Kris Kringle is just over two weeks away and every year, we struggle to find unique gifts that fit the “Christmas-themed”,“200 yen”, or  “red and green” criteria. Perhaps the biggest struggle is the “homemade gift”.

Well, your prayers for help have been heard because the Journalism team has put together several cute and tasty homemade ideas for the first day of Kris Kringle.

Sugar Lip Scrub

No one wants a pair of dry, cracked lips on the cold and crisp winter days. Here is an easy DIY Sugar Lip Scrub made from simple ingredients. We highly recommend this easy recipe from Everydayroots.

You will need:

-A tablespoon of white or brown sugar

-A dash of honey

-A tiny drop of Vanilla

-A small container

Directions:

Mix the sugar with enough honey to stick the sugar particles together. Then put the mixture into a jar, and you are all set!

When applying, make sure you rub it on your lips for one minute before applying lip balm.

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Chocolate Bark

Everyone loves a delicious chocolate bar, but making your own instead of buying one from the conbini is more heartfelt. So, if you really want to mesmerise your Kris Kringle, here is a simple recipe from Realsimple for a chocolate bar filled with fruits and pretzels.

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Brown Butter Cookies

For those who want to take it a step further by baking, here is another delicious, yet simple recipe for a batch of Brown Butter Cookies from Byron Talbott’s Youtube channel. You can never go wrong with a batch of cookies, right?

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Now that you’ve got ideas for the homemade gifts, here are some more ideas for the second and third day gifts.

Although there are tons of stores in Tokyo, it is overwhelming and difficult to find stores that sell cheap, yet adorable Christmas presents.

Worry no more!

Here is a list of stores famous for their wide variety of gifts you could purchase for your Kris Kringle.

Flying Tiger: Located in Ginza, Odaiba, and Shinjuku, they sell goods varying from socks to bags to clocks or room décor. All of the goods are sold at very affordable prices ranging from 100 yen ~ 2500 yen. Throughout the Christmas season, they will be selling lots of affordable Christmas-themed items such as phone cases, stationery, and eco bags.

Plaza and Loft: Both these stores are well known for their cute, trendy stationery, trinkets and other unique items. The stores are located in convenient places in Tokyo such as Shibuya, Ginza, Shinjuku, Ikebukuro, and Ebisu. Gifts from theses stores are ideal for the “Big Gift” (the 1,000 yen gift you give your Kris Kringle on the last day of school).

Franc Franc: Although this store is known for their posh room décor and is slightly more expensive than the other stores mentioned above, you can find high quality Christmas- themed candles, cushions, or even body lotions for your Kris Kringle. Franc Franc is located in Shinjuku, Shibuya, Yoyogi, and Odaiba.

We hope you find these ideas helpful, and we wish you fun baking or shopping for your Kris Kringle this year!