The main source of my festive stress is always gift buying - just this week I found myself wandering aimlessly around shop after shop, trying to find the perfect gift for various family members - surrounded by so many choices but nothing seeming to quite fit the bill.
Sometimes it's so much easier to know exactly what you're looking for before you start your Christmas shopping, so incase you're in need of some gift giving inspiration - take a look at some of the options below.
All of these items are things I have personally tried and can vouch for the quality of.
My kids are big fans of any sort of "do it yourself" sets, and so I knew that this Cool Maker Shimmer Me Body Art set from Spinmaster Toys would be a big hit!
The kit comes with everything you need to create beautiful glitter tattoos to suit your taste, choose from over 100 designs. You simply use the foil stickers to create your design and then apply them to your skin using the handy roller device, you can then decorate with stick on gems or even use the glitter dust to add some extra sparkle to your body art! The tattoos last for around 24 hours and can be removed using warm water and a facecloth. Perfect fun for sleepovers and parties!
This kit will provide hours of fun for any little fashionista! Available from Amazon, Argos and other retailers - priced at around £15.00
If you're looking for something a little more educational, I highly recommend the wonderful Little Box Of Books - specialising in inclusive and diverse childrens books, they offer one-off bundles and ongoing subscriptions which are perfect for all children from toddlers through to young independent readers.
The books are always guaranteed to be inclusive and diverse in their character representation, making them the perfect addition to any child's collection. You can select bundles based on age, which is really handy too.
We received a box designed for children aged 4-7 years old and I was so impressed with the quality and diversity - The Rapping Princess was our favorite story from the bundle.
I'm thinking of gifting a subscription to my son for his 6th birthday, as I love the idea of regularly receiving this wonderful socially-conscious books.
You can find out more here: https://littleboxofbooks.co.uk/gift-great-childrens-books-this-Christmas/
This unusual murder mystery game allows players to take on the role of cold case detective, as you're tasked with solving a murder from years ago using only the existing case notes from the previous detective.
Using over 50 investigation documents, you'll need to solve 3 mysteries in order to crack the case. This is an ideal game for individuals who fancy themselves as something of a part-time sleuth, or to play as a couple or even a party game.
It is surprisingly difficult, and did take us about 3 hours to complete working as a couple but could easily be played over the course of a few nights - it's recommended for ages 14 up and is quite tricky at times but would be absolutely ideal for anybody who enjoys true crime (although the case is not based on a real one) or amateur detective.
Available from Amazon
This Magical Unicorn Garden and Wishing Well from Play Monster is a perfect gift for any fan of unicorns - it includes 3 little unicorn figures which are adorable, as well as a beautiful wishing well with lights and sounds. There's a very sweet rainbow bridge which allows the unicorns to cross to the well, too.
The set is adorable and gives good play value, but what I really love is the addition of seeds to enable children to grow and tend to their own little garden for the unicorns to play in - they're recommended from age 4 up, but my 11 year old niece loved this so it would suit most ages just as long as they are unicorn fans!
Does anybody else remember this classic board game from their childhood?! I had this and I absolutely adored it, so when I saw it had been re-released I knew I had to get it for my own children!
The premise of the game is that you are playing as paranormal investigators trying to solve a spooky case in this haunted castle, and you need to work your way through the castle while avoiding the booby traps - whoever makes it out first is the winner!
This is such a fan, family game and is suitable for between 2-6 players ages 6 and up. It's an absolute classic and so easy for children of all ages to enjoy, win or lose!
Brought to you by John Adams, Ghost Castle is available at all good retailers.
Fab Lab kits are something I look for as stocking fillers every year as they always create the most interesting and fun kits, of really good quality at affordable prices.
The Bath Bomb making kit allows children to create their own bath bombs using the handy moulds and even comes with giftwrap and tags so that they can gift their creations to their friends (or open their own Bath Bomb shop at home like my little one has done!).
The Invent A Scent kit is also fantastic, giving children the chance to create their own perfume using different fragrance blends and teaching children about mixing top notes, middle and base note fragrances - suitable for ages 8 and up, these kits make ideal stocking fillers!
I had heard great things about City Of Zombies for a long time - as a home educating family we are always on the lookout for fun but educational resources so this maths based game seemed like the ideal thing!
All 3 of my children are utterly obsessed with zombies, so I knew that the theming of the game would draw them in very easily - and I wasn't wrong!
The game is designed as a family board game suited to between 1-6 players ages 6+, and I would say this was accurate as my youngest struggled with it a bit (he's 5) whereas my 6 and 8 year olds really enjoyed it! The aim of the game is to keep the zombies at bay and rescue the humans, using maths skills as you go.
City Of Zombies has won numerous awards and is recommended by National Numeracy - it really is the perfect way to get kids excited about doing maths!
The game was from Bright Minds, who are a fantastic website selling only the very best educational and fun learning resources and items for inquisitive minds...I highly recommend checking them out while you're looking for gifts this season!
Another really fantastic fun yet educational game which is perfect for home educators or just those wanting to encourage skills in their children alongside family fun is this brilliant game from Fiesta Crafts - Discover The World is a game that sees players travel the globe, learning interesting facts about countries, cultures and continents as you go.
It's an ideal option for family game night, and can be played by 2-6 players age 7 and up (although my younger children played it well and enjoyed it!) - available from Fiesta Crafts
This fantastic Light-Up Crystal Lab kit from Brainstorm Toys is another fun and engaging stocking filler that perfectly falls in to the "educational fun" category.
The kit comes with everything you need to grow your own beautiful crystal geode, along with a stunning light-up case to display the finished product in. We used this alongside a rocks and minerals topic we were doing at home, and the children really enjoyed the process of creating the crystal and watching it grow over the week.
Suitable for ages 8 and up with adult supervision and available from Brainstorm Toys, this makes an ideal stocking filler for science fans.
And finally, one for the parents - this beautiful End Of Day candle from Echor Sleep is an ideal gift for any grown up this festive season.
I really wish there was a way for you to smell this photograph, as the scent of relaxing lavendar, ylang-ylang, calming sweet orange and geranium is truly the perfect blend to ease you out of a busy day and into a peaceful nights slumber.
Designed to burned for 3 or 4 hours during your evening as you wind down before bed, this candle is not to be left burning during sleep of course but it's scent before you take yourself off to bed will leave you feeling soothed and ready for a peaceful and relaxed, restorative sleep.
A truly beautiful gift available from https://echor.co/
