Crafty Gifts for Little Girls

[dicaxpuella]

I have twin half-sisters turning 7 next month, and for their birthdays I'm making them the totebags from http://www.sewfastseweasy.com/, and I was wanting to "stuff" the bags with some more fun (and inexpensive) crafty items. Problem is, I'm stumped as to any ideas.
So, any of you wonderfully crafty and creative people have any ideas of some fun things that I could make that little girls would enjoy?
Thanks!

[Lothruin]

Create kits of various beads and satin or leather cord for them to make their own jewelry.  You see kits like this in toy stores all the time, but you can make your own, and create each one based on each girl's favorite colors and tastes of the moment.  Most craft stores have some really nice and cute themed beads, and often you can find them on sale or clearance.  And one of the nicest things about these gifts is that it also promotes you time.  What I mean is, it might give you a chance to sit down with them, together or individually, and help make whatever it is they want to make.  A nice together activity.

Handmade bookmarks and a small book (storebought or homemade) to go with.  If you buy a book, I recommend something like Charlotte's Web.  You can get used copies of this book at nearly every used bookstore.  Or, you could make a small journal for each of them.  It's never too early to start encouraging journal or diary writing, and they'll be glad later on that you did.  I still have, read and laugh at my diary from my younger years, and I have openly thanked my aunt for giving me that blank journal when I was 8.  Plus, it helps in writing skills.

Simple cookie recipes along with bags of dry ingredients.  Another together activity.  Also never too early to teach a girl how to make herself chocolate chip cookies!!

Easy Cross-stitch kits, like you can get at a fabric store for a dollar or two.  Make them or buy them, they make nice filler.

I was a tomboy growing up, but I would have enjoyed any of the above.  However, some girls are even more tomboy than I was, and if that's the case, you can include a cake or jello mold and a recipe for mud pies.  (Real mud pies, made with mud.)  Playing in the dirt is always fun.  

[ookpik]

my aunt used to give me covered shoeboxes full of craft gear when i was little and i loved it! good present!

other fun things (who cares what they are for? kids will think of something):

-colored pom poms
-pipecleaners
-googly eyes
-lick-n-stick shapes
-ribbons, fancy sticker tape (glow-in-the-dark, etc)
-big beads, small beads, buttons
-special markers (erasable, color change...)
-little packs of novelty crayons (glitter, dayglo...)
-scissors that cut scalloped borders

i also used to really have fun with those 2" button backs that have a snap-on cover so you can make anything into a button without a machine.

[StephJoy]

Paint-by-number kits(dollar store) and lots of
STICKERS!! Don;t forget the scratch and sniff kind!  Oh, and to go with the googly eyes and pipe cleaners someone else mentioned....one sock each to decorate and make puppets!!!  Oh, how I want to be a kid!

[jennybean]

oriental trading company has cute picture frame kits made from craft sticks and foam. you could put together the kits yourself and even improvise different ideas. if you had some photos of them to stick in there too it would be great.
but seriously, when i was 7, i would have gone nuts for glitter, google eyes, and pom poms!

[sewing stars]

At 7 years old I was a sticker connoisseur. Maybe a little kit with some pages hole punched at one side, and pretty ribbons, so they can make a sticker album.

Also, personally I love magents. Maybe a kit for making stickers into magnets. You can get some small magnet sheets at Staples, colored papers and stickers. They can sit and create their very own magnets for the fridge.

Sounds like fun to me.

[amareluna]

I asked my 10 yr old niece who is here having a 'crafty' spring break with me what she thought.

She gave the nod of approval to stickers, craft sticks, fabric scraps, needle and threads, glue, different kinds of funky paper, decorative things she could use on her pencil cans or notebooks, etc (like pompoms or those fun scrapbooking threads that have feathers and such on them) but what she said would be coolest is a notebook with different ideas on what to do with the stuff- but with enough blank pages that she could write in it too.

HTH

[halfjapanezegrl]

If you are looking for things to make yourself to give to them, here are a few ideas:
Make the totes beach or pool bags.
- Make an after water towel cover up.  Take a towel and cut it so that it is just long enough to wrap around the wearer once.  Fold over one of the long edges and sew to create a casing for elastic.  Then sew up the sides, make simple straps with the extra towel if you want, and you have a pull over "dress".  
- Decorate cheap flip-flops using craft foam.  
- Make Hawaiian hair clips using silk flowers and plain hair clips (Quilters Binding and Hem Clips work particularly well as they have a hole in the end.  They are avaliable in the notions section of most craft and fabric stores.  http://www.createforless.com/products/productDetail.asp?ProductID=7451).  

[jmesdiylounge]

Wow I love that Create for Less website. I can't believe I never heard of it before!

Thanks for the link.

I love the quilt clips with the holes in the end!

Jaime

[HardCandy63]

my aunt used to give me covered shoeboxes full of craft gear when i was little and i loved it! good present!

other fun things (who cares what they are for? kids will think of something):

-colored pom poms
-pipecleaners
-googly eyes
-lick-n-stick shapes
-ribbons, fancy sticker tape (glow-in-the-dark, etc)
-big beads, small beads, buttons
-special markers (erasable, color change...)
-little packs of novelty crayons (glitter, dayglo...)
-scissors that cut scalloped borders

i also used to really have fun with those 2" button backs that have a snap-on cover so you can make anything into a button without a machine.

I have all of these now. Except for those lick-n-stick shapes. Man, did I love those when I was a kid!   I don't knwo if someone metioned this, but when I was a wee-one i liked those latch-hook things, i still have the collie-dog pillow i made you know, the little kits that give you thread and un-pointy needles and you make nice fussy things with them. Maybe I'm confusing the names. Anyways, just check out your local craft store in the kits department. Something will pop out at you. Oh, and get some sequin ribbion. I loved that stuff.