47 Best Gifts for Creative 1 Year Olds – Unique Toys and Gift Ideas

With 18 feet of track included, this Thomas engine makes a fun gift for 1 year olds who want a little independence without being able to venture too far or too fast.

Two great toys in one, the Scoot 2 Scooter Ride-On can be ridden like a scooter, or converted into a ride-on by flipping the base, and features the iconic Radio Flyer styling.

With more than 100 possible stories, the Mirari myStorymaker will guide toddlers through tales and adventures as they choose and press the buttons, with pretty lights, and engaging voices and sound effects.

This activity cube makes a wonderful gift for 1 year olds – there’s so much going on! With 5 sides of brightly-colored fun, tots can slide, drive, and spin their way through playtime.

Spinning is one of life’s most enjoyable activities, especially when you’re one. The Sit ‘n Spin from PlaySkool allows them to spin themselves around and around by pulling and pushing the stationary wheel.

Available in light, medium, or dark wash, this adorable denim jacket will keep baby warm, as well as make them look totally cool. Embroidered on the back with your choice of name or initials, the personalization can be made in a choice of thread colors and font styles.

This may be their first rodeo, but it’ll also be the best thanks to this absolutely adorable Rodeo Rocker, which features the cutest little zebra ever taking center stage.

They’ll learn all about cause and effect when they push the VTech Push & Pop Bulldozer, as the brightly colored balls pop from the chimney to the bucket as it’s being rolled along.

Get them used to their name with this classic wooden puzzle. Designed with tots in mind, this puzzle will spell out their name in bright and colorful letters, helping them to learn not only their own moniker, but colors, too, while also strengthening their fine motor skills.

For a gift that will be treasured for many years to come, this sweet storybook pillow can feature a baby or a toddler as the main character, along with customized skin tone, gender, and (for the toddler option) hair color. Complete with the parents’ names as authors, it makes a beautiful gift.

Never mind the wheel of fortune, THIS spinner is where it’s at! With three modes to choose from, toddlers can spin the wheel to hear sounds, names, or songs when they press the light-up buttons.

There are surprises galore inside this simple but oh-so-fun picture book, which invites readers to press the dot, tilt, and shake the pages for changing illustrations before their very eyes.

The bright colors and cutest friendly face of this little hedgehog will intrigue 1 year olds as they sort colors and perfect their fine motor skills by sticking the spikes into the holes.

Any land (or carpet) can become dinoland with the Step2 Dino Rocker. With the anti-tip design, easy grip handles, and friendly face, he makes the ideal gift for 1 year olds.

The perfect 1st birthday gift for any little boy, this personalized book will make a lovely keepsake. Using the child’s first name throughout the text and illustrations, this book uses animals to tell the rhyming story of the preparations for the big day. The dedication page can also be personalized.

They’ll have tons of fun with the Mirari Pop! Pop! Piano as they press the keys to hear the music notes, as well as watch the colored balls popping out of the top.

This beautiful book will make a gift that parents and children alike will enjoy reading together for many years to come. Touching and sweet, ‘The Wonderful Things You Will Be’ is a rhyming story that tells a child all the qualities their parents know they will possess as they grow.

Once you get them this playset, they’ll be set for years. Set it up in the back yard and that lucky one-year old will never know life without a climbing wall, swings, and an entire universe of play, right there waiting for them. Your house will be the go-to neighborhood playdate destination.

Add a touch of nostalgia to the toy box with this Fisher-Price Retro Record Player, which plays 10 nursery rhymes (5 records), and comes with a handle so they can carry it everywhere.

Bouncing or spinning – whichever your toddler prefers, this little puppy will be happy to oblige! With a comfy saddle and sturdy handles, this musical, educational pup will give them hours of fun.

If they like Little Bum, they will love the Wheels on the Bus Climber from the popular show – it features a musical dashboard, slide, and an exciting climbable side, too.

A wonderful gift for 1 year olds to open on future occasions, ‘Letters to my Baby’ is a set of 12 prompted letters for parents to fill in and seal in the envelopes provided. Intended to be opened as they grow up, each letter will be a treasured reminder of their baby days.

Introduce your little one to the sights and sounds of the farm with the Fisher-Price Farm Playset. With 4 animal figures plus Farmer Jed, there’s SO much to explore.

In or out of the tub, this little penguin will bring screeches of laughter and looks of wonder as he blows scores of bubbles into the air. Featuring 10 bubble wands which rotate constantly, bath time can become laugh time as little ones strive to catch those elusive globes of iridescent color.

Not only will this t-shirt look fabulous for his first birthday, but it is totally wearable for the next year, too. Available in 12 colors – from black to heather purple – this tee features a bold print on the front that states that the wearer is ‘Mr. One-derful’.

