Photo credit: potterybarn.com
Can you believe it's only 15 days until Christmas? I have most of my Christmas shopping done, which is amazing for me. There have been times in my life that I was running around on Christmas eve looking for anything that would do. I love to give gifts, but I'm not always good about choosing just the right thing. Part of that is my frugal nature. I dislike waste and clutter so when I choose a gift it has to be practical, beautiful and a good value.
I'm still in a quandry about what to put in the Christmas stockings at my house. Here are some of the things I've done in the past:
small sewing kit
box of crayons and coloring book
hair stuff
chapstick
candy
gum
matchbox cars
mini flashlights
pocket sized notebook
gloves
novelty yarn (for my knitting daughter)
This year I'd love to put in crayon rolls for easy art transport. I'm a little worried about finding the sewing time. I'd also love to buy each one of my kids an invisible ink spy pen with black light decoder. (I want one too!) I'm having trouble finding the deal I want. http://www.lovetolearn.net/catalog/detail/pen/5 has them for $7 each, but that's a pricey stocking stuffer if I buy one for everyone.
So, I'm calling for help! Write a comment with your stocking stuffer ideas and I promise not to send spoiler messages to your kids. Just to say thank you I'll draw one name and send the lucky winner a little something for her own stocking: A beautiful Mary Kay lip gloss in any color of her choice. Winner will be chosen December 18th. To check out your color options visit my website: http://www.marykay.com/angelacoffman/default.aspx
Lips are in for a treat with this superlight formula that's saturated with moisturizers ā more than 80 percent ā so lips feel amazingly soft and supple. It smooths, softens and never feels sticky.
I have always included a new toothbrush and more recently floss. My kids are now 30, 26, 25 and 23. When I mentioned stopping stockings the last several years they said, “No way! We’ve always gotten a new toothbrush, etc…..”
My mom always used to think of the little things she owned that would “disappear” due to us kids borrowing them, and buy us our own items. Usually it was things like emery boards, nail clippers (I found 4 on Revlon bogo sale & w/coupons recently got a great deal on these) scotch tape, pens/pencils, especially with cute designs on them, that kind of thing. I find myself using this idea now, as well, in addition to putting fun little craft items and toys in the stockings. (I wish they were made in America, but Oriental Trading Company has lots of cute, reasonably priced craft kits my kids love). My dh’s family wrapped pieces of fruit in foil, so we do that now, too. Oranges, apples & bananas all work well for this, and add bulk & weight to the stockings.
scotch tape
ball of string or twine
roll of aluminum foil
duct tape
toothpicks
…
basically anything that my kids tend to use up my supplies of š
My 8 year-old (crazy old man that he is) always gets a can or two of sardines in his stocking. Most kids won’t like that but any sort of food treat that they don’t get often is fun. One year I gave each of them one of the single serving microwave mac and cheese bowls. They thought I was crazy but they loved them š
Both of my boys will get one of the ball-shaped bottles of Coke in theirs as well. We seldom allow soda and they LOVE to drink those things on Christmas morning- breakfast of champions! I got one of those glasses that McDonald’s is handing out right now and I am going to get another for my other son.
My “big” girl will get a new Hello Kitty “diary” and some funky little mechanical crayons from the Target dollar zone. She’ll also get new panties with characters on them that I got on clearance in July. My boys will probably get 3 or 4 pairs of socks each, which they desperately need.
I also usually put a toothbrush in each of ours, sometimes a fancier one than the super cheap ones I usually buy, but sometimes just a regular one.
Oh! I usually put a movie from the $5 bin at WM in each of them as well. I collect these throughout the year so they each get something they’ll really like. This is more of a regular present but they fit nicely in stockings so that’s where they go.
I pick up things all year long when I find them on sale for a dollar or two. This year that means a headband for my daughter and toy airplane and truck for my son. Any hair accessories are great for girls! I’ve learned a lot about frugal shopping this year because we are adopting and don’t have much to spare for frivolties! It’s been a great learning experience and I hope to continue even when there’s not a pinch.
I would love to try the Fancy Nancy lipgloss if I win!
