Christmas Gift Ideas
Are you stumped on what to buy for the perfect Christmas gift this year for the special people in your life? I am usually a huge procrastinator when it comes to Christmas gifts, but this year I am gonna be prepared (I really hope) and I’ve researched some awesome gifts that I’ve given away previously or plan on giving away myself. The prices range from FREE to more pricey. Hope this lists inspires you on your journey to finding that perfect gift for everyone from naughty to nice on your list.
For Him
- Smart Watch
- Lumo Lift
- Make him something special
For Her
- Unique Jewelry
- Cricut
- Make her something special
Kids
- Kindle Fire
- Legos
- Activities for them to make something special
For Him
I have the most difficult time findings gifts for guys. My, husband, father, father-in-law, and grandfather are the 4 people I struggle finding that perfect gift for every time. Often what I know they would love is really expensive. Like my tech savvy grandfather, who always has the newest electronics, therefore leaving me nothing useful left to get for him. At the other end of the spectrum are my father and husband, who are both a little technologically challenged, meaning the latest and greatest gadgets are not a good idea.
1. Smart Watch
Smart watches for Christmas Gifts are awesome. You can go really pricey, like with an Apple Watch or something cheaper if you choose generic. These watches have tons of functionality as they connect all your phone features to your watch. They are excellent for tracking exercise and fitness goals and there are different watches specialized to the wearer’s specific interests. For example, we got my dad the Bushnell Golf GPS watch and it calculates how far he is from the hole when golfing. However, he says it hasn’t improved his golfing game.
Just as word of caution as with all tech products, make sure your gift receiver is tech savvy. If the recipient is NOT tech savvy at all, then you will have to set the tech up for them, or risk the gift being not used or worse thrown away. An example is when my father threw away the tile mate key finder we got him because he said he couldn’t figure out how to use it. I thought it was a great gift because he’s a key loser/misplacer. Unfortunately, I did not set it up for him before he got frustrated when trying to set it up himself.
2. Lumo Lift
I just got my husband a lumo lift, which is a really good device for anyone complaining of chronic back pain. It is a little posture device that attaches to clothing right over the collar bone. The device is set when in a perfect posture position. Lumo lift feels rotational movement in all 3 planes and vibrates when you have poor posture as a reminder. It links up to smart phones and provides stats about good daily posture percentages and goals. My husband recommends lumo lift for some of his physical therapy patients as bad posture contributes to low back pain, shoulder pain, neck pain, etc. See the video below to learn more. It is available through Amazon with FREE shipping.
3. Make him something special
The most thoughtful gift may be making something special. My husband always claims that all he wants as a gift is for me to make him a home cooked meal. If you have been reading my blog, then you know that cooking is NOT one of my strengths. So, a big fancy meal coming from me really is a big deal because I’m so terrible at it. Whether the Christmas gift is cookies, a picture frame, or a water bottle, personalizing a Christmas gift makes it more valuable because of that extra time, love, and effort put into it. Here are some lists to give you ideas.
Martha Stewart: Handmade Gifts for Him
Short on time to personalize your own gifts? You can buy some super cute personalized gifts from Etsy, where someone else can personalize the gift for you. Another idea for personalization is at craft fairs, where some really creative people may also be able to make you unique and specialized gifts.
Here are some of the top personalized Mens Gift Ideas from Etsy
For Her
Women really are the easiest to buy Christmas gifts for. There is always the old standby of jewelry and we LOVE it when you make you make us something. When I buy for women, like friends or my mom, I look for things that I would love to receive, I find cool, and are unique to the individual person.
1. Unique Jewelry
To step up from plain old jewelry as a Christmas Gift I recommend more unique handmade jewelry. An example is the jewelry made by my best friend, who sells Sea Blossom Hawaii jewelry. I’ve given her one of a kind handmade and unique jewelry to friends and family for years. Her beautiful jewelry is sold at Deja Vu Surf shop on Kauai or at craft fairs. Unfortunately she has done all her craft fairs for this year, but you can still snag her stuff through her Etsy store here.
