Do you find it frustrating advent calendars create so much waste? Why not make your own reusable LEGO advent calendar instead! I know it’s a bit late for this year, but it’s something to think about for next year.

This is a guest blog post by Nick Bright from Brighton Bricks. They encourage kids and adults to play through LEGO challenges and events for all ages. You can find out more details via brightonbricks.com, or you can find them on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram

When I was a kid, my Dad made me a clock advent calendar out of matchboxes. It was so much better than any shop bought advent calendar. I decided to make a advent calendar for my son when he was born too.

I had experimented with a matchbox advent for my wife a few years previously. But my craft skills weren’t really up to scratch. I decided to use my favourite toy instead, so I built my son a LEGO advent calendar. Now I reuse it every year.

Why build your own LEGO advent calendar?

A great advantage of building your own advent calendar, aside from reducing waste, is you can build is according to the size of the gifts you putting inside. You can make it as a big or small as you like. Making this design out of LEGO allows me to change and adapt it if I want. Maybe one year, I will rebuild it in a different colour, or theme it in a certain way.

What can you put in it?

We put a variety of things in the calendar. For example snacks my son would normally have and little toys he has probably forgotten about. Grandparents have also knitted finger puppets and little soft Christmas trees. We do buy some new things, but we they will last and not get thrown away. Things like LEGO Minifigures or toy cars, stuff we know he will play with for a long time. 

Advent calendars like this don’t just have to be for kids

In the past I created an advent calendar for my wife. I put vouchers inside for things like:

• a home cooked meal,
• to have control of the remote control for the night and
• to have breakfast in bed.

Advent Calendars don’t need to be disposable or thrown away. Also by creating your own calendar, you can customise it for the person it is intended for.

For more ideas about how to reduce waste and save money at Christmas time, check out How to have a luxurious eco friendly Christmas on a budget.