Here are a few I shared on another board, mostly w/older kids in mind:
Stamps, pencils/pens, USB drive, key chain, gum, toothpaste, deodorant, dental floss, crochet/knitting hooks, CD (there have been oodles on sale here at Family Christian), sticky pads, post it tabs, batteries, scotch tape, recipe cards
So far there are homemade mittens, hat and slippers, as well as a homemade headband and hair elastics for my daughter 3 1/2 yrs, and 3 knitted sheep for my son 20 mo. (I was going to make him a whole farm set but time is running out) All from leftover wool and fabric scraps, patterns from library books. I still would like to include a cup for both of them and possibly some homemade bibs as my son needs some and an apron for my daughter who starts to help in the kitchen.
some of the things i put in their stockings are candy jewelry pencils and small toys that will fit
we always do practical things like toothbrushes, toothpaste, and of couse there is always a little bit of candy
i always liked to get stuff that i would use, it always bothered me to get usless toys and trinkets that would get tossed a couple weeks later…
I put toothbrush, toothpaste, small toys, few candy, pencils, small notebook, chapstick, and fruit in their stockings.
great idea to post about christmas stocking. some of them that I was not think of it .. thank you !
Depending on ages here are a few ideas: a small book; coin money (gold dollar coin); Stickers; $1 store musical instrument; molding clay; fruit; cute socks; deck of cards; travel size puzzle; bubbles; popcorn seasoning (to match their personal tastes); fake bugs or reptiles; a baby doll accessory such as a bottle or outfit.
I’m still learning what to put in stockings. I like to put sewing notions or scrapbook things in mine. My husband and boys often find fishing tackle or other small things related to their hobbies. I found a small glass pig at a chain decorating store and that is going in someones stocking this year.
fruit & candy!
It might be nice to put little writing kits, some stamps, pen, and notecards..you could print those yourself on the computer. Then in the new year you could encourage writing to grandparents, friends, etc.
fancy soaps, scarf and mittens, books, mug, orange, candy, stickers, art supplies, christmas pencils and erasers, hairbrush, headbands, elastics, and barrettes
These are some of the things that I put in stockings for my girls this year: earrings, lip gloss, New Moon candy bar, lifesavers storybook (I always got one when I was a kid, slippers, small earphones.
I read all the other blogs and here are my additions that I hope I’m not duplicating. My kids love to use envelopes. So each one gets a box of their very own. I also put in gift certificates for our $2.00 movie theater, pocket calanders($1.00 at the dollar store or free from hallmark…they don’t know the difference!), cans of soda ( a real treat since they don’t get it very often), slim jims, bubble bath, lotions and sprays, and I have even put deoderant and disposable shavers in. I use coupons for personal items so I get them next to nothing. I also garage sale and get great gifts for my kids that haven’t been open or are slightly used.
Actually, my kids always get a new toothbrush and a tube of chapstick. Decorative thumbtacks, funky binder clips and paperclips, caligraphy pens and brightly colored pens are also there most of the time!
Sometimes I find fun little things in the Target $1 spot. I’ve also included small notebooks, special pencils, colored pencils, tape and rechargeable batteries.
Thanks!
Handmade coupons are great! Give a coupon for “one free hug”, “one free kiss”, one night of “free babysitting” so the other spouse can have a special fellowship night with friends, etc….
Books and a booklight
I’ve really enjoyed your Grocery Shrink news.
I always include fun breakfast treats that we don’t usually buy. This usually means fuit that they like (a pomegranite or orange, or small can of pineapple or mandarin oranges, for example), a bottle of fruit juice, packet of cocoa mix, granola/snack bars, single serve box of sugary cereal, beef jerky sticks, etc. This fills a lot of space and also ensures they have something to eat while they wait for the adults to wake up for the main gift giving/receiving event (they can dig into stockings first thing, before adults wake up, since they’re always up long before us!) I also include one small toy/game that can be played with, and misc. useful items like lip balms/lotions, hair brushes/combs, small tools or art supplies depending on the interest of the child, and always a notepad with a really fun pen. Sometimes I include disposable cameras as well.
I did something really special for my daughters this year – I told them Santa had come a bit early and handed them a stocking. Inside was a baby kitten, so adorable that even my “tough” husband can’t stop kissing it!
