Countdown to Christmas Your inspirational day-by-day December organiser

This day-by-day December organiser is packed with inspiration

1 DECEMBER

ADVENT

Whether it’s a decorative wooden box with doors and drawers, or something to hang up on the wall, the appearance of the advent calendar signals the start of the season. Children will love opening the little hinged doors of the Great Little Trading Company’s Christmas Party Advent calendar (left), £40, or Lakeland’s white light-up Advent scene (below), £29.99.

John Lewis offers chalet chic with these Chamonix Advent Boxes (below), £10 for 24. Just fill them with treats and hang them on the tree.

TRADITIONAL DESIGN

Advent calendars are moving away from the chocolate-filled type towards classic, beautiful models or those that encourage family involvement. Designs that can be individually filled and used as decorations are popular, while paper advent calendars look lovely, depicting a sense of family, tradition and the values of the festive period through Dickensian-style artwork.

DAN COOPER

BUYER AT JOHN LEWIS

2 DECEMBER

FOR FRIENDS

Sending cards to loved ones is still the most personal way to keep in touch. If you don’t have a mantelpiece, attach lengths of string to a wall and hang cards from it with wooden laundry pegs. Or hang a length of ribbon vertically down either side of the fireplace and pin cards to it. Tesco Reindeer Thumbprint and Decking the Halls cards are £2.50 for 10, or six Luxury Christmas Wreath cards are £4 (right).

Art lovers might like to opt for the National Gallery’s cards, from £5 for five, while Liberty is a good source for something more extravagant, from £3.95 each.

For special friends and relatives, Flowercard has a range of Christmas card and fresh flower combinations, including Snowy Robin or Scarlet Bells, £20 each, as well as Letterbox bouquets, £30, that fit through your door.

3 DECEMBER

IT’S A WRAP

The look for wrapping papers this year is dark and opulent. If you like to mix and match, the Vinter range (left) from Ikea, £1.20 to £1.75 for a 5m roll, has a variety of colours from natural and dark blue to shimmering red; while the selection at Sainsbury’s includes penguins, spotty dogs and robins, from £2 for a 4m roll. For personalised wrap, Boomf will print your photos, messages and drawings onto sheets of paper, £5 for a single sheet, or £7 for three.

RICH PICKINGS

We’re seeing a trend towards heavier, matt-finished papers in rich colours with hints of sparkle. You can have fun picking colours and patterns to suit each person. I’ll be putting my sister’s present in one of our glittery, pastel, diamond-shaped boxes, for a fun and glamorous look. But my mum will love our deep plum wrap with winter flowers and a touch of gold.

I’ll top them both off with satin ribbon and a matching bauble.

VANESSA ANDERSON

HEAD OF DESIGN, MARKS & SPENCER HOME

4 DECEMBER

GET CRAFTY

Sitting round the kitchen table with fabric, paper, scissors and glue is a great way to entertain children and give everyone a much-needed digital detox. Whether it’s cutting out white paper snowflakes to stick onto windows, gluing paperchain garlands, turning old jam jars into snow globes or decorating hot water bottle covers (above), there’s a wealth of ideas and books to inspire you, including Handmade Christmas by various authors.

Also take a look at The Art of Hygge by Jonny Jackson (£9.99, Summersdale), one of several new titles inspired by hygge, the Danish concept of cosiness.

Clara and Macy’s Reindeer Antlers Craft Kit, £10 from Etsy, is a perfect gift for creative children, while Dunelm sells red Royal Stewart tartan fabric, £6.99 a metre, perfect for making your own wreath.

SNOWFLAKE DISPLAY

Do you remember making paper snowflakes as a child and the pleasure of opening out the folds to see what they looked like? Grouped together in a window, they make a lovely display, or use them to create a garland for the Christmas tree. This is a really easy project, which means everyone can get involved.

CLARE YOUNGS AUTHOR OF A PAPER SNOWFLAKE PROJECT IN HANDMADE CHRISTMAS

(£14.99, CICO BOOKS)

5 DECEMBER

CREATE A COSY GUEST ROOM Treat overnight visitors to gorgeous seasonal bedlinen, such as the Metallic Star range from Next Home, from £20 for a double duvet. Or make a real statement with the Eden print and embroidery bed set from Marks & Spencer, £49.50, which features robins and green foliage.

If you need a new bed, Furniture Village has affordable but stylish bedsteads including the Emily, £399 for a double. Also sofa.com has launched the Henry and Hetty bed in a box – a bed that folds away into an ottoman, from £530.

BEDROOM BLISS

Guests will appreciate a relaxing and welcoming sanctuary. Bedroom decor has taken on a lighter, more informal feel this season, with an abundance of fresh white and natural wood, offering the perfect foundation for any colour scheme. Drape fairylights along the headboard of the bed for a magical atmosphere, and inject touches of green by decorating windowsills with seasonal garlands such as ivy.

REBECCA MALOY

BED BUYER, FURNITURE VILLAGE

6 DECEMBER

TREE TIME

From LED prelit to snow white spruces and the freshest fragrant pines, there are so many trees to choose from. These prelit options (right) from John Lewis start at £100, while the Frosty white 7ft silver spruce (above) from the Helsinki range is £195.

