Stockings how does it work?

[Sakura03]

My son is now three and I thought he should have a stocking for Christmas. I’m Danish and decorate my house end of November ready for the 1 December, as a child I always had advent calendars and we had an advent candle so I naturally carry on those traditions but I need a little help when it comes to his Christmas stocking, do I go for a good quality stocking, is it “important” to get it personalised? Does it go up on display with all the other decorations? How much do you spend on stocking fillers? Tia.

They’re all different and done in different ways. Mine each have their stockings, made by me with their names on. I have a few spares for visiting friends and relatives.
In our house, they are put up by the fireplace on Christmas Eve, before bed. Reindeer snacks (carrot) and a tot of brandy for Father Christmas are left out. At sometime distant sleigh bells are heard but children must remain in their beds or he won’t stop. His sleigh bells sit hidden in a box the rest of the year. We’ve usually tracked Father Christmas’s journey on NORAD, so we know when he’s getting close.

The children can be contained until about 6:30am now they are adults. Everyone comes to our bed - granny and aunts stay in their own beds, with their children - partners tend to come to us. We have tea made ready. Only day of year the dog is allowed upstairs.

People open presents in stockings and squeal whilst eating chocolate. Our presents are entirely from Father Christmas. Our presents to the children are under the tree, for after lunch.

We used to do ‘essentials as presents’. Socks, underwear, nice toiletries, pyjamas, pencils and pens, a calculator, violin strings, a dolls cardigan, studs for rugby boots, toothbrushes, hair elastics, a puzzle, a book.

Nowadays expectations have grown and stockings are still ‘essentials but somehow essentials are more expensive. Tights or socks, nightwear and underwear still. A piece of jewellery, scent, makeup, hair products, book, magazine, bottle, something work related such as an otoscope or new cap and then vouchers for cinema or a restaurant and a weekend away.

Personalised ones are great, my DD's have theirs still and they are adults! Some charities sell them made by volunteers which mine were.

I never spent that much - things that fitted in a stocking so a toothbrush, chocolate money, small toy (but make up now usually), Christmas socks, bubbles, crayons, now perhaps a cd, that sort of thing. In my house that was all Santa brought, all bigger presents from named people.

Oh and always have hung by fireplace wherever we were (ours or my parents) all presents opened in living room

@ForeverBubblegum is a genius - listen to her about buying 2 identical stockings. This advice is 10 years too late for me but is brilliant!

Ours aren’t personalised but they are all from the same collection so themed but different for each person.
They are stuffed to bursting with lots of little presents. I avoid tat so a lot of the presents are just things we’d buy anyway- toothbrush, book, snacks, hair clips, bath stuff etc. The toys in there tend to be small but good quality eg schleich or Holztiger animals, spinning tops...
There is always a clementine in the toe and chocolate coins, although I really struggle to find decent ones these days.

Dd has a stocking that is an actual walking sock of my mother’s which was also my stocking. It fits loads as it’s stretchy! It helps that there are obviously two so one is stuffed several days in advance and hidden ready to swap on the night.

Satsuma in the toe, then several unwrapped little presents that might be anything like a sheet of stickers, felt tips, new toothbrush, Christmas chocolates, small books etc with either a cuddly toy or a medium sized Christmas chocolate poking out the top.

@Jackparlabane

Whiskey, that's an idea, bottle of beer here - might get some draft takeaway beer this year as a joke (my kids are adults) if I'm able to see them (dd2 is determined no stupid government is telling her what to do whereas dd1 is more cautious and likely to stay at her dads nearby.

We found stockings too small...my dc have a huge Santa sack which goes at the end of their bed..they get about fifty presents each in there. Lots of those things are tiny and cheap though, like chocolate coins, a new toothbrush, socks etc.

My DC all have their own stockings - 1 is personalised as it was made by their cousin for them, but they all know their own ones. We didn't leave them at the foot of the bed but "downstairs by the fire", as I didn't like the idea of teaching them about some stranger creeping into their rooms at night was okay.
And I give them Santa presents - Everything else is labeled and goes under the tree to be opened later.
In our house Santa presents tend to mix up: practical stuff (socks, toiletries etc), sweets, and frivolous stuff including cheapish toys, oh and a book.
And we still have stockings as grown ups - lots more practical stuff.

My parents put them on our beds and me and my sister would open them in the morning without our parents, it meant my parents could sleep in to 6am.

We just had small toys, chocolate coins and satsumas/clementines in them. Having fruit in them is traditional, a pear in the heel and apple in the toe or something like that.

We used to use my dad's kilt socks, but over the years I've made stockings. They went out on Christmas eve at end of our bed for Santa to fill. The deal was we were not allowed to wake my parents before a certain time to open the big presents under the tree, but could open our stocking before they work up. It had one or two small presents in, an orange (now a terrys chocolate orange as no-one wanted it), choc coins. Christmas day and Easter were only days it was considered ok to eat choc, before breakfast!!

When I was a child it was my dads old football socks (they are good and stretchy so easy to get gifts into). It was my favourite part of christmas morning - waking up and wiggling my feet to see if FC has been and then into my mum and dads bed to open and eat the satsuma before heading downstairs so I have done the same for my kids but I have 2 pairs (2 dc) they put one at the bottom of the bed and I keep the sister one to fill and make a straight swap no messing about in the middle of the night.

We have a mix of practical and fun so new toothbrush and socks alongside chocolate, christmas decoration, game (top trumps / card game that will fit), mimi lego set, some craft or colouring pens / activity type and some tat.

