Homemade & Inexpensive Stocking Stuffer Ideas for Kids
Adults can understand the saying, "It's the thought that counts," when it comes to gifts, but that's not always the case with children. To make sure your gift and stocking stuffer items are a hit with the children, present them with things that they can play with or that include a picture of their favorite cartoon character. With some creativity, this year's stocking stuffers can be inexpensive, homemade and a huge hit on Christmas morning.
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Personalized T-Shirt
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Plain white undershirts can be turned into your child's favorite shirt to wear by personalizing it with his name and the image of his favorite cartoon character. Use fabric paint to design the front of the shirt. If the cartoon character is difficult to draw, print out an image of the character's face from the Internet or make a copy of it from a storybook and trace over it with a thick layer of fabric paint, then press the painted tracing on to the shirt to create an outline for you to work with. Fold and roll up the shirt like a tube and tie a red ribbon around it so it fits into the stocking.
Cookies
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Children love sweets. Homemade treats can be made right in your kitchen. Cookies can be personalized in many ways, such as writing your child's name in icing or shaping sugar cookies into the first letter of her name. Use clear plastic wrap to package the cookies and tie a red ribbon to the top along with a candy cane and it's ready to go into the stocking.
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Snow Globe
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Add a homemade snow globe to your child's holiday stocking and he can enjoy the sight of snow falling at any time. Take a clear round jar that is large enough to fit the particular figurines you wish to include to the snow globe. Glue the figures to the inside of the jar's lid. Fill distilled water close to the jar's top and add a pinch of glitter and glycerin, which will help make the glitter fall slowly. Tighten the lid with the glued-on figures back on to jar and flip it upside down.
Felt Ball
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With their imagination, children can find endless ways to play with a toy ball. Create a homemade felt ball that bounces by taking a small wad of wool about the size of your fist. Wrap lengths of wool around it to form a ball shape that is two times the size of what you want it to be. Place it into a bowl filled with hot soapy water made up of 4 tbsp. of unscented liquid dish-washing detergent and 6 cups of water. When the ball is fully saturated, remove it from the water and roll it from hand to hand for 10 minutes without squeezing it. If it cools off, slip it back into hot water before continuing to roll it from hand to hand. The felt ball will start to harden. Add additional color or design to the ball by pressing stripes of wool into the ball with your fingertips. Continue to dip it in hot water and roll it from hand to hand as it cools. When the ball if the size you want, rinse it with cool water and let it air dry.
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References
- Photo Credit BananaStock/BananaStock/Getty Images
