I thought about writing an age-based holiday gift guide for girls, like I did for boys, but I decided to get a little more snazzy. Some of these gifts for girls will be better for certain age ranges, but the way to read this guide is to figure out which kind of personality your daughter (or niece or granddaughter or goddaughter or friend’s daughter or whomever) is rocking. If she falls into more than one category, well, you have more than one option, now don't you? Bonus!
For the future vlogger:
Whether she’s eight or seventeen, if she has a passion for sharing information, it might be a fun idea to give her an affordable video camera (like the Kodak PlaySport which is waterproof, aka kid-friendly) and some accessories (think lights, video editing, and so on). My friend Heather gave me this idea and I think it’s just stellar. Don’t forget to also give her some rules when you give this gift, and then sit back and let her interview you. With a smile, mom! With a smile!
For the sports star:
In addition to any crazy/colorful shoes she might want for basketball, softball, running or what have you, gift your sports-loving girl with some tickets. And not just tickets to see her favorite professional or college team. No, take her to see some real rocking-and-rolling women who are athletic, fun and badass: Roller Derby!
Chances are it will be a fun family night that your sports lover will remember for the rest of her life.
For the girl who wears her heart on her sleeve:
Now you can let her wear her heart -- or whatever she wants -- on her shirt. One of my favorite stores, Threadless, is now offering different neckline cuts from their previous “t-shirt crewneck only,” meaning that teen girls can be comfy and stylish in their own way. The Nature Photographer t-shirt (boatneck cut available) is my favorite and would be a great gift for an off-the-beaten-track fashion lover who also has a love of photography.
For the snowed-in, quirky animal lover:
Michelle, mom to a 13-year-old, let me know that cute animal hats are in for the tween/teen set. I saw hats like these being sold willy-nilly when I was visiting New York City in October, but I was unaware that it was such a huge trend. Now I wish I would have grabbed a few for my teen cousins! That said, this owl hat from naturallyhooked on Etsy is one of my favorites.
For the rockin’ musician:
If your future musician loves the color pink and guitars, Old Navy has the pink version of ThinkGeek’s Electronic Guitar tees. Now she can jam out everywhere, all day, everyday. Yay?
(ThinkGeek had a pink, but it’s sold out. And this one will sell out too. So go quickly.)
For the girl who never outgrew the Muppets:
This one is simple: Muppets OPI nail polishes. You can still find them on Amazon. (Thanks for the idea, Sassymonkey!)
For the Babywearing... Baby?
I have to thank Lucy for sharing this adorable idea for little girls. If your little one wants to be just like you and carry her baby doll in a sling, well, let her! There are lots of kids’ sized slings out there in all kinds of styles: buckle tai, ring sling, mei tai, and so on. If you prefer pouch slings, maybe your kid will too with this one from SnuggyBaby on Etsy. Love! (PS: There’s lots in stock at this store for great little prices!)
And lastly, For the tech lover:
This is the easy one, unless you’ve already purchased them all. There’s laptops and iPads and other tablets and mp3 players and eReaders. (Want to know the difference between the newest Nook and the Kindle Fire? Check it out!) There are iTunes gift cards for apps and music. And, if you haven't tried it yourself yet, just trust me that a Spotify premium account would make a teen who has a computer and a smart phone pretty happy -- and pretty stocked in streaming music for awhile! (Honestly? I'd love one too!)
Whew. That's a lot of ideas.
That said, this is not an exhaustive list of types of girls, nor will there ever be one. Because you can combine all of these types of girls with all of the other types of girls and come up with tens of millions of variations as to what "kid" of girl you are buying a gift for. But don't panic. You'll figure it out. And don't miss boy boys' gift guide -- because, let's face it, all of the ideas on that one and this one are really interchangeable for genders!
Family Section Editor Jenna Hatfield (@FireMom) blogs at Stop, Drop and Blog and The Chronicles of Munchkin Land. She is a freelance writer and photographer.