Stuck for Advent Calendar Ideas? Here’s What the TOM Community Are Buying This Christmas
14th Sep 2026 4 min read
— Tags: christmas, get organised, Organised Christmas, parenting tips, plan ahead, The organised method
If “sort the advent calendars” is currently sitting on your Organised Christmas list and you’ve reached the point where you have absolutely no idea what to buy, I’ve got you.
Because rather than giving you another enormous list of 57 advent calendars to scroll through, we’ve been having a nose at what The Organised Method community are actually buying this Christmas.
And, as always, they came up with some absolute gems.
There are ideas for little ones, teenagers, Pokémon fans, sweet-toothed kids, crisp lovers and even the notoriously difficult-to-buy-for men in your life.
So before you panic-buy the same chocolate calendar you bought last year, here are a few TOM community recommendations worth a look.
For the teenage girl who has everything
Teenagers can be surprisingly difficult when it comes to advent calendars. Too old for some of the children’s ones, but some of the beauty calendars cost approximately the same as a small family car.
This one was recommended in our Christmas group specifically for a teenage girl and has been getting good reviews, so it’s worth a look if you’re currently drawing a blank.
See the teenage advent calendar on Amazon
For little ones: a Play-Doh advent calendar
If you’d rather avoid starting every December morning with chocolate, a Play-Doh calendar is a lovely alternative.
It’s particularly good for younger children because opening the door isn’t the end of the fun – they actually get something they can play with afterwards.
And frankly, anything that potentially buys you ten minutes to drink your tea while it’s still hot gets a tick from me.
See the Play-Doh advent calendar on Amazon
For crafty kids: Crayola
Another recommendation from Team TOM is a Crayola advent calendar.
Stacey from our team bought one for her son Jasper a few years ago and says he absolutely loved it.
This is another nice option if you want something that feels a little more substantial than a daily chocolate. It’s especially good for children who love drawing, colouring and making things – and you’ll actually get some use out of the contents beyond December.
See the Crayola advent calendar on Amazon
For the sweet-toothed one: a jelly bean advent calendar
If chocolate every morning isn’t their thing, how about jelly beans instead?
This jelly bean advent calendar came recommended by a member of the TOM community whose children loved it so much they’ve already asked for the same one again this year.
And I think that’s probably as good a review as you can get from a child.
It’s a fun alternative to the traditional chocolate calendar and a good one to have on your radar if you’re looking for something a little bit different this December.
See the jelly bean advent calendar on Amazon
For Pokémon fans: a storybook advent calendar
If you have a Pokémon-obsessed child in the house, this one could be an easy win.
Rather than another collection of plastic bits and pieces that will inevitably migrate underneath the sofa, this is a Pokémon storybook advent calendar, giving them a little bit of Pokémon each day in the run-up to Christmas.
It’s a particularly nice idea if you like incorporating reading into bedtime during December.
See the Pokémon storybook advent calendar on Amazon
For the person who would choose crisps over chocolate every single time
Now THIS is an advent calendar I can get behind.
If chocolate isn’t really their thing – or they’re the person who opens a sharing tube of Pringles and considers the word “sharing” merely a suggestion – this Pringles advent calendar is a brilliant alternative.
It’s a proper savoury treat each day rather than another tiny square of chocolate, and I reckon this would go down particularly well with teenagers, older kids, partners or basically anyone who’s difficult to buy an advent calendar for but takes their crisp selection very seriously.
See the Pringles Advent Calendar on Amazon
And finally… one for the men
We couldn’t do this list without tackling the annual question:
What on earth do I buy him?
One suggestion from the TOM team was a survival advent calendar.
It’s a fun alternative to the usual beer, chocolate or grooming calendars and could work particularly well for someone who’s into camping, outdoorsy stuff, gadgets or just likes accumulating mysterious little tools that they insist will “come in handy one day”.
You know the type.
See the survival advent calendar on Amazon
One Organised Christmas job: DONE
The whole point of Organised Christmas isn’t to turn Christmas into a military operation. It’s to get these little decisions made before December arrives, so you aren’t trying to do everything at once.
Advent calendars are a perfect example.
Pick them. Order them. Tick them off the list.
Then forget about them until 30 November – when you suddenly have to remember where you hid them.
And if you’re still looking for ideas, keep an eye on The Organised Method community throughout Organised Christmas. We’ll be sharing more of the things our members are actually buying, recommending and doing as we work our way towards December together.
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