Unique Christmas Stocking Stuffer Ideas for Those Hard to Shop for Misfits on Your List

In search of some quirky Christmas gift ideas for the artsier sorts on your holiday list? One of my very favorite online shopping finds of the last few years has been etsy (www.etsy.com), a wondrous marketplace for independent artists, artisans, and crafters to offer their unique and delectable wares. The unifying factor is that these offerings must be handmade. However, these offerings run the glorious gamut from handcrafted artisanal soaps to lovely letterpress greeting cards to one-of-a-kind pieces of visual art and so much more.

I think that etsy would be an utterly excellent one-stop-shopping-source for unique Christmas stocking stuffer notions (and probably most of your other holiday gift giving needs, too); I have certainly used it in the past few years to shop for everyone from my dad (a fine silk-screened tie) to my husband (kitschy drink coasters and amusing blank cards for writing the latest love letter) to the various ladies in my life (aromatic bath & body products, nifty winter hats, wonderful candles), and even for my utterly adorable Boston Terrier (extra-special homemade dog treats galore).

One of the best details about etsy, in addition to the plethora of delightful goodies that you most likely will not find all in one place anywhere else, is that you can feel good about shopping there, because instead of flinging your dollars into some mass market black hole of consumption, you will actually be supporting independent artists, and who doesn't feel marvelous about supporting art, especially during this holiday season of giving? I know I do. I find it such a refreshing change of pace to take a break from loading up on the latest generic product and instead acquire a heartfelt creation. Products make an assembly line churning sound, but creations sing quirky little carols of joy and verve.

I think that most any creative individual is going to enjoy a highly festive good time browsing etsy (and you'll probably be tempted to take a break from your Christmas shopping in order to acquire a few little treats for yourself), but here are some unique stocking stuffer ideas to get you started and get you in the Christmas spirit (whether that spirit is induced by nativity scenes, mistletoe, or spiked eggnog liberally sprinkled with nutmeg). Enjoy!

1. How about some delectable gourmet edibles for humans and pets? You'll find all kinds of yummy choices on etsy including several delicious treats that I can vouch for personally.

Whimsy &Spice (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5797821) are confectioners from Brooklyn New York who hand make and hand package all manner of titillating edible treasures, from cookies to brownies to marshmallows, shipped straight to your home or your lucky Christmas gift recipient's home. I have tried their Rose and Black Pepper Thumbprint Cookies as well as their Honey Lavender Shortbread Cookies and both varieties are gorgeously subtle, finely-crafted gourmet delights. There are so many more flavors I desire to try! If you have a unique dessert connoisseur in your life, what could make a better Christmas stocking stuffer than their Marshmallow Sampler Packs, which allow you to select three different flavors of artsy-looking homemade marshmallows to float sweetly atop your holiday cocoa or coffee or hot toddy. Yum!

You wouldn't want to let your favorite four-legged friend feel left out, would you? Stuff your pet's holiday stocking with fun-filled and lovingly prepared specialties from Little Pies (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=26654), a shop which focuses on organic treats and other handmade goodies for your furrier family members. From Cranberry Turkey Crispers to Secret Squirrels to Peanut Butter Carob Chip Crunchers, doesn't your dog deserve some Christmas love, too?

2. How about an uber-quirky dish with which to serve up some of that seasonal yumminess?

Trixie Delicious (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=46175) vandalizes vintage plates, cups, and saucers to cater to all your sassier and bawdier dining needs. Do you desire a floral motif, grandmotherly-looking tea cup that proclaims you a 'Harlot'? What about a 'Redneck' plate, a 'Reject' platter or an entire Seven Deadly Sins coffee set? Trixie has got you covered. Personally, I might be spooning up a small helping of Christmas pudding from my cute little 'Mutant' plate some time soon.

3. How about some soap that transcends the norm?

Almost everyone uses soap, but instead of the usual old perfume or cologne scented, rectangular-shaped bars, why not try an incense-scented slab called Alchemy from Squeaky Queen (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5148824) for lovers of that musky Nag Champa aroma?

Or why not indulge in an after-dinner dessert bath with a cupcake-shaped natural bath product from LilyBaySoap (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5317480)? Just try to resist taking a nibble of this fabulous confection!

4. 'Tis the season for fingerless gloves, especially for those of us who live in old, drafty houses but still need to keep our fingers free to write!

Check out the lovely English Rose Handwarmers from crazyjaneknits (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5547930), sweetly adorned with a vintage button.

On the bulkier side of the spectrum are these cozy-looking gray wool fingerless gloves from missindie (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5875385), which would make a fun accessory to wear while opening presents on a cold Christmas morning.

5.Of course, it's not just your hands and wrists that need to be kept warm this Christmas season; it's also your poor dear ears and head. Why not do it in style with a sassy winter hat?

You can't go wrong with a cat-eared hat, whether you're a kid or an adult. Check out Armada Anime (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5458904) for lots of multi-colored, silky-eared options. Purr.

What? You say you wanna get even funkier with your hat-wearing self or maybe you have a punktastsic teen or young adult on your Christmas shopping list? Well, just try to resist one of these extremely razzmatazztic Mohawk hats from Infantile (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5400210)!

6. For Christmas parties and even more stylish affairs, artistically designed jewelry might fit the bill. Etsy shops offer all sorts of necklaces, earrings, wrist cuffs and more to suit just about anyone's fancy and anyone's budget, too.

WynnStudio (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=41668) is home to some truly unique wearable art pieces. Some of their pendants are on the deliciously odd side, featuring bird heads, teeth, tufts of hair or other such gloriously peculiar flourishes, perhaps a strangely perfect fit for the sweet misfit or slightly macabre artist on your stocking stuffer shopping list. I am quite a fan of the incomparable pencil pendant necklaces, which would be a superb choice for the poet or other word-lover in your life.

For a slightly fancier occasion, such as a museum opening for a new archaeological exhibit or a red wine tasting preceding a late night vampire film, perhaps someone on your list might like to bedeck herself with a grandiose adornment from LoveFromLily (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5265333).

7. Who doesn't need a little more visual art in her existence? Etsy offerings include paintings, photographs, sculptures, mixed media pieces, and so much more (including art SUPPLIES).

I adore these poetically evocative digital art prints from Art & Ghosts (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5032864).

These almost unbearably cute yet sad, misfit-esque paintings by Kendra Binney (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=56077) are just the right itty bitty size for a soon-to-be-giddy art lover's Christmas stocking.

8. I have saved the dearest to my heart for the last. Etsy also features a 'books and zines' category, which includes plenty of handmade blank books, handmade coloring books, handmade art books, and hand-designed poetry books!

Limited-edition, ribbon-bound, adorned with flirtatious flourishes, and oozing with provocative words about girl gangs and planchettes and ectoplasm and wild animals and more, Blood Pudding Press (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=99221) is more than sweet and grotesque enough to satiate the taste buds of the weird, oblique, and visceral poetry lovers on your Christmas list. Each of these slim tomes is like an art piece and the innards are both creepy and incredibly yummy.

A few of the other fine small poetry presses representing on etsy are Hex Presse (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5069809) and Dos Press (http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5459402).

All of this multifarious goodness and I haven't even delved into the realm of hand-sewn legwarmers, one-of-a-kind vintage finds, and oodles upon oodles of beads!

Do browse etsy for unique holiday stocking stuffer ideas and acquisitions. I think you'll be oh so delighted you did.

Have a merry and artistic Christmas!