Holiday Gifts That Spark Creativity In Kids

The best gifts for kids are ones that spark creativity. These gifts have the power to engage their brains, hands, and hearts. It’s always these items in our home that get pulled out while we are reading-aloud during our school day. I love that the kids’ hands stay busy while their ears stay open! This holiday season, I have curated a list of gifts my kids have loved in the past that have inspired their creative minds. There are also items on this list that are gifts we hope to try in the near future. I hope you enjoy the ideas I’ve come up with. And please let me know your gifts that spark creativity in kids in the comments below!

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Rainbow Wall Decor Macramé Kit

The ancient fiber art of macrame is once again having its time to shine since becoming so popular in the 1970’s. If my research is correct, macrame originally appeared in carvings by the Assyrians and Babylonians and reached peak popularity in 17th century England. The word macrame simply means “knotting”…so it’s not surprising that it was then sailors who spread macrame throughout the world.

If your crafters are over 8-years-old and are interested in the ancient art of macrame, this adorable rainbow macrame kit is the perfect gift. It comes with 8 different bright cotton Macrame cords and an instructional video link in the manual. Your kids will have fun crafting and then have an adorable wall decoration for their room or to give as a gift!

paint by sticker / Sticker by letter-Number

My children (ages 7-11) LOVE their paint by sticker/sticker by number books! Just like color or paint-by-number, each design is divided into dozens of spaces. Each space has a number or letter that corresponds to a sticker. Find the sticker, peel it, and place it in the right space. My children have spent hours completing their paint by sticker/sticker by number pages. The books I have listed below include 10-20 perforated card stock pages. This fun craft is great for working on cognitive and fine motor skills!

diy journaling set

I love gifts that promote creative writing skills in my children. And this fun DIY Journaling Set is my 11-year-old daughter’s favorite. It’s a 70-sheet spiral journal where your daughter can include all of her thoughts, expressions, and memories.

The Kit Includes: Journal (70 Sheets), 8 Die-Cut Shapes, 1 Sticker Sheet, 1 Glitter Tape, 1 Ballpoint Pen, 6 Shaped Paper Clips, 3 Magnetic Folded Bookmarks, 5 Chipboard Frames, 1 Faux Suede Tassel Keychain, 8 Printed Pages, 1 Glue Stick, Easy-to-Follow Instructions.

color wonder mess free coloring

Our daughter Piper (age 7 – Down syndrome) LOVES Color Wonder Mess Free Coloring! It gives her the fun of creating with “big girl” markers while keeping our house free of “big girl” marker marks. This technology has been around for a long time, but Crayola is always coming up with fun new coloring pages that your kiddos are sure to love.

5D diamond painting

Have you heard of these?!? Diamond painting is a cross between paint by number and cross stitching. Unfortunately, there are no actual diamonds involved. Instead of paint and thread you use “diamond cut” acrylic rhinestones which shine just like real diamonds. The rhinestones are different sizes and colors, which makes the picture come alive. “5D” means that the rhinestones have 5 facets on each side with 15 facets total. Your child will glue these rhinestones to a sticky canvas using a stylus and a color guide that will bring your “diamonds” to life in a beautiful picture. The kits listed below even come with a wooden frame for your child to display their “paintings” once they are completed!

Because of the nature of these tiny diamonds and advanced fine motor skills required, I’d say this gift is best for your children who are 8-years-old and older.

marbling paint art kit

This kit allows your children to create artwork in a cool new way. Instead of painting on paper, the Marbling Paint Art Kit has your children painting on water! Drop the paint on the drawing liquid, swirl to any pattern, and transfer your creation onto paper. This one comes with 10 art sheets and a money back guarantee.

(An adult has to prep this craft 24 hours in advance by boiling water and adding a chemical thickener.)

coloring utensil gifts that spark creativity

My kids love art sets of all kinds, but they REALLY get excited about simple coloring utensils and reams of copy paper! These are some unique finds that will be perfect for your home’s art closet!

The Silly Scents Sweet & Stinky marker set comes in 10 sweet smelling markers (like coconut, grape, and strawberry) and 10 stinky smelling markers (mushroom, pizza, onion, dirty potatoes, old rotten tooth, rotten fruit, cheese, garlic, pickle, and smoke). My boys have gotten a HUGE kick out of these fun (washable) markers in the past.

This Crayola Twistable Crayon set includes 50 crayons in plastic barrels. Your child can twist up to color and twist down to store the crayons away.

The next item is a 240 Piece Bulk Crayola Crayon Set. If you kids are anything like mine then you already know why this would come in handy. Haha! Two of every color crayon in a handy tub for storage. Hallelujah!

My kids LOVE these Washable Dot Markers! Their chunky design is great for helping younger kids practice their fine motor painting skills. And older kids can work on their blending and layering. This set comes with a 48 page activity book, but my kids also dot paint on card-stock, regular drawing paper, and stretched canvas.

Last, the Washable Tri-Color Marker Set comes with 5 washable markers that house 15 bold colors. Your kids can use each color separately or 3 colors at once. And kids can achieve tri-color effects simply by rotating the marker as they color.

Children Coloring Around A Table Together

I hope you enjoyed these holiday suggestions for gifts that are sure to spark creativity in your children!

As always, you can learn more about our big family fun over at Meet Tanna from Megavan Mama.