Christmas stockings are a long-time holiday tradition. If you have never put one together, the idea can be a bit daunting, but don't worry. Gifts for stockings don't need to be especially fancy or expensive to be fun and useful.
Step 1 Consider the recipient
Are you filling the stocking of a six year old boy or a sixty year old woman? What do you think the person might like?
Step 2 Choose small and generally inexpensive gifts
Well chosen gifts need not be costly to be meaningful, helpful, or fun.
Step 3
Remember toys for kids and kids at heart. The classics are great additions to any stocking: crayons, modeling clay or play dough, a Slinky, miniature Lego kits, travel games, decks of cards, mini jigsaw puzzles, wind-up toys, tops, squirt guns, balloons, beach balls, high bounce balls, small stuffed animals, toy cars, and even fancy shoelaces.
Step 4 Add foods
A wide variety of foods fit in stockings, and they are consumable, enjoyable, and easy to give.
- Try a favorite candy, jam, mustard, or ice cream sauce.
- Fancy coffee or tea samplers would make a great addition for those who drink them.
- Gum, cookies, fruit leathers, and other small snacks fit nicely.
- An orange, or a chocolate orange, fits well in the toe of a stocking. Don't bother to wrap it.
- Decorate the top of the stocking by hooking a candy cane or two over the rim.
Step 5 Include favorite toiletry and personal items
- Try a new hair brush or toothbrush (perhaps the one with the purple sparkles or a favorite cartoon character), a bar of fancy soap, or a loofah.
- Check out the travel and trial sizes. Would someone you know enjoy trying a new hand lotion or shampoo?
- Give a small handheld ball-type massager.
- Add fashion jewelry, nail polish, or hair clips.
Step 6 Give gadgets
Gifts in stockings can be handy, little things, too.
- Pocket or desktop calendars.
- Pocket knifes or multi-tools.
- Pens, pencils, erasers, pocket staplers, hiliters, color pens, notepads, especially for the students on your list.
- Wristwatch
- Flashlights, small hand tools, kitchen utensils.
- A travel-sized sewing kit
Step 7
Follow the hobbies. For instance, if anyone on your list is an aspiring artist, you could give a set of good artist's pencils or try a pocket sized pencil drawing kit.
Step 8 Give money, especially interesting money
- Try $2 bills, if you can find them.
- Give wheat pennies, dollar coins, or other interesting coins. In the U.S., many post office vending machines give change in dollar coins.
- Money doesn't need to be wrapped, but make sure it doesn't get lost.
Step 9 Include a few items just for fun
They can be decorative or whimsical.
- Small candles.
- Pretty stones or minerals.
- Potpourri or incense.
- Ornaments and miniatures.
Tips
- If you have a few too many items, put a couple of larger ones under the tree, instead.
- Team up. Encourage others in the family or group to bring a few items to add to stockings.
- Don't forget a stocking for yourself. Even if nobody is getting you gifts, you can wrap up a few little goodies and blame them on Santa.
- Don't just use the items on this list. Instead, use the list for inspiration and direction, and use your own judgement.
- If you have several stockings to fill, there's nothing wrong with duplicating certain gifts. For instance, everybody can get a bar of fancy soap or a pen. Do include a few unique gifts in each one, too.
- While gift cards and gift certificates fit in a stocking, remember that they may be relatively costly compared to the space they take up. One possibility if you want to include gift cards is to attach them to a small, related gift. For example, a hardware store gift card could piggyback on a wrapped tape measure or other small hand tool.
- Handcrafted items make great stocking stuffers, and wikiHow has many craft ideas that would make good gifts. If you plan to make any stocking stuffers yourself, be sure to allow ample time to do so and remember that the holiday season may make you even busier. For stockings, especially, choose projects with moderate difficulty and time commitment.
- Wrapping stocking gifts adds to the excitement and will discourage eager children from peeking inside their stocking early on Christmas morning. It also means that gifts will be better appreciated and children will spend more time unwrapping them!
Warnings
- Don't give personal hygiene items that might be embarrassing for the recipient or suggest that they need them. Deodorant might not be the best gift, for instance.
- Don't give very small objects to children under three, as they are a choking hazard.
