At Chez MF, yours truly is responsible for most of the Christmas shopping. In order to preserve my sanity, and general holiday spirit, I try to get most of my shopping done online to avoid the crowds and "seasonal cheer" (i.e. blaring Christmas music) of malls.
However, there is one group of presents that are still best purchased the old fashioned way: the dreaded stocking stuffers. These littlest of gifts can easily cause the most stress to the holiday shopper, especially if you come from a family like mine where the stockings reach from toe to hip, or like Mr. MF's where the stockings are knit and s-t-r-e-t-c-h when filled. And oftentimes, stocking stuffers are forgotten until the very last minute, meaning that you have to go out and brave the stressed hordes to find something - anything! - to put in those stockings. Sayonara, Christmas cheer!
So, in the spirit of giving, here are some thoughts on what to buy and where to go to get these troublesome gifts. Chances are you'll find yourself in or near one of these stores this weekend - do yourself a solid, and start collecting your stocking stuffers now - you'll be glad you did!
T.J. Max/Marshalls: I troll the beauty, candle, home, and kitchen aisles in these stores for spices, drink mixes, sets of hand soap and lotion, bath salts, decorative kitchen tools, decorative gardening equipment, cute paper products, candles, little decorative bric-a-brac, and so on. Especially good for older female relatives and the home cook/self-styled gourmand.
Urban Outfitters: This is my go to shop for funky and silly gifts. I've purchased trendy beauty supplies, silly gag gifts, off-color calendars, and very random cookbooks. Good for the early to late 20s crowd, trendy fashionistas, and anyone who has a colorful sense of humor.
World Market: If you have one of these stores in your area, go! They often have a wall of sample sized food products: little bottles of Tabasco, miniature sausages, individual sized portions of hard cheeses, and mini-versions of things you would never think of - hazelnut flavored syrup, anyone? Generally good for male family members, and for anyone who likes novelty items.
Target: The dollar bins at Target have cute things for younger members of the family. The jewelry and hair accessories section also have good finds. Another thing that my mother used to pack in our stockings was blank packs of thank you notes (for all the presents from great-Aunt Ruthie) - Target has a great stationary selection. But my absolutely most triumphant find this year? Gloves with special touch-screen friendly fingertips. This is a great find for those hard-to-shop for family members - because no one likes to take off their warm gloves to use their smartphones.
Your local pharmacy: It's not terribly exciting, but people can always use these little fillers: dental floss, batteries, travel sized hand sanitizer, a deck of cards, chapstick or fancy lip balm, nail files, and candies.
Polly over at Families with Purpose, the creator of the Frazzle Free Christmas guides (see my post about them here) had some other great stocking suggestions: DVDs, make-up, and small gift cards to Starbucks, iTunes, and your local movie theater.
Hopefully this gives some of you out there who might be stumped some ideas about what to hang in your stockings (or even what small gifts to give to people on your holiday lists). If you have any suggestions or ideas for stocking stuffers or little gifts, please do share them in the comments section.
Ho, ho, ho!
xoxo,
MF
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