Last-Minute Holiday Gift Ideas

Despite the fact that we’ve found ourselves smack dab in the middle of holiday season, there’s still an overabundance of procrastinators who haven’t yet discovered the perfect gift; or, in more honest terms, haven’t even started looking.

But don’t worry, I won’t judge; in fact, due to genuine empathy (early holiday shopping has never been my forte), here’s a compiled break-down of last minute holiday gifts.

  1. The Classic Food Move

There’s no way anyone could ever be disappointed by food (or perhaps that’s just me), much less delicious, holiday-spirited, daintily wrapped delicacies. Build a few layers of chocolate, crushed candy canes, M&Ms, peanuts (clarify for allergies), and coconut sprinkles in a jar, and top it off with some colorful decorations. If that’s too simple, peppermint bark is always a tasty alternative; melt one pound of white chocolate, mix it with 3/4 cup of crushed candy canes, and allow the mixture to cool. If you want, you could always stick the cut-up pieces in a festive box or jar, and you’ll be more than good to go.

  1. A Homemade Snow Globe

Snow globes are one of my favorite holiday gifts; perfect for decoration, as well as general creativity, these quick makes should prove to be a whimsical present. Collect a few items to go in your snow globe–anything works, as long as they don’t dissolve in water (plastics are a good choice). A rather interesting idea I happened to stumble across is placing a laminated photo inside your snow globe, but this might require a little additional work (especially if you don’t have a laminator).

To make, hot glue your items down to the lid of a small to medium sized jar (leave some space around the edges); if you find your figurines falling off, glue on some additional support around the bases. Next, fill your jar with water, and add in large scoops of glitter. Carefully, but tightly, place the lid back onto the jar, and flip the end product over to ensure nothing goes wrong (make sure the water doesn’t leak or turn muddy). Gluing down the lid is an optional idea; otherwise, you’re done!

  1. The Handmade Card

Believe it or not, handmade cards can turn out stunning; and although a bit more effort might be required, the end result is absolutely worth it. Sketch out a small, holiday-themed silhouette (ideas include reindeers, trees, snowmen, gingerbread houses, or even snowflakes) on patterned cardstock paper–red and green should work nicely–and glue it onto the front of a folded, empty white card. Embellish the card with a medium sized ribbon at the corner, or cut up some lace to use as a borderline. And if it still looks a bit bland, adding in a few decorative words should be enough.

  1. And Some Other Miscellaneous Ideas

If all else fails, stuffed animals are a pretty good backup; so are books, photo albums, art supplies, headphones, room decorations, fuzzy socks (one of my favorites), clothes, and gift cards.