10 Christmas stocking stuffer ideas

Dollar stores and the dollar bins at chain stores are great root-around places to find silly gadgets, small toys and snacks. And did we mention everything is a dollar?

Festive socks with little nonskid feet are useful for cold winter mornings. Other articles of clothing like mittens, hats and scarves make for fine filler.

Have family members stuff each other’s stockings. Agree on a dollar amount (and stick to it!), and let the family go crazy coming up with fun things to add. The grocery store is a great place to find inexpensive treats.

Activity books, novels and magazines will get a lot of perusing during a holiday vacation. There’s something very relaxing about playing word games or reading unplugged.

Card games are perfect stocking-stuffers because they’re small, usually simple to play and are extremely portable. If you have any after-Christmas traveling to do, it’s a win-win.

Personal grooming items like hair gel, lip balms, lotions that smell like peppermint—all great ideas for a teen or tween. Get travel sizes of items they already love or have wanted to try.

A Christmas ornament of a hobby or a favorite photo can be a nice addition to a stocking. They can immediately display it on the tree this year, and look forward to seeing it again next year.

Navel oranges, tangerines and apples of all kinds are yummy and healthy alternatives to a sockful of sweets. And small bottles of juice make a nice travel-size treat.

Craft kits like beginner cross-stitch, a small booklet on beginning crochet, a hook and a ball of yarn, or friendship bracelet thread all make fun, portable activities to keep boredom at bay when traveling or on snowbound days.

As long as there are no peanut or nut allergies in your family, stuff those stockings full of unshelled nuts—like Brazil nuts, hazelnuts, almonds, walnuts and pecans—and don’t forget to slip in a nutcracker. Shelling nuts makes a great (if slightly messy) activity that, best of all, has a snack at the end.