Advent calendar: a new gift idea every day

At least one «Oh, how lovely!» rang out from our office every day. And that was whenever we received another new gift idea from you, dear parents. A huge thank you to everyone who took part – you’ve inspired us and made the anticipation of Christmas even greater. 

Right up until Christmas, we’ll be presenting a new gift idea every day. Have fun crafting and wrapping!

Embroider the child’s name and other favourite designs onto homemade cushion covers (using a sewing machine or by hand), or, as a quicker option, paint them onto ready-made cushion covers using fabric paint. Perfect for taking to their own bed, to a sleepover, on trips or to camp – a cosy and personal addition to their cuddly toy.

For whom: 
All ages (still cool enough even for teenagers) and interests

Time required:
1–3 hours, depending on experience

Budget:
10–20 francs (or virtually free if you use existing materials, such as a favourite shirt that has become too small)

Idea:
Ulrike Légé (text and photos)

A homemade beanie, suitable even for beginners. Instructions can be found here: Hamburgerliebe.blogspot.ch.

For whom:
Anyone who likes wearing a beanie

Time required:
Approx. 2 hours

Cost:
Around 20 francs

Idea:
Manuela Krattiger (text and photo) 

The long train journey alone (if you live in German-speaking Switzerland) is an experience in itself. Once you’ve passed Bern on the train, you arrive in French-speaking Switzerland, and the view of the vineyards on the hillside and Lake Geneva is enchanting. You get off at Montreux and walk along the lakeside promenade. It’s a four-kilometre walk to Chillon Castle. It’s well worth the trip; the promenade is particularly beautiful in spring, and the Mediterranean atmosphere makes you feel as though you’re in the south! There’s a playground on the way to the castle, making this day trip suitable even for younger children. After a tour of the castle, you can explore the town of Montreux or visit the Toy Museum in La Tour-de-Peilz.

Who it’s for:
Everyone

Time required:
Day trip

Budget:
Varies, train ticket and food

Idea:
Fabienne Schneider

Photo: Switzerland Tourism/Markus Buehler-Rasom

I gathered ideas from the internet (and my imagination) and used various materials. The whole book is made from fabric scraps. I only bought a few ribbons, zips and the rings. I sewed two pages together with fleece in between to form a single page. I always made two buttonholes in the binding for the rings. These are available from Bookbinders in various sizes. They can be opened again and again so that pages can be swapped or added.

For whom:
Babies or toddlers; particularly handy for when you’re out and about.

Time required:
8 hours

Cost:
30 francs (if you have fabric remnants)

Idea:
Eliane Weisskopf

Ticket for the Märlitram in Zurich with a shared chestnut meal before or after.

For whom:
Ages 4 to 10

Duration:
Approx. 20 minutes for the tram ride

Cost:
8 francs (plus chestnuts)

Idea:
Rahel

A photo book of the past year, featuring all the highlights as well as everyday moments.

For whom:
Everyone

Time required:
A few hours, mind you – but it’s fun too!

Budget:
Depending on the size, 50–200 francs

Gift idea:
Claudia Graf-Notter

Recipe for Smarties biscuits:

100g softened butter
70g sugar
1 pinch of salt
1 fresh egg
80g cocoa powder
200g flour
Smarties for decoration
a little flour for rolling out

Place the butter in a bowl and mix with the sugar and salt. Add the egg and continue mixing until the mixture has lightened in colour. Add the cocoa powder and flour and combine to form a dough.
Flatten the dough, cover and chill for approx. 1 hour. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of approx. 5 mm and cut out biscuits using your favourite cutters.
Place the biscuits on a baking tray lined with baking paper and press the Smarties lightly onto the biscuits. Chill for a further 15 minutes.
Baking: bake for approx. 5 minutes in the centre of an oven preheated to 200°C.

For whom:
Ages 3 and up. For children who enjoy helping with baking

Time required:
30 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the recipe

Cost:
Depending on the recipe, approx. 2–5 francs

Gift idea:
Claudia Tschudin

A trip to Chocolat Frey in Buchs, where you can make your own Christmas chocolates – dark, milk or white – and decorate them with various toppings. 

For whom:
Ages 3 and up

Duration:
Half a day

Budget:
19 francs for children’s admission, 24 francs for adults, plus travel costs

Gift idea:
Regula Sesseli

Image: courtesy of

Homemade dreamcatcher for the bedroom

For whom:
Children who have nightmares or find it hard to sleep

Time required:
30–60 mins

Cost:
10–40 CHF depending on materials

Gift idea:
Olivia Baumann

Homemade hair tie. You will need: a round piece of fabric (5–8 cm in diameter), approx. 1 m of strong thread and a sewing needle, some wadding, a small button and, of course, a hair tie. Step-by-step instructions in the gallery: 

For whom:
All children with long hair

Time required:
approx. 10–15 minutes

Cost:
Around 1 franc

Idea:
Mirjam Weniger

Godmother’s Glitter Craft Day. We’re not revealing what we’ll be making this year just yet. Previous craft days have produced the following creations: 

Once we painted, decorated and added glitter to some stones (that was his idea). Another time we made a tree out of beads and wire, though his patience lasted about five branches. The last time we made a wooden sword and painted it, and crafted a sword out of cardboard, paper and string, which unfortunately is now resting in the happy hunting grounds.

