an advertising email just reminded me of another gift that can be great for the right kid.
https://www.kiwico.com/

you can get a subscription to a "kiwi crate"- a box that arrives monthly for as many months as you like. Each box has a project in it, either arts or STEAM based.

Current promotion gets you 40% off the first crate. (flag40 is the code, but it's on the homepage too.)

I got it for my son when he was 12, and while he enjoyed the projects, they did accumulate. (that is, we'd have to remind him to do them.) I think for the right kid, they could be awesome.

NP here. Thanks for the Chop Chop recommendation - I just subscribed for my own daughter!

For a summer bday, absolutely a beach bag, hat and towel. Monogrammed or personalized would be even better. Be careful about flip flops - we have received pairs in the past that are just way off on sizing, cute as they were.

My daughter that age loves Bath and Body works lotions & shower gels, gel pens with art sets, Beanie boo tiny stuffed animals, personalized journals/blank books, and gift cards for movie tickets, mani/pedis, the bookstore (we have an independent one in our town) or Claire's.

So ... it is funny how different girls can be because the above suggestions would not have been right for our girls when they were 11. Our girls would have hated tickets to the theater (drama) although a movie gift card would be okay. Our girls, when they were 11, would have loved an aunt or uncle who got them a Cake Pop maker or a Mini-Popover maker, or a mini-muffin tin with cute paper cups, etc. And my girls hate/d Chop Chop because they think/thought it was pretentious and too watered down but they love videos on ATK and real cookbooks. My girls aren't flits (one is a 2-time All American at an Ivy and the other is still in high school) but they are really girly-girls.

Other things my girls would have loved when they were 11: mani/pedi kit with lots and lots of nail polish, hair ties/twists/bows/ribbons/you-name-it-the-more-the-better, gel pens (weren't around then but they coo when they see them now) and other art supplies, fun sheet set (ask their mother), fluffy and soft animal pillows, fun/funky flip-flops or sandals, wristlet purses. Basically anything tiny or pink or fluffy or cute.

yes, for more money, my kid likes tickets to theatre or music, or $ for summer camp.

For less money, art supplies. If she likes cooking, get a good cookbook (not a gimmicky baking thing that she'll hardly use.) Or a subscription to the magazine Chop Chop.

As I said on another recent thread, we gave kids' atlases (Lonely Planet, National Geographic) to that age group, and they were well-received. Also, a journal and an assortment of fun pens.

I second the advice to ask her mother. 11-year-old girls are not fungible!

Or, if she likes drama, could you get her tickets to a play?

If she likes cooking, I'd get her a fun (i.e. gimmicky) baking tool--like a mini-cupcake pan, plus some icing implements. Depending on your budget, you could add a cookbook related to whatever it is you're buying. An alternative might be a fondue set with a fondue cookbook.

I don't have girls, but I do have a step-sister who is 10 years younger than me and showed an early interest in baking. I have basically bought her every baking/pastry tool, plus some cooking implements, over the last 15 years.

Oh, now that I'm thinking about my step-sister, I also once bought her a pool/beach kit--sunglasses, flip flops, fun hat, beach tote, beach towel. She was probably 11 or 12 when I did that.

My 12 year old DD just went to a couple birthday parties for friends turning 12. She got all of them blank books with pretty designs on the cover that fit her friends' interests.

Maybe you should ask her mom if you need specific ideas.

At that age, I would have given girly make up or nail polish, a perfume etc.

I'd be really grateful for any suggestions for a birthday gift for quirky, interesting 11yo girl. I don't have girls and I don't even know where to start. I know that she's past the stage of those stupid weaving kits or jewelry making junk but not yet into boys or makeup. She likes drama, gymnastics, and cooking. I can do a gift card, but would love to pick something that reflects more effort on my part than just sending an Amazon gift certificate....

Thanks!!