If you have a Half-Price Books nearby, hit the clearance rack in the children’s section. The books there are around 50 cents or a dollar, and they usually have a nice selection (it regularly revolves, too).
Some things my mom used to put in mine: colored bendy straws (I love to drink with bendy straws), fuzzy socks, nice-smelling soap, a “pouf” scrubby for me to use in the bath or shower, a little scented shower gel (Bath and Body works often has them on sale for a good price at this time of year). Also, the dollar store can have fun things for stocking stuffers, too.
I always have a new toothbrush in their stockings and this year I’m getting them new nightlights. A new box of crayons is always a hit and I usually check out the dollar bins at Target for a small game, necklace, cup, etc.
I have seen little games in the Target dollar bins. Other travel games too would be fun. Also the dollar perfumes for young girls or lipgloss and lotions.
My husband and older boys usually get things like new work or hunting gloves, hats, hand sanitizer, manly lotions and lip balms, wool socks, jerky and tins of their favorite homemade candies and cookies. They all hunt & work outside.
The girls get travel size bottles of their favorite beauty products, small recipe books, stationary sets, costume jewelry, gloves, hats and scarves along with their favorite homemade candies & cookies.
I make candles and use old crayons to make new multi- colored ones in different shapes and sizes. Incense &/or flavored tea bags are also good stocking fillers. Just don’t put both in the same stocking or your tea will taste funky!
We “repurpose” as much as we can to save a little money & a lot of land fill space.
I go with the idea of including things my kids usually consume – as in tape and post-it notes and such! I also thought of another idea I might try this year. We like to play games as a family, so I thought about buying a simple game, opening it and putting pieces in each person’s stocking. It would seem a bit strange until everyone looked around and saw that their gift was part of one bigger gift. Target always has small games for a few dollars. One we’ve bought recently is called “Toss Up”. It is a game involving 10 dice with green, yellow, and red sides. It was only $3, and it’s such an easy idea that my 3yo even “helps”. Something that might provide more bulk would be a marble run or dominoes or a game like “Qwirkle” (a fun game using black tiles with colored shapes). It all depends on what your family likes to do together.
Dear Angela,
Our children are in their 50’s now but when they were little their favorite stocking stuffer was a roll of aluminum foil. Their little imaginations would take off as they sculpted canoes to float in the bathtub along with stick figures. They truly felt rich having their very own roll of aluminum foil!
I second the Target $1 area–found good fun things there this year. For little ones, small board books are great that can easily be packed in the diaper bag for a quiet activity to have on hand. My Mom always gave us silly putty for Easter, but they have red and green for Christmas too!
I usually give my daughter travel size lotions and fun pads (I bought at Dollar General on clearance for $0.50). I have fun at Dollar General because there are a lot of snack size items (Cheezits, Funyuns, cheese crackers, etc.) I can get that are cheap and I really don’t like to give her candy (hey, I have to pay her dental bills!). I also include toothbrush, toothpaste, a new brush and comb, hair accessories, the balloons that come with a pump that you can make with animals, trail mix and peanut packages I get from Aldi. I try to get her stuff that she doesn’t usually get, so she doesn’t know where Santa gets them from. She has 3 stockings and I can usually stuff them for fairly cheap and I actually enjoy shopping for these cheaper items. Oh, and temporary tattoos are a hit and you can pick those up at Dollar General or Wal-Mart. I also get hot cocoa packages, nail polish, lip gloss, Chapstick, etc.
Novelty Band-Aids, guitar picks, sheet music rolled with a ribbon around it, ear rings, toe rings, a photo key chain, scavenger hunt messages (I used to do this when my children were small), a favorite-pistachio’s, fingernail polish,
Since I was little, we have always gotten oranges and candy canes in our stocking, the fun part is that if you roll the orange and eat off the “hook” of the candy cane, we could poke the cane in the orange and drink the juice. We thought that was very fun when we were little.
I always put one of those BIG round candy canes in their stockings.
Stockings are fun. I always put a lovley orange in the toe, which they can eat right away. I put in pens/pencils, lip blam, a small package of tissues, chocolate, a candy cane, toothbrush and toothpaste, hair ties (for girls), and super balls. That’s usually it!
