in thinking that spending £25 is not a "Stocking Filler"

[mellymooks]

as was said on Something for the weekend this morning?

Am I naive in thinking that 50p to £3 is plenty to spend on items for a stocking?!

adults who do a stocking full of expensive fillers as well as a main expensive gift i do not get. A selection of little presents is often nicer than one thing though.

I do think £25 an item is madness - some of our DCs main presents this year will be set of books £10, DVD £6

kids stocking fillers would never be more than £3 - usually very much cheaper - total stocking about £10

DH and I still have stockings. So do DD2 and 3 aged 18 and 20, DD1 now has a stocking from her DH. Anyway the most we spend on any one item is £7 but we also buy a lot of cheaper items and try and make sure that most things cost under £5

It can get tricky once they hit teens to keep the price down.
However, I'm looking in the direction of Poundland this year and thinking maybe 20 presents, very nice sized stocking, £20 (and ignore the pleas of DDs who mention some little bit of tat items in New Look or Claires that cost a tenner each)!

It's totally up to parents how much they can afford to spend on stocking fillers, and christmas in general. Personally I hope to fill stockings from Poundland this year.........but then my DDs are both under 3 so won't notice! I imagine I won't get away with poundland gifts when they're teenagers.

I usually spend about a tenner on both DCs stockings each year. This year it will be a DVD each and some other cheap nik naks or socks or something and perhaps a bag of chocolate coins.

Obviously £25 will be more to some than it is to others. I personally wouldn't spend that much but don't have a problem with people that do.

We put every thing in our kids stockings (more like a sack !) except for the one main gift that goes under the tree (at my mums) from us. The main gift will normally cost about £50 -£100 (DS, Wii games, ipod - or the like) and the stocking 'fillers' another £100 - £150 (books, board games, clothes, teddys, aftershave, toys - and the like). I have a 8 & 20 yr old

Poundland for teens - yes, I was thinking of those makeup bags. Also, toiletries, stationery, socks, chocolates, camera and ipod cases, earphones - I'm sure I can do it!

I get cross about this as well. In my mind, a "stocking filler" is a small inexpensive item to complement to a "main present". I would never dream of spending so much! Imaging filling a whole stocking with items at that price!

It is fine if you can afford it, but most people can´t, and this kind of program makes normal people feel like a failure for not being able to comply with the conceived "norm".

I feel the same every time I watch "escape to the country". You get some snobby rich cow looking down her nose at a perfectly acceptable home because it doesn´t have walk in wardrobes or a en suit bathroom, and that is presented as normal behaviour!

Sorry, rant over.

I love poundland great for bits and pieces but can't get the make-up for dd2 as she can only use certain brands due to allergies.

our 14 year old will be lucky if he gets £25 on his entire stocking. He likes getting charity shop stuff as he is on a big environ. tip at the mo.

TBH even if I had the money I wouldn't spend that much, we have far to much stuff as it is.

Thank you salizchap that is totally what I meant when I started this thread!

It just seems crazy to me and I know exactly what you mean about shows like escape to the country as well, most "ordinary" people don't live like this but are made to feel as if this is what they should be aspiring to.

I know it could be argued that it's all about escapism and entertainment which I guess it is to a certain extent but I think this is the reason why a lot of people are so in debt as they try to live up to these unrealistic expectations.

There that's my rant over!!

Depends on what you want to put in there.

For us, stocking fillers are small toys / gifts and essential presents - it usually includes a year's supply of pants, vests and socks, new slippers and dressing gown (if needed), nightdress, outfit and smellies.

Obviously, you can't buy a nightdress for less than £3, so yes, for me stocking fillers may cost £10 - £15 for an item... but I'm not buying any more than you (unless you do not buy your children vests and pants ), we just choose to wrap it up as a gift, and strangely the girls quite like it. Only today, DD asked for a nightdress for Christmas.

I don't like the phrase "stocking filler". It makes it seem like the whole point is to cram as many things into the stocking as possible, but that what you actually put in doesn't matter - it's just "filler".
I don't want to put cheap tat (or expensive stuff) that she doesn't need into DD's stocking just for the sake of filling it up.
I prefer to put just a few things in a stocking, but things which aren't just ephemeral (apart from chocolate of course!).
I probably spent over a tenner on DD's stocking last year (she was 2) - she got a hat, some crayons, a story book, a good-quality farm-animal model and some chocolate buttons (from Hotel Chocolat ). But all of the things (except the chocolate) are still used/played with often. PArticularly while DD is small, I think that I really don't want her to have a huge number of presents, but I'd rather those she did have were of good quality.