whole foods place The Source Brighton and collected 8 different types of nuts, chocolates and fun treats to fill the boxes with.
 
 
THEN:
STEP 1. Organise twigs in a triangle shape.
STEP 2. Measure out the length of the twine.
STEP 3. Tie and knot it around each twig.
 

STEP 4. Place the 24 gifts and parcels across the twigs as you want them and number them. Something helpful to consider if they vary in contents (like mine do) is to spread the weight out across the twig tree so it is balanced when it hangs.
STEP 5. This is the most time consuming, fun and precarious part! Tying all the little parcels to the tree. I mixed in a few watercolour cards with handwritten notes on the back to make it more interesting and add a little colour.
STEP 6. Decorate with pinecones and holly. I found it easier to decorate by hanging the entire advent calendar tree up so I could see how things hung and balanced to get a good idea where the additional trimmings could go.
 
Enjoy! x
 
N.B. Do you remember last year when I lived in Mexico I made Ojo de Dios for Christmas for all my friends? You can make them with me here.