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10 Creative Holiday Cookie Gift Ideas

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holiday cookie reindeer pails

‘Tis the season for lots of COOKIES! And if you’re looking for creative ways to package up those cookies and turn them into festive gifts for friends and loved ones, then you are in the right place. :)

I teamed up with Krusteaz to bring you these 10 Creative Holiday Cookie Gift Ideas, from sweet & sleepy “Reindeer Pails” with playful antlers to pretty “Birch Log” canisters adorned with sparky berries. There’s even a nod to the infamous ugly Christmas sweater, plus a clever container idea that’s both naughty AND nice!

I also used the delicious Gingerbread Cookie , Shortbread Cookie, and Butter Vanilla Sugar Cookie mixes by Krusteaz, which made all this cookie baking simple and stress-free! Fun garnishes like sprinkles, peppermint chocolates, and white chocolate pretzels added the perfect holiday twist to the mixes.

Scroll down for a close-up view of each idea + links to the instructions & printables.

DIY reindeer pails for holiday cookies

1. Reindeer Pails

I always love an excuse to use cute party straws in craft projects, and the patterned “antlers” that they’re used for here are what make these reindeers so festive! This is a versatile packaging idea that would work well with any holiday color palette – you could even use metallic or glittered straws for some extra sparkle.

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ugly sweater inspired holiday cookie gifts

2. Tacky Christmas Cookie Sleeves

They’re inspired by the infamous “ugly sweater” Christmas parties, but these playful gifts are actually “wearing” Christmas SOCKS! There are so many fun styles to be found at this time of year, so the design possibilities are endless.

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DIY cookie packaging - cookie sleighs

3. Cookie Sleighs

These cookie “sleighs” are quick & easy to put together, not to mention SUPER CUTE! They make great gifts on their own – or you can pre-make a bunch of the sleighs and use them as the “take home” containers for a cookie exchange or cookie tasting party.

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easy holiday cookie gifts

4. Cookie Bar Presents

Taking a cue from the holiday package itself, these cookie bar “presents” (featuring candy cane sugar cookies) are great if you need to create a bunch of smaller cookie gifts, or if you’re looking for a sweet favor idea for holiday parties. Use a variety of ribbons and crafty embellishments – like pom poms and mini bows – to make the “packages” look extra merry & bright.

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little drummer boy holiday gifts

5. Little Drummer Boy Gift Tins

I just love how these “Little Drummer Boy” inspired cookie tins turned out! This holiday song is one of mom’s favorites, and I remember her singing it often when I was little. A phrase from the song lyrics adorns the lid, while a pair of wooden dowel pieces serve as crafty “drum sticks”.

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mod santa cookie packaging

6. Mod Santa Takeout Boxes

Sometimes simple says it all! For example, a white mustache against a red backdrop + Ho, ho, ho! tag = “Santa”. This cookie gift idea makes a statement that’s playful and fun, just like the cookies inside – which are feature a merry mix of nonpareils and Candy Cane Kisses.

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naughty and nice holiday cookie pails

7. Naughty AND Nice Cookie Pails

Instead of choosing between “naughty” and “nice”, why not have both?! These cheeky cookie pails are a clever way to do just that, with snowball cookies on one side and “coal” drop cookies on the other. Something tells me your recipient will actually find this entire gift quite nice though. ;)

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holiday snowball cookie gifts

8. Snowy Baskets

Did you know that you can make any paper container “snowy” with the help of a pencil eraser + a little white craft paint?! These “snowy baskets” are an especially fun project for little ones to help with + another great way to gift the popular snowball cookies. I also designed 2 mini paper banners with holiday phrases to display on top.

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diy holiday cookie sleeves

9. Fancy Holiday Cookie Sleeves

Sometimes you might want to give out 1 or 2 big, fancier cookies instead of a bunch of smaller ones, right? Well, these glassine sleeves are the perfect packaging idea for that sort of cookie gift, or another smart option for cookie party favors!

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diy holiday cookie gift log

10. Birch Log Cookie Canister

This “birch log” cookie gift is another personal favorite! It’s made from a repurposed full-size Pringles canister wrapped with birch-print paper. I’m loving the black, white and gold color palette right now, but this gift idea would also look great with red holly berries and greenery as the embellishments. Don’t forget to dress up top of the lid, too…. first impressions, you know. ;)

holiday cookie birch sleeve

Hope you found something here to help inspired your holiday cookie gifts this year! Which one is YOUR favorite?

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This project is brought to you in collaboration with Krusteaz®. As always, all thoughts, designs, and opinions are my own. THANK YOU so much for supporting the companies that make it possible for me to keep the creative inspiration & ideas coming your way!

5 Comments

  1. @GirlyGirlPartea December 15, 2016 at 8:45 am

    10 Creative Holiday Cookie Gift Ideas https://t.co/XDhpCsxjEp

  2. @AllAboutNuptial December 16, 2016 at 2:21 am

    10 Creative Holiday Cookie Gift Ideas https://t.co/Q6BgWjk0BI

  3. Kelly December 21, 2016 at 10:51 am

    I love the last one! Those gold balls are so cute!

  4. Jennifer Donley December 21, 2016 at 2:03 pm

    Hi there! I love all of these ideas. Especially the re-purposing of the canisters. Very creative!
    QQ, the table cloth under the Reindeer Pails, is it indeed a tablecloth or napkin? Looking for exactly something like this for a party. Please let me know where I can get it. Thx!

    • jenn s. December 21, 2016 at 4:30 pm

      Hi Jennifer –

      It’s actually a placemat that I bought at Target last year… I don’t think I’ve seen it there this year – I’m sorry! I’ve seen similar prints at the fabric store though (JoAnn is the one I go to) – and I honestly just use cut & folded fabric as table runners (and sometimes even as napkins) all the time! There’s such a better variety of prints to choose from that way… so just throwing out one idea that might work for you in a pinch. :)

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