2. Cricut
I love my Cricut Air cutting machine. I highly recommend it as a Christmas gift for anyone crafty in your life. If someone already has a Cricut then buy them supplies for it and then you get to feed their creative obsession. I have been raving about my Cricut Explore Air machine that allows me to make tons of personalized stuff. My only regret is that I don’t have more TIME to use it more. There is also a newer machine, the Cricut Maker, that can additionally cut wood. These machines are a splurge gift, because they are definitely in the higher price range. The machines are also great investments for people who want to make money selling crafts.
Examples of Cricut projects I’ve made:
Disney Cruise Door Decorations
Disney Incredibles costume
Disney Cruise Moana Fish Extender
Mickey Head LED Card Night Lights
Halloween Candy Holder Sleeves
Halloween Light Stick Gift Tags
Click Pictures below for more details: Don’t forget to check my SAVE page for the latest deals and coupon codes from Cricut.
Cricut Explore Air
Cricut machine buying options from Amazon:
3. Make her something special
Women love when you make them something. When I make things for other people it’s usually to personalize the gift. Handmade and personalized gifts really do add that extra special touch because of the extra time, love, and thoughtfulness factor added to the Christmas gift. The best part is that homemade gifts are often low-cost or FREE. Below are some lists of DIY gift ideas for her.
Martha Stewart: Handmade Gifts for Her
If time or lack of creativity skills is an issue then there is always Etsy gifts for her. There you can find wonderful personalized and unique gifts available for purchase. Below is a sample of the most popular personalized items that would each make an excellent Christmas gift for a lucky lady.
Kids
1. Kindle Fire
This year my daughter had been asking for an iPad. My gut response was HECK NO. iPads are really expensive (the cheapest being the iPad mini 4 at $399) and I was worried about her getting into inappropriate adult content. After doing some homework and talking to other kids and parents who own them, we have decided to get the kids the Kindle Fire. Important Kindle Fire features I loved:
- Awesome Parental Controls to manage usage limits, content access, and educational goals
- Kid safe browser that blocks inappropriate content
- Comes with a Kid-Proof Case
- 2-year worry-free guarantee: if they break it, return it and Amazon will replace it for free. No questions asked.
- One year of FreeTime Unlimited with access to 15,000 popular apps and games, videos, books, and educational content from PBS Kids, Nickelodeon, Disney, and more.
- Amazon Parent Dashboard with Discussion Cards enables parents to discover the titles their kids enjoy and connect with them through conversations about these titles
2. Legos
Legos will entertain my kids for hours. They are great gifts for girls and boys. Unfortunately legos are really expensive. I’ve found there are generic Legos available through AliExpress that are significantly cheaper and compatible with traditional Legos. I bought a bunch of Ninjago characters for my son’s birthday and as favors for his party. Both my son and his friends loved them and didn’t mention any differences between the Lego brand and the generic characters. If you are a Lego purist I recommend Amazon, especially when they have sales. The Lego store tends to be pricier. Below are sets that I’ve purchased.
3. Help them make something special
Kids love interactive, fun, and creative activities. These activities can also serve as some amazing Christmas gift ideas as well as building Christmas excitement and giving them something to do during the Christmas break.
My mother comes and watches my kids during the long breaks when I have to work. With her extreme crafting gene at work she helps them produce beautiful Christmas gifts. My favorite Christmas gift of all time was the picture initials they made.
They painted large wooden letters and then glued pictures, sea glass, and shells onto the letters. It turned out so cute!
Another wonderful and personalized gift was a shell decorated picture frame. Our pictures were placed into a clear plastic frame. The kids glued shells on the frame and it became an instant cherished treasure.
Store bought kits are another option for gift creating by little ones. Since my crafting style is a little more minimalist I usually buy a kit for the kids and I to do. Ones we’ve tried include the ones linked below.
Hopefully these ideas inspire you to find or make that perfect Christmas gift. Please let me know if you have any questions!
This post includes Affiliate links to products for your convenience. I bought these products and all opinions are my own. I may make a small commission should you choose to make a purchase, at NO cost to you.
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