With the month of December just around the corner, I can hardly wait to begin counting down the days until Christmas with my little guy. This year, I’m trying something new: Advent Stockings.

Recently I was flipping through a catalog of a popular home furnishing store when I spotted a picture of a garland with advent stockings. This advent calendar idea intrigued me, but I couldn’t justify paying $75 for it. That’s when I realized I could make my own version of the Advent Stockings at a much-reduced cost.

So over the weekend, I gathered supplies for this project at my local Hobby Lobby. In total, I invested no more than two hours of my time making the Advent Stockings.

The hardest part of this project for me was writing the numbers on the stockings with the glitter glue. A few times, the numbers didn’t look all that great, and so I had to wipe away the glue with a damp cloth and try again. Other than that, this project was simple, and I am delighted with the finished project.

Christmas Advent Stockings Project

Supplies:

• 25 small felt stockings
• About 50 feet of ribbon
• Glitter glue (for numbering stockings)

Estimated Cost of Project ~ $18

Assembly Directions:

With the glitter glue, write the numbers 1 through 24 on all but one of the stockings. For the last stocking, write “Christmas.” Allow the glitter glue to dry for several hours, preferably overnight. In the meantime, cut 25 pieces of ribbon—each 2 feet long. When glue is dry on the stockings, slide a ribbon through each stocking hanger and tie the stockings in order (1, 2, 3, etc.) to a banister (as I did—see picture below) or to garland. Stuff stockings with desired treats and begin your Christmas countdown on December 1st with stocking #24 (then #23, #22, and so on).

Stocking Stuffing Ideas:

Each Christmas season, I look for ways to help my family focus on the significance of Jesus’ birth. With the Advent Stockings, I’m planning to include a treat along with the following two Christ-centered items in each of the stockings:

(1) Bible verses about Jesus, including prophecy of His coming (e.g., Isaiah 9:6), His genealogy (Matthew 1:16-17), the events surrounding His birth (e.g., Luke 2:8-11), and His character and teachings (e.g., Philippians 2:5-11).

(2) A letter each day to a message that will be completed on Christmas day. My son will glue each letter to a word puzzle (the letter in stocking #24 will be glued to the puzzle square labeled #24).  Here’s the letters and the message:

J  (#24)

E  (#23)

S  (#22)

U (#21)

S: (#20)

G (#19)

O (#18)

D’ (#17)

S  (#16)

G (#15)

I  (#14)

F  (#13)

T  (#12)

F  (#11)

O (#10)

R  (#9)

C  (#8)

H (#7)

R  (#6)

I   (#5)

S  (#4)

T  (#3)

M (#2)

A  (#1)

S! (Christmas Day)