Oh, Powderpuff, wish you were online. Right now on the www.msn.com homepage, the "cover" photo and article is "Clothes Teens Want" and there is the cutest pink Cowgirl T-shirt for $15. It says it's from JC Penney, but the link took too long to load. Just an idea. I think your cousins would like it!

The girls get them a nice shirt which can only be purchased from where you are from. For instance when I left from Miami they had really cool Miami T shirts which girls at that age would love.

My kids love when I bring them home T shirts or jerseys from wherever I was.

By the way european girls and boys love Yankee caps.

The parents again you do not state where u are from but a nice bottle of californian wine if your from the states. Or take care of the kids and the parents should not care if they do not get anything.

Personally I would rather get Origins stuff (not coloured cosmetics but the bath stuff etc) than Doritos. It's a more substantial gift, and I think young women would like it.
Or something like Benetint/Benetint lip balm that works on everyone.
Cult brands that aren't easy to get in Europe will definitely have cachet. However with Sephora everywhere now most stuff can be bought the world over.
I kind of think many cosmetic-type things are more neutral than snack food... maybe because I am quite picky about what I eat. To each his own.
Fashion magazines are an excellent, excellent idea. I've always collected them on my travels - gives good insight into pop culture.

We have been clued in by an American friend who has been going to Italy to visit the family he stayed with in college several times a year for the last 25 years. He says to keep the gifts within the price range of the family. Much more expensive than they could afford embarrasses them and they try to match it. For the girls, any piece of clothing with a name brand (available, but much more expensive for them). I have started a collection of the Blue Sky ceramics for our Italian lady friend. Our masculine friend has a special interest in fly fishing, so we take feathers, etc. for his fly tying, magazines and so forth. When they visited in April, they packed up a bunch on bagels because they can't get them in Florence. I plan to take them a supply in October.

Why not ask? My first gifts to bring to France were three log cabin tins of maple syrop from Vermont. They all(3) hated it as too sweet. So I asked, They all loved scotch and whisky, too expensive there. So I bring Shivas Regal for the men. Books for the women(knowing their taste in artists)

Just to be on the other side of the poster who would be offended... one of my favorite things visiting a friend in Switzerland is attempting to read the 'tabloids' in French. Hadn't thought about it but now think I'll pack her a National Enquirer or something along those lines!

Thanks for the tips. Please keep them coming. FYI- I'm from Long Island, New York.