With 6 kids and 3 ft stockings most of the stocking stuffers are either preowned, free stockpile stuff I have from walgreens etc. and handmade stuff, Because we don’t do santa claus, Everyone contributes to the stockings, Each person drops two things into each persons stockings. The little ones usually color a picture or one of their crafts or occasionally we have gotten a stuffed animal of theirs!! I usually put one goodie I know they like, Like my son and cocoa pebbles krispie treats, Then the other gift from me is always letter from me, Retelling the best parts I remember about them from the past year. This year I am doing each one of them a gift for under the tree that is writing also, I am writing each one a letter of a different kind,( I posted about this on my blog) But I will still include in their stockings their letter about the past year. Michelle
tick tacs
slim jims
model magic
sculply clay
My grandmother that was the cook of the family would always have one special treat that she would make that she would put in our stockings.
She also included items like ear rings, necklaces,and bracelets. My girls loves stickers so I load them up in the stockings! Little boys…things like hot wheels cars and such
Thanks for all the great tips on the Grocery Shrink. I’m a new subscriber and love them all.
For stocking stuffers I generally go through their gifts and put the smaller ones in the stocking. This year I’m buying cake decorating supplies for my older daughters and will put pipping bags and food coloring and tips for the bags in their stockings.
Some years they get watches and their favorite candies. Wind up toys for the littler ones hair things for the girls. I buy them an ornament every year and it usually goes in the stocking too.
HTH
I like art supplies, coins, oranges, apples, packs of gum, one piece of some candy that they are dying for at the grocery store but I never let them have. Love your blog and tips!
No big WOW but I like to pick up the travel sizes of toothpaste, deo, q-tips, tissues, hand cream, for stockings…cheap and they fit the stockings too…also, we always got an orange in the toe and of course nuts and candy. when time and money are short, another fun gift are those little stretchy gloves you see in wal-mart sometimes as cheap as 2 for $1 in a two pack are great because they always get misplaced anyway and you can never have too many…
I like to put a special breakfast into each stocking along with a small gift such as a lip gloss, small toy car, or note pad. Giving a breakfast consisting of a piece of fruit, muffin or breakfast sandwich, and a bottled drink allows me time to prepare for the Christmas meal. The children all are excited to have a special breakfast they can eat from a stocking.
My kids get a big kick out of a fancy new toothbrush and toothpaste. (They have to have boring ones the rest of the year.) And this year they are all getting book lights. (They come in packs of two for $5 at Target.) Lip stuff, a pair of socks, a pack of gum, their special favorite candy, and a small toy. My mom always gave us an orange and nuts in the shell…even if we could go get the same out of the kitchen!
Always keepon the look out for things on sale that you know will delight your child.and wrap everything from tooth brushes to gum or candy bars,books, fizzie pop rocks.things that are a treat to them. new books, pens markers,colors & of course new undies & socks.
Always keepon the look out for things on sale that you know will delight your child.and wrap everything from tooth brushes to gum or candy bars,books, fizzie pop rocks.things that are a treat to them. new books, pens markers,colors & of course new undies & socks.
Batteries!!! There is nothing worse than giving a kid a gift on Christmas and realizing it requires batteries, and surprise surprise, guess what you forgot? I would buy the AA and AAA variety, but do your research first as some stuff takes D batteries.
Hi Angela!
Here is my comment to help you get your 500. I enjoyed the email a lor–your words to the newly single mom were great. Ideas for stocking stuffers? Try finding things geared to interests–gloves for avid gardeners, gift certificates to a local used book store(always a hit with me), A small bottle of saffron for a cooking freak. Or, for fun, find a recipe for chocolate lumps of ‘coal’. Hope that helps. Bible Babe
I go to AAA and buy packs of movie tickets. The kids love them, they have a couple different packs, like two tickets and 10.00 to spend at the concession stand and they can bring a friend, or just packets of tickets.
Christmas is there are always deals on Professional Hair Care, and I have in the past found great deals, and add them. It is great because they take up a lot of space and the older girls love the special hair care items. You can tell I had a girl!!!
This year my daughter knows who santa is, so I am making her a coupon book for her and I to do things together, along with deoderant,shaving cream, and razors. For my boys I got them head sweatbands,bouncy balls. I got alot of great ideas from all the comments. Love your information