Handmade Holiday: An Etsy Gift Guide for Kids

Can you believe there’s only 6 weeks remaining until Christmas? Have you already begun shopping?

I keep a huge wish list throughout the year for my kids, adding on items that I think they’ll enjoy along with needed homeschooling materials or clothing items. I like to plan a lot of my purchases ahead of time.

DISCLOSURE: THIS POST CONTAINS AFFILIATE LINKS AT NO COST TO YOU. THIS MEANS I MAY RECEIVE A SMALL COMMISSION IF YOU MAKE A PURCHASE USING THESE LINKS.

I’ve recently begun to buy books used in like-new condition as I can often get a really, really wonderful price on them. This year our girls will be receiving two books by Shirley Hughes: A Year of Stories and Things to Do and The Shirley Hughes Collection. Since I purchased them a few months ago, I managed to snag them at $5 dollars and $3 dollars respectively. #happydance

We also like to include handmade gifts under our Christmas tree. We usually follow the popular 4-gift rule and try to include at least one item that we’ve made ourselves. A few years ago we made a Montessori-inspired baby activity gym along with the Octahedron and Gobbi mobiles for our infant, and last year we made a flower press for the girls to use and also compiled a cookbook of our extended families’ favorite recipes. I’ll try to make a tutorial for the flower press soon, but if you’re looking for one to purchase, Red Oak Adventures offers some really attractive ones. This year my daughters are receiving a tool set along with the plans for a child-size workbench that we will build together in the days after Christmas. My husband and I like to gift the girls toys and materials that lend themselves to quality time and experiences together as a family.

In addition to our own handmade presents, we also love to support small shops, so I thought I’d share some gift ideas for children that can be purchased from Etsy this holiday season.

If you have a child who loves food preparation, a handmade apron is a great gift option. I love the linen pinafore aprons offered by Epic Linen and Bunny Street as well as the Montessori-friendly aprons available from Grace & Courtesy and My Peaceful Classroom. An apron would be lovely paired in a gift basket with a set of child-friendly cooking and baking items. Click here for some of our favorites. An apron is a versatile gift that could also be used for gardening, practical life work, and painting.

For kids who love art, the beautiful Lazy Susan crayon and paint jar holder made by Mirus Toys would a wonderful gift paired with a variety of art supplies. The best part is it will be used year after year. I don’t think you can ever go wrong with gifting children quality art supplies.

FromJennifer’s embroidery board will be wrapped and waiting for our girls to open on Christmas morning. It allows children to independently practice their sewing and embroidery stitches while also fostering creativity.

For open-ended toys, I have the following items on my girls’ wish list: Treemagination’s 30-piece tree blocks and Mamuma Bird’s wooden stacking pebbles for our nature table and Manzanita Kids’ modular dollhouse building blocks. Another popular option would be playsilks: I love these and these.

If your child is an emergent or beginning reader, what better way to honor that achievement than purchasing them their very own storybook leather tote for trips to the library. I think it’d also make a cute satchel for nature study walks as well. Just load it up with a sketchpad, a travel-size watercolor kit, some pencils, and a field guide or two and your child is set for a day of outdoor learning and adventure!

We’ve had the curvy board in our home for almost 3 years now, and it’s still played with on an almost daily basis. It’s a wonderful open-ended gross motor toy that’s perfect for any home with small children. It’s been used for climbing, sliding, sitting, rocking, surfing, and obstacle course-making, as well as a prop for small world play with cars and trucks and trains and a makeshift doll bed.

I don’t think it’s ever too early to begin teaching children about money and the importance of saving. I love Promi Design’s wooden coin banks that can be personalized for each child.

I have fond memories as a child of playing Dominoes with one of my grandmothers and Gone Fishin’ with the other along with countless games of Scrabble and Backgammon every weekend with my father. I hope to continue this family tradition, so we choose a game to grace our household every Christmas. I really love this oversized Connect 4 Game for outside offered by Rustic Road Designs for school-aged kids. Although, my toddler would probably enjoy dropping the discs in with the aid of a stool.

Of course, no holiday gift list would be complete without ideas for stocking stuffers!

Here are a few favorites:

Don’t wait too long to order, though. The deadlines are quickly approaching! Be sure to check each individual shop to note when they stop guaranteeing orders for Christmas delivery.

If you also do handmade gifts as part of your holiday tradition, I’d love to know which ones your children have enjoyed the most. Please leave me a comment below.

As always, thanks for reading and if you’re looking for additional gift ideas, be sure to check out last year’s gift guide: 100+ Fun and Practical Gifts for Small Children.