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Ladder Advent Calendar

December 15, 2014 by Amy 8 Comments

Without fail – every day my 5 year old asks ‘How many days until Christmas?’  This ladder advent calendar is mostly for him to keep track of the big day.  It was inspired by this darling Pottery Barn Stocking Calendar.  However I didn’t want to sew little stockings, so I found 4×6 cotton muslin bags (affiliate) instead.   My friend Wendy made a ladder too, we decided to decorate and number the bags.  Some of my bags turned out cute, and some not so much…but it was fun to make anyway.  In the bag you can place a note, treat, toy or whatever for each day.

Pottery Barn knockoff ladder advent calendar

 How to Build a Ladder Advent Calendar

(BTW I do know how to count, I guess my toddler decided to rearrange the bags 🙂 ).

* denotes affiliate link

Materials

  • 3 – 1″ x 2″ x 8′ pine (about $1 each)
  • 1 1/4″ Kreg pocket screws*
  • wood glue
  • paint
  • sandpaper
  • 25 – 1″ Cup hook
  • 25 – 4×6 Cotton Muslin bags*
  • decorations

Step 1

Cut 2 pieces of 1″x2″ x 60″ long.

Make counting down to the BIG day fun with this easy to build Ladder Advent Calendar - free plans and tutorial.

Next we need to cut the ladder rungs.  Each ladder rung has a 4 deg angle on the ends.

Make counting down to the BIG day fun with this easy to build Ladder Advent Calendar - free plans and tutorial.

Cut the 7 rungs from 1″ x 2″ at the following lengths, with the 4 deg angle on each end.

Make counting down to the BIG day fun with this easy to build Ladder Advent Calendar - free plans and tutorial.

Step 2

On the backside of the rungs, use a Kreg pocket hole jig* and drill one pocket hole in each end.  You can do 2 holes if you want, but I don’t think it’s necessary because of the angle on the rung.

Make counting down to the BIG day fun with this easy to build Ladder Advent Calendar - free plans and tutorial.

Make counting down to the BIG day fun with this easy to build Ladder Advent Calendar - free plans and tutorial.

 

On the inside of the ladder 60″ sides mark the rung placements.

Make counting down to the BIG day fun with this easy to build Ladder Advent Calendar - free plans and tutorial.

 

Add a dab of wood glue to each rung end.  Clamp* the ladder sides with a rung between, use 1 1/4″ pocket screws to secure the ladder together.  Repeat for each rung.

Make counting down to the BIG day fun with this easy to build Ladder Advent Calendar - free plans and tutorial.

Allow the glue to dry.  Lightly sand the ladder as needed.  Paint or stain the ladder as desired.  I painted one ladder Americana Decor Chalky Finish Romance (red) and the brown is Modern Masters Grounded.  Once the paint is dry, drill pilot holes for the hooks.

Top rung – 3 hooks

2nd rung – 3 hooks

3rd rung – 4 hooks

4th rung – 4 hooks

5th rung – 5 hooks

6th rung – 6 hooks

7th rung – no hooks.

Finally decorate your bags, this took me much longer than building the ladder 🙂

I love how Wendy’s red ladder and bags turned out.

Make counting down to the BIG day fun with this easy to build Ladder Advent Calendar - free plans and tutorial.

Have a Merry Christmas!  Pin for later:

Diy ladder advent calendar

Linked to My favorite Link Parties, Remodelaholic, Savvy Southern Style

Related

Filed Under: Crafts, Free Woodworking Plans, Holiday Tagged With: advent, Christmas, christmas decoration, pottery barn

Attention: Any do-it-yourself project involves risk of some sort. Your tools, materials, and skills will vary, as will the conditions at your work site. Hertoolbelt LLC will not assume any responsibility or liability for damages or losses sustained or incurred in the course of your project or in the use of the item you create. Always follow the manufacturer's operating instructions in the use of tools, check and follow your local building codes, and observe all commonly accepted safety precautions.

Comments

  1. Michelle from Weekend Craft says

    December 24, 2014 at 11:21 am

    The ladder came out great! Thank you so much for joining us last week on Creative Spark Link Party hope you stop by again today! Happy Holidays! http://bit.ly/1vbqtH4

    Reply
  2. Haley says

    November 28, 2015 at 1:02 pm

    This advent calendar is so creative! I love it!

    Reply
  3. Anita says

    December 4, 2015 at 5:09 pm

    This is such an amazing idea! Thanks for sharing it. I’m Anita visiting from Link Party Palooza.

    Reply
    • Amy says

      December 4, 2015 at 9:31 pm

      Thanks Anita!

      Reply
  4. Megan @ Adventure & Home says

    December 6, 2016 at 11:35 am

    This is such a beautiful/creative project! Are you going to be re-purposing the ladder once the holidays are over? I’d love to see some other ways to use it! Possibly to hang cozy blankets on?

    Reply
    • Amy says

      December 12, 2016 at 8:21 pm

      Yes that is a great idea, get some use out of it year round.

      Reply
  5. Norine says

    December 11, 2016 at 3:13 pm

    You can also use this to hang up the Christmas cards you received!

    Reply
  6. Laura - The No Pressure Life says

    December 18, 2016 at 1:17 pm

    What a neat idea! I love that you went with pre-made bags instead. Why go crazy sewing tiny stockings? Your project turned out great!

    Reply

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