Sweet treats: All the best stockings have goodies to nibble on, or hoard! Quite apart from the usual chocolate bars and toffees, you can also put in forgotten childhood faves like Gems, mints and lollipops, even for older children. Grown-ups will appreciate more sophisticated sweets, like chocolate mints and liqueur chocolates truffles. Tiny satsuma oranges have acquired cult classic status as stocking-fillers. You can also pop in cranberry muffins and gingerbread biscuits for a real Christmassy flavour.
Play-time companions: Buy small stuffed dolls for girls, action figures for boys and miniature teddy-bears for all children. Sock puppets are a lovely, age-appropriate gift that will be hours of fun for very small children. Another old Christmas tradition is to gift new clothes for dolls – get some clothes for Barbie, or, if you love stitchery, make a dress for her favourite doll and put it in her stocking. Bring on the Best Mother Ever mugs!
Presents for pre-teens and teens: Slightly older children love to think of themselves as grown-ups. Delight your fashion-forward 14-year-old with a good brand of cologne or mini perfume.
Handmade soaps, lipgloss, mini nail paints, coin purses, pin-on brooches and X-mas themed artificial jewellery are fabulous for a teenage girl's stocking. You can even put stockings in her stocking – buy a bright red pair of stockings or hose to celebrate the holiday season. Go with mini tubes of shaving cream, sunglasses and Swiss army knives with a coin (ancient lore says that you should gift a coin along with a knife) for older teenage boys. A cricket or tennis ball will fit nicely into a stocking, as will a skipping rope.
Stationery: Little children will be thrilled with erasers in fancy or cartoon shapes, while grown-ups will love a gift of a classy high-end pen. Mini calculators will come in handy for busy corporate types. Almost everyone needs an extra pen-drive, so if you like, throw in one of these as well.
A mixed bag: The essence of a Christmas stocking is miscellaneous surprises. A humble spinning top is a traditional Yuletide stocking-stuffer.
Think whistles, yo-yos and key chains to fill the extra spaces. A small harmonica is great for children who have a good ear for music. For women, go with silver charm bracelets, pearl earrings, scented candles and tiny Swarowski crystal figurines. Tool-kits will be a hit with men.
It's often the little things that make life – and Christmas – happy. So this Christmas, let happiness come out of a stocking!