Forget the learning, let’s just knock stuff down! Plush bowling is ideal for a one-year old gift because it takes advantage of the innate desire to throw stuff into other stuff so it falls over. Pretty basic—but you have to remember: everything is basic for a one-year old.

All those ‘firsts’ in a child’s life can so easily be lost, or hidden in a drawer or shoebox. This keepsake library will keep them all together in one place, with specially labelled compartments for mementos such as their first tooth, first lock of hair, and even their first pair of shoes.

There’s nothing more fun for a kid than taking a jump into the unknown—as long as you, the parent, know that the landing is going to be one hundred percent safe and soft. This little pit of plastic balls will give a one year old hours of fun.

Gifts for 1 year olds can prepare them for the future, like this Little Genius Starter Kit by Osmo. Using an iPad, this kit comes with 4 games that will give them a head start in letters and phonics, start them drawing, recognize emotions, and develop problem solving skills.

When parents of older kids see a pair of Robeez on someone else’s toddler, they automatically say “Awww, I miss these!” And it’s true. Robeez are cool. Get these for the one-year old in your life, and remind the parents to cherish the days of easy, cute, slip-on shoes.

Babies can’t move around very fast, and neither can sloths! Dancing happily to the music, this little chap will clap his hands as they press the different buttons for light and sound action.

HABA makes really great toys. They’re all wood and all natural, they don’t need batteries, and all of them serve some developmental or educational purpose. This set of musical eggs will get the little tykes shaking, rattling and rolling all day long.

Animals, colors, and numbers are all there at the touch of a button with this flashlight from VTech. With more than 50 songs, sounds, and phrases, it will brighten up playtime no end.

Toddlers like nothing better than being just like Mommy or Daddy. Let them follow in your footsteps with this cheerful toy vacuum which features lights, colors, counting, and real vacuum sounds.

Yes! Too cute. You gotta have a little baby wool cap to keep that little baby head nice and warm in the winter. Remember the old Scandinavian saying: leave them in the cold for a couple of hours—when you come back, they’ll be beautiful. Disclaimer: we’re not saying leave kids unsupervised. It’s a folk saying!

Let them copy Mom or Dad as they tackle DIY with this sweet First Tool Box. Available in a range of color options, this cotton and velour ‘box’ holds five soft plush tools, including a hammer, spanner, and screwdriver, and can be personalized with their first name on the front.

Showing them that they really can be anything they want, the ‘What Can I Be?’ book shows the various jobs and careers that lie ahead. Using the classic ABC format, this rhyming book will arrive personalized with the child’s first name, and illustrated with delightful boy or girl pictures.

Kids learn how to count using their fingers, and these clever blocks use that in their design. Handmade from maple and walnut wood, these 11 blocks each feature a number from 0 to 10, along with the corresponding hand signals showing the number of fingers to hold up.

Time capsules are always fascinating to find, and this one makes an intriguing gift for a 1 year old. Made from corrosion- and temperature-resistant stainless steel, this capsule can be filled with your own predictions and thoughts, or kept so they can write their own, to be discovered many years from now.

This play house is made of durable plastic that’s equally suited for an indoor playroom or outside in the back yard. Kids can lose themselves in their imaginations in this little house for hours on end. They’ll explore opening and closing doors, playing peekaboo, and much more.

Available in blue, pink, or red, the Step2 Push Around Buggy is the sleekest sports car your speedster will ever ‘drive’, and comes with a working horn, seat belt, storage, and parent handle.

The title says it all: First Slide. Remember when nothing in life was more important than going down the slide? And nothing was worse than not getting your turn? Well, put this slide in the little one’s back yard and they’ll always be first in line.

A beautiful gift for 1 year olds that they will keep and treasure forever, the ‘My Very Own Name Book’ uses animals to spell out the child’s name. Wonderfully illustrated and using rhyming text, this delightful book will help them to spell, recognize letters, and begin to learn about animals.

When you’re heading out to a one-year old’s birthday party, just remember: the parents and the grandparents are going to cover all the major stuff. If you’re not one of them, why not do something different, like make the kid the fun bath paints in this cool DIY tutorial?

The learning opportunities are endless when you give your 1 year old this delightful dino. Feed him the colored discs and he’ll recognize the food and the color, and even teach them to count!

Sometimes the classic toys are the best, and this iconic Radio Flyer walker flies the traditional red of this enduring favorite, and features house-friendly bumpers and removable side panels.

If you thought science books were an unsuitable gift for 1 year olds, take a look at these board books which use science, math, space, and physics to teach the ABC.

Give your little one a tree-mendous gift this year with this super fun Tree Top Adventure activity center. With more activities than they could shake a stick at, this wooden toy is sturdy, colorful, and will stir those little imaginations for great adventures that they can revisit again and again.

So a one-year old is still years away from reading books. That doesn’t matter. Parents have to get them started on the classics as early as possible. And we’re not talking about Shakespeare. We’re talking about the one and only Theodor Seuss Geisel, the best writer of anything ever.

