1.
www.what2buy4kids.co.uk
How to create the
best Christmas
stocking of all
time!

2.
How does Christmas Day work in your house? Are you awoken at 5am by eager faces
peering around the door jam or jumping on the bed?
Do you open a few gifts in the warm before creeping downstairs to devour the rest?
Or do you wait until 6pm to open your gifts? Perhaps you take your time over the
course of the day, opening one or two here and there, extending the excitement and
enjoying the gift of giving.
Christmas Stockings
However you spend your Christmas Day, for many of us it will not be complete without
a stocking! Since my own childhood, Christmas stockings have provided endless fun on
the 25th.
I had a homemade one that was particularly tricky to get into. Talk about frustrating!
As a 9 year old I remember hopelessly trying to extract tiny gifts from inside its messily
knitted interior.
For my children, I’ve taken great delight finding small but meaningful treasures for
their stockings. It’s the first thing they reach for – a tradition of sorts. What do your
kids do?
And guests and visitors don’t escape the delight. I prepare small stockings for every
Christmas guest. I’ve realized over the years, as perhaps you have as well, that there’s
something a little selfish about giving a gift. I wonder if we gain more from the act than
the recipients!

3.
Creating the best Christmas stocking of all time
I want to share with you my tips for creating the best Christmas stocking of all time. If
you’ve not got one they can be easily bought on the high street and there’s a fab
collection of sewing patterns and instruction here for stockings and sacks of all shapes
and sizes!
But of course, as the owner of What2Buy4Kids and an ex-teacher, curating Christmas
stockings is my forte. Here are my top tips – there are a number of ways you can
approach this:
Choose a Christmas Stocking Theme
You could fill your stockings with a collection of connected goodies, maybe around sport
or the outdoors, educational games, stationary, food or bathroom treats. Perhaps
dinosaurs will get your kids roaring or maybe ballet with get them twirling! Are they
animal lovers? Fill their stockings with animal-related treats.

4.
Pick n Mix Stocking Fillers
Select a little of everything. Something smelly, sporty, a little stationary, something
sweet…
Colour Coded Stocking Fillers
Colour can be an easy and fun way to choose gifts. Do you have a child that likes a
particular colour ? You might like to theme the stocking around that colour and choose
your gifts accordingly.

5.
Baffle and surprise with Stocking Fillers
A few years ago I took immense joy utterly confusing my kids by filling their stockings
with accessories for a separate, main present. The looks on their faces as they pulled out
mobile phone holders was wonderful!
If you’re planning a trip to a theme park or an overseas holiday, surprise them by filling
their stockings with travel pillows and other useful gifts.

6.
Of course, what you pop in the stocking depends on the size of it but my useful list of
stocking fillers will steer you in the right direction.
For more details, please visit : www.what2buy4kids.co.uk
You can follow us on Twitter @what2buy4kids and
Facebook at facebook.com/What2Buy4Kids