The store also has a new ‘Post me a Christmas tree’ service, offering trees up to a height of 45cm with a pot, a bag of soil and baubles for decoration, £30.

Dobbies has a great selection of fake and fresh trees, including the 6ft Ennerdale,

£129.99, and the 7ft Carrie Dewdrop, £169.99, as well as traditional Nordmann Fir, Norway Spruce and Fraser Firs from £29.99.

For gold glam, Marks & Spencer’s tinsel tree is perfect, £80. Finish off with a tree skirt from Dobbies, in birchwood effect with gold stars or red tinsel snow, both £19.99. An outdoor prelit tree gives visitors a warm welcome; Cox & Cox has a great selection from £35 for small, £75 for a medium, up to £155 for the largest.

7 DECEMBER

POOCH PERFECT Our reputation as a nation of dog lovers might explain why Vicky White’s collection (right), themed around her fox wire terrier Bertie, has been such a success. Her Christmas range at Plum & Ashby includes Bertie Skiing wrap, £1.50 a sheet , Bertie on Skis wooden hanging decorations, £24, and Bertie ceramic tree decorations, £18.

Fenella Smith is another designer focusing on dogs. Her range includes her new 125th Anniversary Dog’s Trust dog bowls, £28, a mug, £12.50, and cards, £12.50 for 10, with some proceeds going direct to the charity. Treat your dog to an advent calendar, £2.99, packed with treats, and a luxurious tartan bed where he can sleep off his dinner, £22.99; all from Dobbies.

PUPPY LOVE

Anyone with pets will appreciate they become part of the family and at Christmas, you find yourself buying them gifts. Bertie even has his own stocking. Christmas wouldn’t seem the same without him and he always seems to buy me the perfect gift!

VICKY WHITE

PLUM & ASHBY

8 DECEMBER

LIGHT AND SCENT

The soft, gentle glow of real candlelight is never lovelier than at Christmas, especially when combined with the wonderful scents of citrus and spices.

Nordic House sells glass jar-filled Memory candles (right), £30 for six. Or you can afford to go overboard with Ikea’s Vinter Ripe Mandarin and Cinnamon red scented candle collection, which comes in a variety of sizes, from £1.50.

Susie Watson’s range includes pretty handpainted pottery candlesticks and filled candle pots from £12.50-£39, as well as engraved glass hurricane vases, £38-£48, and her stunning trademark red, gold and green striped candles, £3.25 each. Meanwhile, Dobbies has a gorgeous Spiced Clementine candle, £10.99, and large glass candleholder for just £9.99.

9 DECEMBER

FAIRY LIGHTING

Add to the cosy glow of candlelight by hanging strings of fairylights on walls, wound around the staircase or just loosely arranged in glass bowls. Ikea’s Strala range includes a battery-operated LED lighting chain (left), £12, a new floor candelabra, £45, and a tree-shaped light, £39.

For a magical welcome, hang Sarah Raven’s giant Allium lights, £45.95, in the porch, and scatter a battery-operated star light garland in silver or gold, £19.95, or vintage lantern light strings, £27.95, on the stairs.

Father Christmas fairylights from Temerity Jones, £39.95, storm lamp string lights, £12.95, and copper-leaf fairylights, £19.95, are just three options available from Harrods.

Cox & Cox sells LED felt pompom garlands, £30, outdoor twinkle lights, £30, and a star-spangled rusty star lantern, £30.

SCANDINAVIAN STORIES

This year, Ikea’s collection is inspired by late-19th-century Swedish folklore; embracing simplicity with authentic, natural materials – yarn, wool, leather, linen, felt, woods and metal. To complement a traditional look, try the Strala pendant lampshade in classic colours such as red and white, or 100 per cent jute. For a more modern decoration, the Strala tree-shaped candelabra is a great alternative to a Christmas tree.

JOHN KEELER LIGHTING SALES LEADER FOR IKEA UK & IRELAND

10 DECEMBER

TACTILE TOUCHES A few cushions, a faux fur throw and a splash of rich berry red will give your sitting room an instantly seasonal feel.

George Home has a selection of gorgeous mix-and-match Chrismassy cushions (right) from £5 and throws, £15, to create a Scandi look, while Dunelm has check and Aspen Plush cushions for £9.99, for an alpine lodge feel.

For pure glitz, Dobbies has gold sequin cushions, £14.99, a red and gold stag print cushion, £19.99, and a faux suede deer cushion, £14.99.

From Amara comes an authentic-looking digital print Ash Stump pouf, £149, while Marks & Spencer brings Christmas into the kitchen with Santa tea towels, £7.50, and a stag apron, £15, for festive cooks.

11 DECEMBER

MAGICAL MAKEOVERS Give children’s bedrooms a Santa’s grotto look they’ll love. Dunelm has furry moose heads (right) and polar bears to hang on the wall, £10 each, and soft plush toys including a reindeer, £20, and dog, £10.

Christmas bedlinen and the company of soft toys means they’ll want to get under the covers and go to sleep quicker.