Mine are older now so its they are a bit more personal - nail varnish / transfer tattoos or stickers etc..

Ultimately, it will be your tradition. There is no right or wrong. I have friends who do the stockings later at dinner or who have large ones with all their gifts - I think my parents just wanted that extra 30 minutes in bed on christmas morning

My two have individual stockings, ds's came with his initial on it and dd's has an initial charm attached to it. Ours go under the tree on Christmas eve at the moment, and I stuff them overnight, we open them downstairs in the morning, but my two are very young still so that may change. I tend to put in little toys, so far its been things like crayons, small books, a cuddly toy, some Christmas socks, a bit of chocolate, and of course an apple and an orange. This year ds is also getting some matchbox cars, and dd will get some little bath toys too. I also do a stocking for the dog, she gets a couple of toys, some treats and maybe a new collar or name tag or something.

when I was little, we went to the drawer and chose one of my Dad's socks to put on the end of the bed - it would be filled with tiny things like pencils, chocolate, bubbles, miniature dolls or teddies, stickers, always an orange and some nuts

Then we had knitted Christmas stockings - ours weren't personalised but they were different designs- still very small pressies though- body spray, nail varnish, hair bobbles, some useful things like cotton wool pads etc

Our Stocking can't have cost more than £10 to fill but always my favourite part of Christmas!

In our house, the stocking gifts were from Father Christmas. Presents under the tree were from friends and family.
When DD still believed in FC I used to fill the stocking with a handful of Christmas tat basically! Themed books, pens, mugs, etc. Plus some practical items such as new underwear and socks. All wrapped up in paper with FC on and a label saying something like 'well done for being on the good list'.
Stocking is a pretty, traditional looking one but not personalised.

We used to use ordinary long socks such as rugby socks, and filled with fun things, no toothbrushes or new gloves.
I would wrap each item up with plenty of sellotape used, to slow down the unpacking of the stocking and give the grownups an extra bit of sleep!
As well as chocolate coins, I always included party poppers, crackers and the essential chocolate Father Christmas poking out of the top!

We have about medium size stockings. We've collected a few over the years, but DDs quite like sewing now so I was going to buy plain ones for them to personalise in December (they are 9&7). It's mainly small useful stuff (like toothbrush, bath stuff, stationery) with edibles, a couple of small surprises and a book. I do one for DH too and he does one for me. Plus anyone else in the house. We don't do presents until later in the morning. Everything wrapped in one paper per person so it doesn't get mixed up. DDs end up with 20ish bits, but nothing expensive. Put by fire place on Christmas Eve, and magically moves upstairs overnight. Opened as a group on our bed. Santa also leaves one present under the tree

Make your own traditions. There's no right way.

Stockings in this house are filled by Father Christmas (other presents from us/family under the tree.) They are standard size really, probably fit around 10 small presents in usually small toys, toothbrush, some chocolate coins, bubbles etc. They hang on a hook on the children's bedroom doors from the same time the tree goes up and FC fills them on Christmas Eve.

Dd has a stocking. I prefer stockings to sacks as easier to fill with less presents. As they get older the presents get smaller and you have to buy more large tat to fill a sack or it looks empty. We usually have about 10 presents and larger ones just sit beside the stocking if it's full or they cant fit in.

We hang on the door so we can retrieve and fill it easier. I pop it inside her door when she is asleep so she can see it when she wakes. I'm usually up watching cheesy christmas films until midnight anyhow.

Growing up, we all (6 DCs) used a pair of our own socks. As the girls got older and wiser, we used to put out tights...

Dd was given a cheap fluffy pink stocking by a DGP for her 1st Christmas, which is sooooo not her and not Christmassy but has stuck and still goes out now (she'll be 15 this year).

When adult DSiblings decided to do stockings rather than big gifts a few years ago, I made enough for everyone to have 1 - all to be kept at my DPs for reuse every year....of 10 there are still 3 there....all the nice ones have disappeared....

Our stockings aren't personalised, they don't have to be. In previous years I've just produced the stockings on Christmas eve for the dc, but I think we'll display them this year as we have a new mantlepiece.

Everyone does it slightly differently. I’ve made ours (DH, DS and myself) out of red felt and a Christmas toddler duvet cover DS has grown out of this year. They’re sort of personalised, in that they all have different ribbon to hold each one up, and DS will decorate his (with my help, he’s only three) with some festive pom-poms and felt shapes.

Ours are always hung up at the fireplace as a decoration until Christmas Eve, when they get taken upstairs for Santa’s arrival. Amount we spend can vary, but I’d never go over £30. I also try to have a mix of practical things and fun things I know he’ll play with. DS’s stocking this year has character socks, underpants, toothbrush and magic flannel, plus some Thomas minis blind bags, a kaleidoscope, colouring pens and a little soft toy cat (that looks like our family cat!) peeking out the top. There’s also the obligatory satsuma/clementine in the toe, with chocolate coins/tube of sweets and a chocolate Santa in there somewhere. 🎅

Ooh, and like others have said, either have two identical stockings or leave them somewhere other than the bed! We leave ours on the landing outside the bedroom doors. Much easier!

@GhostOfChristmasPudding

Ooh, and like others have said, either have two identical stockings or leave them somewhere other than the bed! We leave ours on the landing outside the bedroom doors. Much easier!

Yes - memories of my behaviour as a child meant my children left theirs downstairs by the fireplace 😂