Homemade custom Christmas decorations

Pillars for the four candles of Advent, creatively labelled with edding gloss paint markers

For many of us, Christmas is a time when the whole family gets together. It's a time for reflection and full of warmth – and the perfect time to make handcrafted Advent decorations! But you're not restricted to just a lavish wreath, an Advent calendar or Christmas baubles during the weeks and days leading up to Christmas Eve: four large candles standing on pillars and surrounded by sprigs of pine make a great alternative and create an atmospheric setting for the festive season. Turn the pillars into a unique feature with individually designed lettering and Christmas motifs with the help of edding gloss paint markers. Even the lines of a poem such as "Advent, Advent, a candle burns ..." would be ideal wording for labelling the pillars, especially if you're good at calligraphy.

Category: Christmas
Products: Paint markers
Materials: Wood
Difficulty: Easy peasy
Downloads: Images (ZIP)

Step-by-step

Step 1

Prime the columns in your chosen colour either with acrylic spray or paint. Allow to dry thoroughly.

Step 2

With the edding 755 gloss paint marker, write the word "one" on the first column. Using the calligraphy pen, write "two", "three" and "four" on the other three columns. For greater accuracy, sketch out the writing with a pencil and then go over it neatly with the gloss paint marker. To label the four pillars we recommend using the edding 755 gloss paint marker with the calligraphy nib. The calligraphy pen comes in four colours: gold, silver, white and black and its paint-like, opaque ink is quick drying, smudge-proof, and water resistant. The slanted nib produces a very elegant line, particularly when writing in calligraphy style. So not only is this marker great for designing motifs on Christmas decorations, the special ink produces a shiny finish on plastic, metal, and paper, too, making the calligraphy pen ideal for our four Advent pillars.

Step 3

Finally, top each pillar with a candle and decorate with pine sprigs. Caution: For safety reasons, make sure there is sufficient distance between the candles and the evergreen, and never let candles burn all the way down.

Products and materials

edding 755 gloss paint marker calligraphy

Other materials

Four pillar-shaped, round containers made out of wood or other suitable material – different heights look effective
Matt acrylic spray or acrylic paint for priming, ideally in the festive colours green or red
Newspaper or other suitable material for stuffing the column
Four thick candles, also in green or red – ideally the candles should contrast with the colour of the column, and should be smaller in diameter than the column
Real pine sprigs