Penelope the Flamingo is built for loving, no matter how many cuddles she gets. Handcrafted in Peru by women artisans, every sale of this beautiful hand knitted doll will provide 10 meals for children in need. It’s a wonderful way to instil kindness and love right from the start.

Ready, set, commit! To making the best DIY gift for a one-year old, ever in the history of gifts. This twelve step DIY shows you how to make an awesome indoor swing that the little lovely can hang out in for at least a year. You need sewing skill, and you need all the materials on the list. You. Can. Do. It.

Ah, life on the farm. This playset includes an entire set of toys that a one-year old will love. From the farmer to the tractor to the crops and all the livestock, there’s years of play packed into this one little set. And it all packs up and it ready to take anywhere, which is a parent’s dream.

We all need courage to be our own authentic selves, and this book will teach them from an early age to be who they want to be. ‘Be Brave Little One’ is a delightful rhyming storybook that will give kids the self-belief and bravery to follow their own path, wherever it may lead.

Written by a speech therapist to help develop a child’s vocabulary and language skills, this 3 book boxset will become a firm favorite in any child’s library. Using a market, forest, and wildflower garden as the settings, these board books feature stunning, whimsical watercolor illustrations and delightful rhyming text.

This is an octopus with skills. Hug it, it sings a melody. Squeeze its parts, and it tells you what they are—in English, French, and Spanish. On top of all that, it’s totally cute and cuddly. Get this for a one-year old, and remember: don’t get jealous of the octopus just because it’s smarter than you.

Reminiscent of a classic wooden toy, this super cute puppy will follow his master everywhere as your child pulls him along, and makes him sit, stand, and even beg!

If the bright colors on this adorable elephant aren’t enough to attract your child, the exciting popping action certainly will be. Little ones can practice their gross motor skills as they insert the balls into the elephant’s body and watch as they pop right back out, teaching them cause and effect as well.

Avery the lamb measures a sweet 13 inches, and is totally hand crafted by women artisans in Peru. Three times winner of the Oppenheim Platinum Award for best toy, this delightful doll will also spread kindness, as each sale will provide 10 meals to help to feed children in need.

Slide out the colorful xylophone to play a little ditty, or keep it in place to hear the notes as the balls are hammered through the holes and land on the instrument below.

Sports fans cannot wait to get their kids involved with their favorite sport. This kit is perfect for the ultimate set up. Line them up, and watch carefully: will your child pick the football, the baseball, the basketball, or the soccer ball? And just which one of those sports has the highest salary?

A hug is one of life’s greatest comforts, whether you’re 1 or 101, which is why Love to Hug Elmo makes such a beautiful gift – he sings, he talks, and of course, he cuddles.

With three ways to play, this adorable Bright Starts Ford F-150 converts from a baby walker (whole car or dash), to push-along, all with real truck sounds, gear shift, lights, and steering wheel.

With age-appropriate products in every delivery, your child will enjoy a bi-monthly box that’s filled with toys and activities designed to help them learn through play, from 0 – 24 months.

With content that changes as your baby does, this Smart Stages Piggy Bank includes more than 40 songs and tunes, and colorful coins to deposit which teach numbers, colors, and animals.

On the one hand, this wooden toy is a great lesson in the universal rule of cause and effect. The child makes one peg go down, and another comes up. It’s a fascinating learning experience. On the other hand, it’s really just a blast to hit things.

Mozart could play the violin and keyboard by age five and began composing symphonies at age eight—so what are you waiting for? J/k! This cube will foster the love of music in a child’s heart, while keeping things nice and fun.

The fun is never-ending with this wooden ramp racing set, which allows each of the 4 colored and numbered cars included to drop from one level to the next without stopping.

Stack carefully. Knock over. Repeat. Such is the agenda of a one-year old child with a nice collection of big, soft blocks at hand. With the occasional break for eating, getting the diaper changed, and fits of crying and/or laughter. These blocks are big, soft and totally kid safe.

This basket of fabric vegetable will have them fascinated for years. They’re soft, big, and ready for elaborate feasts of the imagination. It will also get kids used to having vegetable on their plates. Parents of one-year olds, you want to get ahead of the curve on the veggie thing. Trust us.

Peek-a-Boo has been enjoyed by babies for generations, and now they can have their own playmate with the plush GUND Flora Bunny, who will play and sing all day long.

Teach her from the start that her gender doesn’t define her career path with ‘ABC, What Can She Be?’ Working right through the alphabet, this board book shows little girls that they can do whatever they want to do, and go on to succeed in any chosen field.

The shape sorter has been brought bang up to date with this musical version which plays Baby Shark when all the creatures are in the right place, or says the name in shape mode.

