Watercolor Advent Calendar with Free Printable

It’s that time of year again and I am thrilled to share this Watercolor Step-by-Step Advent Calendar project with you! It’s everything I love about Christmas: anticipation, whimsical beauty, and tradition. We have participated in Light the World for a few years now. I love how it brings the true meaning of Christmas back into focus for all of us each day.  This year I made a special watercolor advent calendar for the kids and thought I’d share it with you! If you haven’t heard of Light the World, you can check it out here.  You may also be interested in doing some Watercolor Christmas Cards found HERE.

This is one of those projects you can easily make in an afternoon while enjoying some Christmas music and a cup of hot chocolate (just don’t get your brush water and your mug mixed up!). In fact, invite the kids to join you!  Beginners of all ages find success with this step-by-step watercolor advent tutorial.

If you don’t have time to do a watercolor project right now (I get it) and just want to print out my finished project for your own use, you can find it  HERE.

Paint with Me

Notice I said paint and not draw? I’m taking the drawing part out of the equation (and I have many more of these types of projects planned for you!). Let’s not get caught up on the drawing part yet (unless of course, you want to).  Just enjoy the watercolor painting process. You will learn so much as you just experiment without the pressure to draw the perfect picture. One skill at a time, I say.

I have a whole bunch of free projects for you in the Resource Library. You can get your password below!

Supply List

For this project, I am using a traditional Christmas color range. Below are the colors I used (I circled them). Don’t worry if you don’t have Winsor & Newton brand of paints (although if you are in the market for inexpensive but high-quality paints I wholeheartedly recommend this set), most watercolor colors have the same name across brands so just look for the names in whatever you have. If you are using a pan that doesn’t have names, just try to get close to these colors as you paint.  Just keep your color palette limited and it will turn out great!

Note: For a nice traditional Christmas red I used a mixture of 1/4 cadmium red with 3/4 alizarin crimson (not an exact science, just mix until you get a color you are happy with). For the blue, I add A LOT of water to make it very light. Perfect for snow and skies. 

1. Print Out Your Pattern

If you are already a member of the Lily and Thistle tribe, you can access the Resource Library with your password (found in every email I send to you) HERE. If you aren’t a member of our creative community, you can sign up and grab your password HERE.

2. Trace Your Calendar

There are so many ways to trace your pattern.  You can use graphite paper, a window, an iPad or you can even purchase an inexpensive light board. I did a post all about tracing HERE.

Just remember not to push down too hard when tracing. You want your lines to be visible enough to guide you as you are painting but not so dark that they distract from your watercolor.

3. Paint!

Watercolor is such a forgiving and fun way to get into painting. Just pretend you are coloring in a coloring book but with paint instead! Remember more water equals lighter, pastel-like colors, less water equals darker, more vibrant colors. Just have fun and don’t overthink it.

 

4. Write Bible Verses on the Back of Each Card

I made a list of Bible verses that our kids will take turns reading each day. I so want the true reason for this season to come through each day as we prepare for Christmas and I think this will be an easy and effective way to do that. You can find this list in the bundle I’ve created for you in the Resource Library (the pattern, printable and list are all together in one link for you there under Christmas Advent Calendar).

5. Make a Display Board

I used a 16×20 inch canvas. Cheap and easy to hang. Line up your four pieces of string or ribbon so that there is only about an inch of space between the top and the first string. Use your advent papers to help you measure the distance between the string/ribbon leaving enough room for a bit of a droop. On the back attach by tying around eight thumbtacks (see below)

Make them as tight as possible as they will droop just a bit once you add the weight of the paper and the clothespins. Now just attach each picture:

And once you add them all, you are done! 🙂

6. Hang your new beautiful Advent Calendar

I hope it will be a treasure in your home and provide many happy memories. Please let me know if you have any questions. I am so happy to help.

Merry Christmas!

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