Contains affiliate links. All opinions are honest, as always.
Do you love the tradition of lighting an advent candle? It’s one of my favourite pre-Christmas activities, and I’ve been lighting them for the last decade or so.
This year, I struggled to find a design I like, as I prefer a minimal look, so I decided to make my own DIY advent candle.
Read on to find out the steps to make your own DIY Advent Candle this Christmas.
Materials to Decorate Your Own DIY Advent Candle
Decorating a candle for advent is a super quick and easy Christmas DIY. You may even have the materials at home already.
To decorate an Advent Candle DIY, you’ll need:
- A smooth 30cm candle in a colour of your choice. It is best to use candles that aren’t too tapered, like these ones. I had a packet of white dinner candles already, but I did buy the green and pink ones for fun.
BUY CANDLES HERE- You could also use a wider pillar candle, but bear in mind this will take longer to burn so it will be harder to keep up to date with it!
- Water-based marker pens in black, white, or gold. I used an acrylic marker for the black and gold writing, and a white chalk pen (left over from designing Christmas windows!) for the green candle. The pen should be water-based so you don’t create fumes as it melts. Use one with more of a spongy bullet point tip, rather than a metal one, as when I tried that, it didn’t work on the candle.
BUY COLOURED MARKERS HERE
BUY GOLD MARKERS HERE
BUY A WHITE CHALK MARKER HERE - A ruler, or tape measure and tape.
Steps to Decorate Your Own DIY Advent Candle
Step 1
Use a ruler, or a tape measure taped to your work surface, as a guide to add a row of small dots up the length of the candle, in 1cm increments.
Don’t worry about being 100% accurate but 1cm dots will help you get even spaces for your numbers. It’s also a good guide as you melt the candle each evening.
I found that the light created an even reflection line to follow.


Step 2
Wait for the dots to dry so you don’t smudge them.
Then start at the top and write numbers 1 to 24 in the gaps between your dots.
With single numbers, line them up so they are central to the dot.
With double figures, try to place the numbers either side of the dot.
Let dry, and pop into a candle holder, ready to light on the 1st December.
Always extinguish your candle carefully, and keep it out of the reach of children.

Colours for Your Advent Candle

The beauty of decorating your own advent candle is that you can pick your own colours, to match your Christmas decor.
I’ve made a few and used gold pen on the pale pink candle, white on the dark green candle, and black on the white candle.
I think gold on a red candle would also look great.
Pin me!
