Gift ideas for Christmas and other holidays, from puzzles to DIY plasticine

Santa needs help every year to make the wishes of all good boys and girls (of all ages and sizes) come true. But he told Deseret News he was feeling particularly stressed this year by supply chain issues that were wreaking havoc on his reindeer delivery system.

The Deseret News has scoured the shelves and researched online, took plenty of arguments from the retail elves, and put together a few suggestions that will hopefully spark some creative gift ideas.

Want to spend a lot? Or a little? There is something here for everyone. Ho ho ho!

1. Grooves! (MSRP $ 20)

This 2021 MENSA Select winner is a race to create a single row in a deck of cards billed as “totally original and strategic”. As you build you can break through the scratches of your competition.

Breaking games

2. Lark Adventurewear Pajamas for the whole family ($ 32 to $ 68)

Bamboo, soft, washable and thermoregulating. Different styles.

Lark adventure clothing

3. Welly Traveler Water Bottle (18 oz equals $ 33)

This triple-wall insulated bottle keeps liquids cold for 24 hours or hot for up to 14. The removable infuser makes it easy to flavor the water. Bamboo, BPA free plastic and silicone.

Welly

4. Wubbanub pacifier with attached cuddly creature ($ 14.99)

These pacifiers are designed to be perfect for cuddling in little hands. The “Lovey” companion creatures can be purchased separately.

Wubbanub

5. 1000 piece puzzle at the museum, by Princeton Architectural Press ($ 16.95)

This puzzle looks like a snap, but there are some clever touches that draw adults into the fun. A great design with colorful characters and, as the promotional material says, “each gallery offers new details to discover and hints of artistic movements through time and history”.

Princeton Architectural Press

6. Skinlycious Skin Care Starter Kit (MSRP $ 89)

The set includes seven products for clearer, healthier skin, including cleanser, exfoliant, hydrating and clarifying serums, makeup remover, moisturizer, and sunscreen.

Skinlycious

7. Szanto ICON Signature Series: Roland Sands (MSRP of $ 350)

Roland Sands, famous motorcycle rider and designer, influenced the Time Concepts chronograph watch series that pays him homage.

Time Concepts

8. VIVOHOME portable electric ice cube maker (MSRP of $ 149 but sales are plentiful)

Lightweight, plugs in, just add water. Make a batch in six to 10 minutes or make 26 pounds of ice cream per day.

Lois Collins

9. GIGIL STEM kits for children (prices for individual kits range from $ 29.99 to $ 64.95)

Buy a kit or sign up for one of the discounted membership plans and let kids learn about science, technology, engineering, and math.

GIGIL

ten. Pull the starter fire entry ($ 17 for the pack of three entries)

This fire starter works in wind or rain, on wet or dry wood, whether you are making s’mores in the fireplace at home or cooking outdoors. No matches, no lighters, no kindling. Just pull. Burns for half an hour.

Shoot the starter fire

11. Clixo Rainbow Pack (Starting at $ 59.99)

This pack combines building blocks, magnets, and origami. Click the 2D elements together and they become 3D creations. Other sets available.

Clixo

12. Vahdam India herbal tea sample set ($ 44.99)

The sample set includes six blends and 60 tea bags. They are vegan with no caffeine.

Vahdam India

13. The Pulp project Rainbow DIY Kit ($ 55)

This kit allows children to make their own play dough in a wide range of colors and fuels hours of modeling and modeling fun.

The dough project

14. Atlas Obscura Online Course (gift cards of $ 25 and more)

Do you know someone who has always wanted to be a taxidermist or recreate old – really, really old – recipes? How about someone interested in podcasting or writing fairy tales? This Atlas Obscura gift card lets you pay for one of the many unusual online courses – or just help out.

Dark Atlas

15. Pokémon Trainers Trivia by UltraPro ($ 25)

Single or multiplayer, with three levels. Ages 7 and up with 1,000 questions on the way to becoming an expert trainer.

UltraPro

16. Pop Fashion Infinity Scarf with Hidden Zipped Pocket (Various prices, starting at $ 10.99)

Store your wallet, keys or phone in this sling to keep it safe.

Amazon pop fashion store

17. Legends Ultimate Arcade by AtGames ($ 599)

An expandable, full-size arcade machine with 300 licensed built-in arcade and console games including Asteroids, BurgerTime, Centipede, Operation Wolf, Space Invaders, Tempest, Tron, and Zoo Keeper.

Games

18. GO lion cub (MSRP of $ 175)

Lion Cub GO is the smallest portable generator to have an AC outlet and up to 150W of output. Weighs 3 pounds and can be taken on an airplane. Solar panel add-on module sold separately.

Lion energy

19. Journal Ready to Start Over, Drawings by Loveleen ($ 25)

If you feel like it’s time to make some changes in your life, this journal is a great start.

Loveleen’s Drawings

20. Spine (MSRP of $ 99)

This portable streaming device works with all iPhones. Stream Xbox games to your phone with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. No Xbox required. Works with PlayStation Remote Play, Steam Link, Apple Arcade, Call of Duty: Mobile, Minecraft, Roblox and more. Includes three months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate ($ 45 value), two months of Stadia Pro ($ 20 value), and one year of Backbone + ($ 49 value)

Spine

21. Pop It! S licensed by Buffalo Games ($ 9.99 each)

There are many models available including popular characters like Olaf, Darth Vader, Spider-Man, Ariel, Baby Yoda and more.

Buffalo games

22. Original butterfly art handmade by HeART by Jasmine on Etsy ($ 140)

Each framed piece is unique.

Jasmine irons-Anokute

23. Names for good bracelets ($ 35-45)

All profits are donated to charities for children.

Names for good

24. Hungry trash cans game by Adventerra Games ($ 19.99)

This game teaches little children ages 3 and up to recycle.

Adventerra Games

25. Simply Organic Baking Essentials Organic Spice Kit ($ 24.95)

This kit includes the basics of the season: cinnamon sticks, cinnamon, pumpkin spice and ginger. It is sure to please gourmets.

Simply organic