Crafting Through the Holidays Advent Calendar: Part 5/5
In the final episode of my Crafting Through the Holidays Art Skills series, I opened the last five mystery craft projects and completed all 25 projects from the calendar. This episode included a nostalgic wooden train ornament, a felt snowflake stocking, a beaded snowman ornament, a wooden reindeer ornament, and a folded paper wreath. It was a cozy, creative ending to the series, with a mix of painting, sewing, beading, and paper crafting.
Project 1: Wooden Train Ornament
The first project in this final advent calendar episode was a wooden train ornament, and I was immediately excited because trains feel so nostalgic and Christmasy. I painted the train red to give it a cozy “red truck in the woods” holiday feeling, then added black wheels, a small Christmas wreath, tiny yellow lights, gemstones, glitter, and fluffy puffy paint snow. The wheel details took a little trial and error, and I had to restart them before they looked right, but the finished ornament turned out so sweet. This project also reminded me of my grandpa, who loves trains and used to have one set up in his living room, which made this handmade Christmas ornament feel extra special.
Project 2: Felt Snowflake Stocking
The second project was a blue felt snowflake stocking, and it made a cute matching companion to the felt stocking from the first advent calendar episode. Since the included needle was dull and the felt was sturdy, I switched to my own sharper needle before sewing. I used a blanket stitch around the stocking, added the hanging loop, and finished it with felt sticker details and a snowflake embellishment. My stitches were not perfect, but that is part of the charm of a handmade ornament. This beginner-friendly sewing craft has such a cozy holiday feel, and the finished stocking would look cute hanging on a Christmas tree, garland, or mini mantel display.
Project 3: Beaded Snowman Ornament
The third project was a beaded snowman ornament, and while it was fairly simple, it turned out really cute. I painted the beads black and white, then stacked them on a rope to build the snowman from top to bottom. There was a little mess from wet paint inside the beads, but once everything dried, I was able to tie the bottom, paint over the rope with red, and add the snowman’s face, buttons, and scarf. The scarf was a little fiddly to get right, but once it was in place, the whole ornament came together. This is a sweet holiday bead craft and a simple DIY Christmas ornament idea with lots of personality.
Project 4: Wooden Reindeer Ornament
The fourth project was a wooden reindeer ornament using a temporary tattoo-style guide, which has been one of the clever techniques included in this advent calendar. I applied the design to the wood, painted the leafy pattern white, added brown for the reindeer, green accents, and a red nose to turn her into a Rudolph-inspired ornament. After a second coat of paint, I used black outlines to make the design pop and added small white dots in the background for brightness and contrast. This finished wooden reindeer ornament is festive, classic, and beginner-friendly, making it a fun Christmas painting craft for the holiday season.
Project 5: Folded Paper Wreath Ornament
The final project in the entire advent calendar was a paper wreath ornament made from pretty folded paper pieces. At first, I thought the project was more like origami and started folding the pieces, but then I realized the instructions actually wanted the paper shaped into cones. After unfolding everything and figuring out the correct method, the project finally started to make sense. Rolling the paper opposite the fold lines helped the cone shapes stay rounded instead of flattening out. Once all the cones were glued onto the wreath base, the final ornament came together beautifully. This paper Christmas ornament was a satisfying way to finish the advent calendar, even if I had to learn the process the hard way.
Overall, this final ArtSkills Advent Calendar episode was a lovely way to wrap up the full 25-project series. The wooden train felt nostalgic and personal, the felt stocking added a cozy handmade touch, the beaded snowman was simple but charming, the wooden reindeer had a classic Christmas look, and the folded paper wreath was a satisfying final craft. This series has been such a fun mix of surprise projects, creative problem-solving, and cozy holiday crafting, and it was exciting to finish the entire advent calendar from start to finish.
