Gifts for Teens

What do teens want? Gift cards, tech, and the latest fashions! Here are some things to put a smile on their face this holiday season.

iPod Touch 5^th Generation ($299)— Oh swoon! Of course your teen wants the redesigned iPod Touch! It’s thinner and lighter than ever and a beauty to look at thanks to the 4” Retina display and rainbow of colors its aluminum body comes in. It features a 5 megapixel iSight camera with the new panorama feature and LED flash. It ships with the Apple EarPods, the redesigned white earbuds that fit more comfortably in your ears, and the iPod Touch Loop that can be attached if needed. If you’ve been waiting to get your teen an iPod Touch, this is the one to get!

Hats. Fun whimsical hats are not only functional but fashionable. I like the Kate Spade Crown Ski Hat in bright pink merino wool hat that always make her feel like a princess whether on the slopes, heading to and from school, or out with friends. Another more affordable favorite is Yak Apparel’s faux fur lined pom pom hat. I love this hat because it’s super warm thanks to a wool exterior and soft faux fur lining. Normally $45, Yak Apparel is having an amazing Cyber Monday sale where everything in the online store is 75% off making this hat a steal at $11.25. There are tons of styles to choose from for men and women and prices start under $5 with the Cyber Monday discount.

Words with Friends ($19.99)— Based on Zynga’s addictive game with the same title, Words with Friends is like Scrabble. Like Scrabble, the game includes letter tiles, 4 curved holders for your tiles, and a bag for holding the letter tiles. Tiles look similar to Scrabble’s but instead of being wooden and the point value in the lower right corner, the tiles are plastic with rounded edges and have the point value in the upper right corner. Game play and winning is the same in this family friendly game that is based off the popular app. The only difference is a code to redeem the Words with Friends Ultimate Play Pack for online play. Just be sure the recipient doesn’t already have Scrabble before gifting this. Otherwise it’s a fun game for kids even younger than teens.

Arc Customizable Notebook from Staples— As tech savvy as your teen is, they still need paper and pencil so get them a customizable notebook system that can change based on their needs. Choose from an assortment of sizes, poly or leather covers, and then add items such as page flags, dividers, rulers, pockets, task pads, weekly or monthly planner paper, and more that can all be rearranged, added to, or removed when no longer needed.

Stila Cosmetics All is Bright Holiday Lip Glaze Set ($25)—Eight gorgeous limited edition Stila lip glosses are beautifully packaged and ready for gift giving to a niece, babysitter, or teen friend. The set contains .05 oz tubes of Jack Frost, Jingle, Holly, Jolly, Joy, Splendor, Black Cherry, and Sugar Plum.

Playstation Vita ($299)— Released earlier this year, the PS Vita has incredible graphics and a 5” touch screen that any gaming teen will appreciate. Front and rear facing cameras allow for augmented reality gaming. You can be as connected as you want to thanks to wifi connectivity and location based gaming called Near. Near allows you to find out what nearby friends are playing. Since teens can connect with friends and strangers virtually through PlayStation Network, be sure to establish rules about who they’re gaming with and talking to as you give them this powerful handheld gaming system.

Microsoft Surface Tablet with Touch Cover ($680)— PC aficionados will love the new Surface Tablet with Windows 8. It’s slim design, easy to use visual interface, and Bluetooth keyboard makes it a portable computing solution thanks to 9 hours of battery life. It’s an investment but if your PC loving teen is tablet hungry, this is a great choice.

Hand in Hand Wrapped Bangle ($28)— Made in Afghanistan, these affordable bangles make a sweet gift for a beloved babysitter and also support Women for Women International, an organization that supports women in war-torn countries. The silver and gold version is pictured above but there’s also a solid silver or solid gold version for the same price.

Gift cards? Yes, please say teens everywhere! What to give? Here are some ideas:

• A gift card to Apple or  Best Buy lets them pick out tech accessories or helps them get the item they really wanted but didn’t. Or get them an  iTunes gift card for movies, apps, and music that they can never have enough of.

• Keep them fashionable with gift cards to stores like Gap, Banana Republic, J Crew, Nordstrom, Abercrombie & Fitch, and American Eagle.

• Let them design a custom iPhone Case for their iPhone 4, 4s, or 5 ($39.95) to match their personality with a gift card from Tiny Prints.

• Help her splurge on beauty favorites at Sephora.

• Passes to the movies so they can keep their allowance and hard earned cash for the items they truly covet.

• If they applied to college early decision and have already heard or will within the next month, collegiate apparel and accessories (license plate frame, anyone?) will instill some school pride.

Samples were received for review purpose while other products were personally purchased. No compensation was received for this post. All images are courtesy of the companies. All opinions are my own. Amazon Affiliate links are included in this post.