For whom:
4–9 (my godson is 8)

Time required:
1 day

Budget:
Depends on the craft/materials

Idea:
Prisca Caprez

It’s not just the presents for the children that stress parents out; there are also the children’s homemade gifts for relatives, which the parents have to make with the children... This year, however, we had a good idea and, for once, we’re well ahead of schedule with the plan: all relatives received a questionnaire where they could tick which muesli ingredients they like. Based on the relatives’ preferences, the muesli is then put together and packed into a beautifully Christmas-decorated preserving jar with a personally addressed, handwritten label. The questionnaire, which was written by a Year 1 pupil, is also a good writing exercise.    

For whom:
Relatives of the child

Time required:
Approximately 30 minutes per gift.

Budget:
15 francs per person

Idea:
Katja Schaffner

Both my girls have a cuddly cushion that they love! We make these ourselves for our label Greta & Greta, so you’re welcome to order them from us or sew them yourself. Our cuddly cushions also have a little pocket for loose teeth / the tooth fairy. You could also give the newly published book“Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls”as a gift, with cool stories for cool kids – for extra cuddle time or just because.

For whom:
Cool girls and boys, aged around 6–8 years

Budget:
Around 60 francs for the pillow and book

Her name:
Marcella Hasters

My godson loves dinosaurs and his mum thinks he needs some underpants. I enjoy sewing – so I’m giving him a pair of boxer shorts I’ve sewn myself! I found the pattern on this blog.

For whom:
Underwear wearer, in my case my godson (6), dinosaur fan

Time taken:
Around 2 hours, depending on the pattern and sewing experience

Budget:
Around 10 francs.

Your name:
Sam

Image: deinstoff.ch 

The day begins with opening my homemade card, which sets out the day’s programme. The text might read something like: ‘My dear godson, you have the choice between …’ along with three different options to tick – for example: Alpamare, a rope park or the cinema. Then the same with the meal: lasagne, sushi or McDonald’s. Instead of the usual (material) gift, the godson is given a wonderful experience in this way, one he can look back on time and again. 

My godson (9)

Day trip from approx. 11.00 am to 8.30 pm

Around 100 CHF 

Deborah

Image: courtesy of

We gave the door away last year and ordered it from www.tinyfoxes.de. You can now order it in Switzerland too. We gave the book as a gift to go with it. It describes how the elf helps the children to dream. In one picture, you can see that the elf is at home and the light is on behind the door. 

The elf has really helped our girls, aged 4 and 7, to feel less scared at night. They even write letters to the elf and draw pictures, and he writes back to them too. 😉 

Children who are afraid at night.

Can be bought online and expanded upon as desired and according to your imagination. Ours have even added a car and a ladder for him. 

Approx. 35 francs

Isabel

Pictures:
www.tinyfoxes.de / zVg

You can buy and download a treasure map online and use it to set off on any open trail of your choice. It costs 8 francs per person. It’s like a treasure hunt or a scavenger hunt. Along the way, there are various puzzles to solve and you learn lots of interesting facts about the region or town you’re in. Once all the puzzles have been solved, there’s a code to crack at the end. This code unlocks a real treasure chest located outside a restaurant or café. A gift is hidden inside. My children and my godchild never tire of it, and we learn lots of fascinating things along the way. 

Detective Trail on YouTube, click here. 

For children, to explore nature and the local area and to spend time together. 

1 afternoon

Approx. 15 francs

Andrea Brönnimann

A voucher for a visit to Zurich Zoo. I’ll print the voucher onto a photo of my grandson’s favourite animal. I’ll also give him a Zurich Zoo picture book, so he can look forward to the visit and spot the animals we’re sure to see.

For whom:
All children who enjoy going to the zoo and like hidden object books. My grandson is 5 years old.

Time required:
A visit to the zoo takes at least half a day; the hidden object book takes 10–15 minutes here and there

Budget:
Around 50 francs (zoo ticket, snack at the zoo and the hidden object book)

Idea:
Ida Herzog

Image: Instagram, Zurich Zoo / Robert Zingg

“We have to leave in ten minutes!» or «Your friend’s coming at 3 pm.» Time is our constant companion. With our personalised clock, an Ikea hack, our daughter finds it more fun to keep track of time. We made her a personalised clock featuring her favourite pictures and her name.

We bought a wall clock from Ikea and jazzed it up with stickers and adhesive letters.

For whom:
Ages 5 or 6 and up, once they can tell the time. Our daughter does artistic gymnastics, plays the ukulele and loves being outdoors.

Time required:
30 minutes to 1 hour

Budget:
30 francs

Your name:
Patrizia Catucci

Light and movement, sparkle and glitter fascinate even the youngest children. The disco ball enchants children, and with the hand-crank torch in the shape of an animal, children can create their own effects. My nephew, aged 3, and my daughter, aged 21 months, are absolutely delighted! Simple disco balls are currently widely available in Christmas sales or online. The hand-crank torch charges itself by moving the wings. 

From 6 months (disco ball), torch from 3 years 

 

2 hours (research and buying in-store or online)

 

CHF 30–50

Christine Annette Bloch