Are you already shopping for holiday gifts? In the past (when my kids were little), I would be DONE holiday shopping by the end of October. I would shop for my family and friends all year long, that way I wasn’t feeling the pressure to buy gifts for everyone during the holiday season. I would rather enjoy the sights and sounds of holidays than stress out that I won’t be able to find the “perfect” gift in time for Christmas.
Fast forward to these days. I have found over the past few years that I don’t really get into holiday shopping UNTIL October. Now I’m one of those people I didn’t want to be – the type of person who has to scramble to find gifts right up until Christmas Eve. Sigh…
Whether you are done with your holiday shopping, or you haven’t started yet, I wanted to share with you gift options from the brand Bright Stripes. Bright Stripes offers fun, creative DIY and craft kits for kids.
I have reviewed products from Bright Stripes in the past. If you do a search for Bright Stripes in the search bar on my site, you’ll find those other posts.
Bright Stripes recently sent me a couple of DIY craft kits to review. I think both options would make great holiday gifts or stocking stuffers.
Candle Critters are Scandinavian-inspired, ceramic night lights. They come packaged in adorable cottage-shaped boxes. The kites include special ceramic markers that can be used to decorate the “critter.” In addition, the kit also includes a LED tea light which fits inside and shines through the cut-outs in the night light.
Candle Critters are currently available in the following shapes – Corgi, Pegasus, Unicorn, Fox, Turtle and Bunny.
I was sent the Pegasus to review. I grew up with horses, and I love horses. I also thought it was really pretty.
The kit came with gray, pink and purple ceramic markers.
Using the markers, you can color and decorate the ceramic night light any way you want. You can also add designs to the piece as well (I added hearts and dots, in addition to coloring it).
I am impressed with the markers. I honestly didn’t think they would color well, but I was pleasantly surprised. They did an amazing job, and I was able to color all the areas I wanted to without any issues.
Once the marker dries, it doesn’t smudge off, which is a good thing.
The included flameless tea light fits inside. The ONLY issue I have is that it’s not easy to get the tea light back out in order to turn it back on (I’m not sure if this is the case with all the kits, or just Pegasus). It’s not really an issue. I just tip the night light so that the candle half way slides out from inside. Then I just flip the switch to on or off. That is easy enough to do.
I don’t use it as a night light. I have it on one of our bookcases. I light it up at night because I love things that light up (candles, flameless candles, decorations). Plus I’m proud of how it turned out, so I like displaying it.
Once the included flameless candle run out (battery), you can simply replace it with a new one. I find similar candles at the dollar store.
These kits sell for $24.99 on the Bright Stripes website.
Swirly Word are glitter pens that you assemble (kit).
I’m in my 50’s, and I remember having pens in school that were filled with some kind of liquid and things that would move around (or back and forth) when you tilted the pen. They were fun to watch, and distracting when at school (ha ha).
These pens are similar.
Swirly World pens are currently available in the following designs – Panda Princess, Franky Fangs (Shark), Aloha Mer-Kitty (Mermaid Cat), and Nutty Narwhal.
I opted to review the Nutty Narwhal.
These kits include a pen that lights up, clear beads, plastic bubbles, jellyfish accessory, character and mineral oil.
These pens are easy to assemble. Simply unscrew the pen cap, and pour in the included mineral oil up to the fill line. Then add it the rest of the goodies (character, bubbles, beans and jellyfish), and then screw the pen shut. That’s it. It’s that easy to assemble.
Unbeknown to me, my jellyfish piece fell on the floor, so it’s not included in my pen. That’s OK. It’s still cute to look at. I like seeing the Narwhal bobbing up and down in it’s inner tube.
I tried taking a photo (above), but it’s hard to get a good photo because everything inside the pen moves around. At least you can see the Narwhal and that it’s inside an inner tube.
The pen lights up (red) when you use then pen (it turns on with the pressure of writing with the pen).
I was concerned about the pen leaking (oil), but so far, so good. The pen is on my desk (it’s the only pen I’ve been using) and I have not experienced any leakage.
The only thing I wish was different is that I would have preferred a white/non-color light instead of the red light. The light is very bright, which could be distracting if used in school. Not only that, they are ocean-themed designs, and the bright red light doesn’t seem to fit in with that theme.
The Swirly World pens sell for $8.99 on the Bright Stripes website. These would make stocking stuffers.
If you are interested in learning more about these kits, or other Bright Stripes products, visit BrightStripes.co (notice it’s .co, NOT .com). The brand can also be found on Facebook and Instagram. Those links are found on the bottom of the brand’s website.
What do you think about these kits? Do they look like something our child/grandchild would enjoy doing? Feel free to comment and share your thoughts. I always love to hear from readers.
Kimberly
*I received free product samples in order to do this review. There was no compensation. The opinions expressed are my own and not influenced in any way.
