Six of the best Christmas decorations, with a difference

By Peter Jenkinson

DIY decor

LEGO Bauble - £9.99 each from - thefowndry.co.uk

Build-a-bauble should be the crafting craze, and leading it should be these bright and brilliant offerings from everyone's retro favourite, LEGO. Once you've created your decoration, you can also add the matching ribbon and then, yup, add your own bricks or mini-figures too. Forget decorating the whole tree, you'll get stuck at decorating the bauble.

The better sweater

Digital Dudz Xmas jumpers - from £39.95 see morphsuits.co.uk/digital-dudz

Tempted to engage in a little one-upmanship over other run-of-the-mill Christmas jumpers? Well, here you go. On the inside of each of these designs is a velcro pouch where you place your smartphone which, with the assistance of a free app, brings your design to life. From moving Santa eyeballs to roaring fireplaces, there is a jumper to suit everyone's (bad) taste.

Fill the space

Star Wars baubles - from £9.99 see shop.lego.com/en

Each one of the bauble designs represents a planet from the Star Wars films, and inside each one there is not just a mini-figure character but also a miniature version of their spacecraft. They're, obviously, the ideal addition to a tree belonging to fans of LEGO or fans of Star Wars - so that'll be just about everyone then.

Side order

Brussels Sprout wreath - £39 from notonthehighstreet.com

Ah, the most evocative of Christmas eats; the Brussels Sprout. It's about time it was celebrated in suitable fashion, instead of just being shunned to the side of the dinner plate, and this beautiful (for want of a better word) wreath does just that. The added bonus is you don't need to worry about any passers-by trying to steal it.

Art work

Origami sticky note pad- £2 from suck.uk.com

Contents from the office stationery cupboard might not immediately sound like festive decor. But listen up, these clever little origami post-it notes have some tricks up their sleeves. Each pad has instructions on how to make ten different shapes including a pig, penguin, boat, butterfly, squirrel and a lily. Once you've done folding, pop them (or stick them) on your tree.

Plastic very fantastic

3D Doodler - currently on pre-order, expected delivery February 2014, from around £60 see the3doodler.com

Set to turn the world on its head, the 3D printing market has evolved at an extraordinary pace in the past few months. The latest addition to the market is this amazing 3D doodler pen that allows objects (like a bauble) to be drawn, and as you are doing so, plastic material is emitted so your design, or scribble, is simultaneously created. The pen, designed in the US (but shipped all over the world, up to two weeks to the UK), is currently on pre-order, but being 'worth the wait' doesn't cover it.

App of the week - Huglr free on iTunes

This invite-only site is the social network that (genuinely) offers you more privacy and security, ideal for families and proper close friends to keep in contact. Create your own family Huglr, and then post all your photos, news and more to those round the corner, or across continents, knowing it'll only be seen by those you want to see it.

Top 10 paid for apps for android phones

1. The Chase

2. Monopoly Millionaire

3. Alice Trapped in Wonderland

4. Holiday Drops - Match Three Puzzle

5. Plants vs Zombies

6. Pixel Gun 3D - Block World Survival Shooter

7. Minecraft - Pocket Edition

8.Camera for Kindle Fire

9. Scrabble

10. Help for Heroes: Hero Bears

Top 10 free apps for android phones

1. Notebooks Pro

2. Candy Crush Saga

3. BBC iPlayer

4. Facebook

5. Ball Travel 3D

6. Christmas Games

7. V Tube Youtube viewer + downloader

8. Bitstrips

9. BBC Media Player

10. Injustice: Gods Among Us

(Both charts courtesy of Appstore on amazon.co.uk)