Anyone who has spent any time with teenagers knows that they are not easy creatures to understand. Shopping for teen girls is no exception. What do they want? Clothes? Money? Makeup? Shoes? Here are some ideas of good gifts for the teen gals in your life.
Stocking Stuffers
Sephora is a good place to pick up some beauty related stocking stuffers. One nifty item they carry is a pop up travel brush with mirror. It looks like a makeup compact but is a fold-up hair brush. This is the perfect size for slipping in the pocket of your backpack for a quick freshen up between classes.
Another easy and inexpensive stocking stuffer is earphones or earbuds. One popular brand this year is Skullcandy
For only $15 you can get a cute pair of brightly colored earbuds with a cute skull decoration. (Skulls, crossbones and hearts that say ‘mom’ are “in” this year). Find out what color iPod Santa has brought her this year and you can likely find a matching pair of earbuds to replace the cheapies that came with it. If you have a slightly larger budget Skullcandy also sells some larger style earphones for the budding DJ in your life.
Under $25
You can find a number of make up and skin care gift sets for under $25. Lip gloss is a great item for girls of any age. For older girls the Smashbox Naked Beauty Mini Lip Gloss Kit
Clothing is always a popular gift with teen girls but at a certain age we all know how girls get very particular about brand names. Jeans and sweaters from some of the name brands might be out of your budget but you can still pick up an accessory from one of the hot brands without breaking the bank. A hot skate/surf brand is Roxy. In addition to clothes they carry lots of purses, wallets, belts, and hats. One of my favorite hats is the Roxy Dreamer Visor Beanie
A great gift that a lot of people don’t think to give is a magazine subscription. Magazine subscriptions are a thoughtful gift for people of any age and usually a monthly subscription is under $20/year. This can be especially helpful if you need to pick up a gift last minute. Purchase a one year subscription to be sent to the giftees address and pick up a current edition of the same magazine at the newsstand. Wrap a copy of the current magazine with a nice note telling them about the subscription. (It should be noted that subscriptions usually take a few months to kick in so plan appropriately.) Some good magazines for teen girls may be: InStyle
Under $50
If you have a bit more to spend you can pick up some neat Philosophy body wash/shampoo gift sets. These sets come with three 6 oz. bottles of sweetly flavored soap that is a 3-in-1, shampoo, conditioner and body wash for $30. One I particularly like is the The Birthday Party
Comfortable lounge wear always goes over well around the holidays. Roxy makes some really cute hoodies
Over $50
For over $50 you have a lot of options in the electronics family. In the past couple years the prices of electronics have really decreased making them affordable gifts for teens. Many brands also market their electronics to the younger crowd with bold graphics and bright colors. A great gift idea is a digital camera. There are now plenty of good cameras on the market for under $100. One example is the 
Nikon Coolpix L20
. These are small pocket sized video cameras that take 60 or 120 minutes of digital HD quality video. They have a built in USB plug and are designed for quickly uploading videos to YouTube or Facebook. The 60 minute version costs $175.
Another popular gift that any teenager would love is their own computer. In the past year netbooks have become a must have item. 
These are smaller than laptops and usually range from $200-$400. The screens range from 7 to 10 inches and they are usually 2-3 lbs. One popular model is the HP Mini
See also my Cold Weather gift guide for men and women of all ages.