It’s time to refuel those foot to floor ride-ons, so pull up next to this Cozy Pumper from Little Tikes, which features weatherproof electronic buttons, credit card swipe, and pretend gas pump hose.

There’s more to this tea set than meets the eye. It’s interactive and educational. That’s what most toys claim, but this one really delivers because it’s very well designed. It comes with songs, asks kids questions, and all parts are durable and snap-fit into their places like they’re supposed to.

No child is born racist, so teach them the right way to be from a young age with this wonderful board book. Suitable for ages 0-3, this rhyming book is the story of ‘Antiracist Baby’, and how everyone both young and old can embrace diversity and recognize that we’re all equal.

Unlike many books designed for 1 year olds, this version uses only black and white for high contrast pictures which will grab the little one’s attention as they ‘read’.

Teach children the different parts of the body while they also learn about animals with this fun book by Eric Carle, which features beautifully illustrated creatures as they move their heads, necks, and more.

If you want to show up with one of the coolest gifts at the party, then take a moment and check out this DIY. In 9 basic steps it teaches you how to make a wooden camera that the little one will love playing with for years.

There’ll be lots of laughs in the bath when they see this duo bobbing about in the water. Lightweight and cheerful, the polar bear and penguin are excellent for developing their motor skills.

Pages can get torn in the hands of an excited tot, but the Lamaze Peek-a-Boo Forest book is made from durable fabric so it will withstand the most vigorous of page-turners.

‘Where’s Spot?’ is an absolute classic which has graced the bookshelves of many a library, and now this much-loved book has been given a makeover with colors which bring it to life.

Building blocks are synonymous with babyhood, and these ones are perfect! These brightly colored cubes are squeezable and squeaky, and will stand up to even the most ardent of nibblers.

The Promptly Journal will chart an adopted child’s life from birth through to 18, making it a touching and invaluable gift. With sections on their family tree, the adoption process, and the day they met their new parents, this journal also has space for the birth story, as well as the baby’s ‘firsts’.

This DIY is super-detailed and just perfect for a one-year old gift. It’s a step-by-step set of instructions on how to make a pair of dinosaur shoes that look like they come from a designer baby boutique. These are the kind of shoes the parents will save as part of a keepsake box.

Made from sustainable bamboo fibers and wrapped in biodegradable packaging, this monthly subscription of kind-to-the-skin diapers will make life a lot easier for a 1 year old’s mommy.

Wrap up your gift giving this year with one of these superhero hooded towels that you can make yourself at home. Using a small and large towel, some fabric in your chosen superhero’s colors, and iron on heat transfer paper, you can conjure up these ‘absorbing’ gifts in no time at all.

Have fun and tick off a few tots on your Christmas gift list with these super adorable ‘Munster’ dolls. Fully customizable, these little monsters can be made in the colors of your choice, and feature the cutest zipper mouths for that added playability factor (not to mention fine motor skill practice!)

Kids love Elmo, there’s no doubt about it. Something about this little red fella just speaks to all their best instincts. This DIY shows you how to make any Elmo9 tee for the toddling one-year old who has your heart. The best part about this one: it’s no sew—so it’s super easy.

The kiddo is going to need a smock for all the art projects coming up in life. They may be limited to finger-paint variations for a while, but you might as well get them their own work apron for it. This tutorial takes some sewing skill.

This beautiful bear blanket will become a great comfort for little ones, as the soft plush fabric and huggable bear are so wonderfully tactile. Available in a choice of blue, pink, or brown, this blanket measures 40” x 40”, and can be personalized with their first name.

Faaaabulous, darling, absolutely faaabulous. Every little girl needs to stay one step ahead of the fasion curve. You can keep the one-year old lovely in your life on the cutting edge by making her this super cute headband. She’ll be the envy of every toddler on the block!

If you thought llamas couldn’t get any cuter, think again! This whisper-soft llamacorn is super soft and huggable, and has been blessed with a magical unicorn’s tail, horn, and sparkly rainbow hooves.

Snuggle time is just made for Peek-a-Boo books, so get comfy with your little one as you read ‘Peek-a-Who?’ to discover which creatures are hiding behind the liftable flaps.

This blog post isn’t so much a tutorial as a kick starter for your own take on a DIY play kitchen for your kids. Using an old wooden TV stand, Terri at Fresh Cut Flours created a beautiful toy for her grandchildren; use the photographs and suggestions as inspiration for your own.

This fun project will give that little one-year old a head start on the outdoors lifestyle. Not that they’re going trekking in Nepal anytime soon, but they’re coming up on the age when a campout on the living room floor is just as good.

Kids are rowdy, and so they should be as they’re filled with energy, wonder, and curiosity. But sometimes, even the most boisterous of babies (and moms) need a little calm, which is where these quiet books come in. Handmade at home, these books can be filled with whatever your little one loves – aah, peace at last.