Sainsbury’s Santa’s Workshop printed bedlinen is £16 a single set and £20 a double set, snow globes are £4 and its Letter to Santa cushion is £10. Add homemade decorations, festive bunting and paper chains.

12 DECEMBER

BE PREPARED It’s worth having paper partyware at the ready in case of unexpected extra guests. New ranges at Talking Tables include metallic-trimmed Nordic, holly-patterned Botanical Christmas (pictured) and glamorously gold Glitterati. Key buys include napkins, from £3.50 for 20, and plates, from £4.50 for 12. For a talking point, wheel in cocktails on a Glitterati pop-up trolley with LED lights, which comes as a flatpack, £22.50.

13 DECEMBER

ANIMAL KINGDOM Create your own forest scenes around the house. Bring in twigs and small branches from the garden, scatter little piles of fake snow, available from amazon.co.uk, and add your favourite woodland creatures. Sainsbury’s has a large carved wooden stag (right), £18. Dunelm has woolly badgers dressed in tartan, £3.50, and Cox & Cox has a furry owl, £15, and glittered fluffy birds, £12.50.

WOODLAND MAGIC

Combining a rustic palette of forest brown and green with carved wooden decorations and faux fur adds a touch of fantastical forest feel to the home.

EMILY KILLEN

SEASONAL BUYER, HOUSE OF FRASER

14 DECEMBER

PAPER PLAY

String paper decorations and baubles to the backs of chairs and on mantelpieces or put them on your guests’ placemats at the dinner table. Cluster decorations such as the Mulroy glass bauble, £10 for two, in glass vases or scattered along mantelpieces; or hang paper decorations, from £3 (right); all Habitat.

PRECIOUS METALS

Our top trend this year is mixing bright colour with gold and silver. We’re making use of mantelpieces with oversized baubles and freestanding paper decorations. For a sleek minimalist look, we’re hanging baubles in window frames at different heights.

LOIS SARGENT

ASSISTANT BUYER, HABITAT

15 DECEMBER

BAKING BISCUITS The aroma of fresh gingerbread wafting through the house is one of the most evocative scents of Christmas, and making biscuits with your children, whether to eat warm, turn into tree decorations or give as gifts, is a lovely way to spend an afternoon. These items are from Sainsbury’s Cookshop range and start from £1.25. If you need a head start, Tesco has a Decorate Your Own Gingerbread House kit, £6, which comes complete with a tree, man, sweets and icing.

LOVE HEARTS

At Christmas I make shortbread hearts and stars. I’ll dust them with caster sugar and serve with lemon posset or chocolate mousse for dessert, or fill them with delicious homemade jam and stick them together. They also make wonderful gifts when put into pretty jars and tied with a bow. SOPHIE CONRAN DESIGNER

16 DECEMBER

GREAT DAYS OUT

Stuck for inspiration for what to give someone who has everything? How about a calligraphy class at Liberty’s in London, £60, or a perfumemaking experience for two at the Experimental Perfume Club, £120. Other great ideas include an Alpaca walk and fleece felting experience with lunch in Leicestershire from £85, and a Make Your Own Gin day in Staffordshire, from £95. These are just a few of the packages available at notonthehighstreet.com.

17 DECEMBER

CONNECTED HOME Control and monitor your heat and lighting schedules via an app on your smartphone and get your kitchen appliances to work even harder with the swipe of a finger. Hive sells smart LED bulbs, plugs and thermostats, while Lakeland’s iappliances includes coffee machines from £159.99, ikettles, £99.99, weighing scales, £79.99, and the Delonghi Primadonna Elite (right), £1,499.99.

Ikea also has furniture with built-in wireless chargers, handy for when you have lots of guests.

GET SMART

During the busy festive period, smart technology helps your home run smoothly, allowing you to multi-task and take control.

WENDY MIRANDA

CUSTOMER AMBASSADOR, LAKELAND

18 DECEMBER

COCKTAIL HOUR Christmas cocktails are more popular than ever, and there’s been an explosion of glamorous glassware to serve them in. Biba has gold-tipped Baroque wine glasses, £14 each, a gold cocktail shaker, £25, and a gold ice bucket and tong set, £45 (above), all from House of Fraser.

LSA International has gold Deco champagne flutes, £75 for eight. If you’re going for copper, check out George Home’s stem glasses, £3.50 each, or notonthehighstreet.com’s gorgeous rose gold cocktail glasses, £17.99 each.

Silver lovers should look at Dobbies, complete cocktail set in stainless-steel for just £14.99. The new generation of artisan spirits and mixers includes non-alcoholic botanical-infused gin made by Seedlip.

Your front door is the first point of welcome for guests, so make sure it’s dressed for the part with a beautiful wreath. Whether you go for a prelit, bauble-packed showstopper or something more natural, there are lots to choose from. For pure glitz, opt for the prelit gold-trimmed garland (above), £49.99 from Dobbies, while Lakeland’s Luxury Outdoor wreath, £49.99, has sprigs of red berries. Cath Kidston has a colourfully kitsch tinsel wreath with baubles for £40.