Popin' Cookin' Advent Calendar: How to Build Your Own From DIY Candy Kits
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Every autumn people search for a Popin' Cookin' advent calendar. We looked, and we could not find one made by Kracie. What exists is better suited to the idea anyway: dozens of small, individually boxed kits that each take one sitting to make. This is how to build a countdown out of them, in three sizes, and when to order so it arrives before December.
Why DIY Candy Kits Work as a Countdown
An ordinary advent calendar hands over a chocolate and the moment is finished in ten seconds. A DIY candy kit is the opposite: the thing behind the door is something to do. A child opens it, reads the pictures, measures water, mixes and shapes — and only then eats what they made.
The kits also suit the format for practical reasons. They are sealed, shelf-stable and light, each one comes in its own box or pouch, and no two make the same thing. If you want to check dates before wrapping them, we have a guide to shelf life and storage.
Three Sizes of Countdown
The four weekends of Advent
One kit each weekend, when there is time to sit down together. The easiest version to keep up, and the one we would suggest for a first year.
A twelve-day countdown
Start on 13 December and finish on Christmas Eve. Mostly small, quick kits, with one or two larger ones on the days you are at home.
The full calendar
One for every day from 1 December. Works best shared between siblings, or with the smallest kits on school nights so it never becomes a chore.
Or just the centrepiece
If a calendar is too much, one seasonal kit made together on a December afternoon does the same job.
Which Kits to Put Behind Which Door
The mistake is to treat every day the same. A kit that needs scissors, a microwave and forty minutes is a treat on a Saturday and a problem at 7pm on a Tuesday. Sort them before you wrap them.
Sort by the kind of day
- School nights — quick, water only. Nerunerunerune is the obvious one: stir, watch it change colour, eat. With six flavours in stock you can fill several doors without repeating. Our flavour guide covers the differences.
- Evenings with a little more time — small gummy kits. Kits where you colour or shape gummies, such as the Super Mario Maker 2 Gummy, need no heat and only a few minutes of waiting.
- Weekends — the proper builds. The Popin' Cookin' food kits: sushi, hamburger, pizza, donuts. Several of these use a microwave, so check before you assign one to a child working alone. This list shows which kits are water only.
- The last weekend — the Cake House. Kracie's limited-edition Popin' Cookin' Cake House is the closest thing in the range to a Christmas kit: a sponge house with a chocolate roof, piped cream and a dusting of snow powder. It is one of the most involved kits we stock, so give it an afternoon. Our English instructions are here.
Allergens vary from kit to kit, including between flavours of the same product, and the boxes are printed in Japanese. Every one of our product pages carries the allergen statement from the pack in English. If you are buying for a child with an allergy, read those before choosing — and read our parents' guide to ingredients.
How to Put It Together
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Decide the size first
Four, twelve or twenty-four. Be honest about December: a short calendar that gets finished is better than a long one abandoned on the ninth.
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Mark your busy days
Put the quick water-only kits on school nights and the builds on days when an adult can sit down too.
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Print the instructions
The boxes are in Japanese. Our English guides are free to read on our site — they are all listed here. Print the page for each kit, or note the link on the wrapping, so nobody is stuck on the day.
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Number and wrap
Paper bags with numbered pegs, a row of envelopes on a string, or a shoebox with dividers. The kits are different shapes and sizes, so bags are easier than a single printed board.
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Keep them somewhere cool and dry
Away from a radiator or a sunny windowsill. The packs ask for the same thing: no direct sunlight, heat or humidity.
When to Order
Everything we sell is posted from Tokyo by tracked airmail, so this is not a last-week purchase. For a calendar that starts on 1 December, order in the first half of November. For a twelve-day countdown or a single Christmas kit, the end of November is the latest we would leave it. December post is slower everywhere. Our shipping policy has the current delivery estimates for your country.
Two things help the budget. Kit orders of $25 or more get half-price shipping, and a calendar clears that easily. And if you are in the EU, remember that import VAT and a handling fee are collected on delivery.
Common Questions
Is there an official Popin' Cookin' advent calendar?
Not that we have been able to find. Kracie sells the kits individually. If you see a "Popin' Cookin' advent calendar" for sale, it is most likely a seller's own bundle of kits rather than a Kracie product.
Is there a Christmas Popin' Cookin' kit?
The limited-edition Cake House is the most wintry kit in the current range, with its snow powder and decorated roof. It is a seasonal limited edition, so we cannot promise it stays in stock.
Are the kits suitable for small children?
With help. Several boxes say that small children need an adult, and some use scissors or a microwave. We have a skills-based age guide.
Can adults do this too?
Plenty do. The kits are fiddly enough to be satisfying, and we have written about why.
Do you sell a ready-made calendar?
No. We sell the individual kits, so you choose what goes behind each door.
Choose your kits
Every kit in this guide is posted from our shop in Tokyo.
Browse all DIY candy kits →