Top 10: Gifts for kids

1

Mud&Bloom subscription box

Mud & Bloom is a monthly subscription box delivering seasonal nature crafts and gardening activities to your door. Each box contains everything you need for four seasonal growing and craft activities along with instructions, nature news and games to teach children about the seasons, plants, insects, birds, soil etc.

The boxes have been created for 3-8 year old's by qualified teachers and support the national curriculum. Single boxes start at £11.95 per month, or you can pay £69 for 6 months and £131.40 for 12 months. There's also currently a 10% discount running, so if you sign up you'll receive 10% off your first box using the code FIRSTBOX10 at checkout. However, this offer only applies to the month to month boxes, not the 3, 6 and 12-month gift subscriptions.

>> Read our full review

3

Disney villain face masks

Much like the Star Wars facemasks in our Star Wars Gift Guide, these are perfect for anyone who fancies a pamper sesh while also understanding that Disney villains were the real leading ladies. In this pack of three, you'll get facemasks of Ursula: super hydrating cucumber to soothe and moisturise - Maleficent: antioxidant green tea to refresh and revitalise skin and Cruella De Vil: calming coconut for nourished and supple skin.

Having tried these ourselves, we can confirm they're quite luxurious (and cold). They'll also certainly get a laugh from your friends.

5

LEGO

LEGO is a great gift for kids who love to create. There are hundreds of options for what to buy, especially at this time of year when LEGO introduces its new seasonal sets and there are a few promotions on as well. For something Christmas-themed, we'd opt for the CREATOR Gingerbread House. It's a big outlay but with 1477 pieces it should keep 12+ kids busy for at least most of Boxing Day.

For something smaller - and cheaper - the £10 CITY Police Patrol car is a simple build of 92 pieces for kids aged 5 and up. The set includes a police officer minifigure, a police car with a removable roof and two police traffic cone accessories. The Duplo Frozen Ice Castle is also bound to be a hit with little ones who love Frozen. For ages 2+, the 59-piece set includes three figures (Anna, Elsa and Olaf) and the Disney Frozen castle with a slide, table, chairs and kitchen equipment. There's a button-operated light brick that provides multicoloured illumination for the castle. LEGO says this buildable toy for toddlers is designed to encourage role-play and storytelling to help your child develop language, social and emotional skills.

>> Read our review of the LEGO Speed Champions (1968 Ford Mustang and Ford Fiesta M-Sport WRC)

>> Read our review of the LEGO Architecture New York City set

Buy it now

LEGO 60239 City Police Police Patrol Car

£16.99

7

RazorX Cruiser electric skateboard

The Cruiser is a considerably cheaper electric skateboard than most others on the market. Of course, there's more to it than that, but this offering from Razor is far less costly than rival electric skateboards - which is one of its main selling points. It goes up to 10mph (16kph), lasts 40 minutes on a single charge and is suitable for ages 9 and up with a 220lb (100kg) weight limit - which makes it suitable for this 24-year-old reviewer and our younger product testers.

Basically, it's a great entry-level e-skateboard - making it ideal for kids and skateboard novices. In fact, we think it's one of the best options to get to grips with the world of electric skateboards (and skateboards in general). It also won our award for Toy of the Year 2019.

>> Read our full review

9

Scalextric Micro Wacky Races

Alongside its full-size sets that are popular with older kids (and more likely grown-ups), Scalextric also has Micro sets, aimed at younger children, from four years old. Priced at £55, it comes with two cars (1:64 scale) - the Mean Machine driven by Dick Dastardly and Muttley plus the Turbo Terrific driven by Peter Perfect. You can also add Penelope Pitstop's car, the Pink Pussycat, which is sold separately for £13.

The mains powered set has more than four metres of track and there are nine suggested layouts that include a loop-the-loop or a vertical stunt ramp. The cars feature the Magnatraction magnetic system to help the cars stick the track plus there are two hand controllers which can be adjusted to limit the speed. The set may seem pricey but it's good value considering how much track you get along with the two detailed cars. It's also cheaper than alternatives like the Carrera Go Mario Kart set - and much better quality too.

>> Read our full review