So What Do You Put in a Christmas Stocking Anyway?

I've only ever used stockings as things to hang on or above the mantelpiece, but if you gift one, what stocking fillers do you actually put in it?

Well House of Fraser's Home Department kindly answered this question for me, by sending me one. Not any old velvet thing with white fluff on the top! Oh no! This is embroidered and simply divine. It's also now half price, and their website says there are only 15 left: Linea Embroidered Birds Red Stocking.

Their photo doesn't at all do it justice so let me show you mine ;-)

It's beautifully lined with linen and the embroidery is luxurious. Something you can keep for a lifetime. A real treasure:

But you want to know what was inside it don't you? Well if you followed me on Instagram you would already know as I photographed it the second I shut the door on the courier:

Wow wow wow @houseoffraser know how to fill a stocking. My friendly neighbourhood courier just arrived with this. I think I earned it after spending yesterday being Mrs Christmas putting up tree decs and lights #ChristmasStocking

A photo posted by Liska (@newmumonline) on Dec 12, 2014 at 5:01am PST

But here they are individually:

Christmas Cupcake Mould which is currently half price

Frosty Gift Tags reduced from 3 pounds to 1.5 GBP.

Christmas set of 3 mini diffusers reduced from 24 to 12 pounds

Champagne Truffles reduced.

Enchanted Forest Candle reduced from 16 to 8 pounds

I can't link to the gorgeous water bottle I got, with a festive knitted cover as I cannot find it on their site.

I also got this Mistletoe and Berries Candle which has been reduced from 20 to 10 pounds.

Finally I received with my stocking a beautiful white and red "Merry Christmas" bauble. Given that the stocking arrived the day after I put my tree up it couldn't have been better. I worked so hard that day, unpacking all of the decs, putting them up, and tidying up. That in addition to rearranging the sitting room to accommodate the tree. So when my stocking and gifts arrived the next day, I felt like Mrs Christmas, who'd received her rewards for her efforts ha ha! or should I say ho ho ho!!!

Nothing to do with this post but whilst browsing House of Fraser's site I just noticed their Water Bobbles are only 10.99 (but reduced to 8.79!!!) and I bought mine for 12.99 each in John Lewis!!! A few months ago.

So here are pics of the contents. Excuse the photography but the lighting is not great tonight.

Still lots of time to do Christmas Shopping online. Like I said in my House of Fraser Toys Review earlier today, a package from them arrives beautifully. My toys came with money off vouchers (promotions for various things) AND a complimentary Fraser magazine. Glad to be working with them so closely, as my first job after leaving University was with them :-)

Disclosure: I was a very lucky girl and was gifted my stocking and the fillers it came with. They're all beautiful. Take a look at their home department, either instore or online. Most of what I was sent is "Linea" which is House of Fraser's own in-house brand which was launched by them in 1997.

Toys Are Not Us

Last year I got all of the niece and nephew's presents in Toys R Us on 23rd December and spent £230.

I promised myself I would be way more organised this year... It wasn't to be... I was in there on 22nd December ONLY a day earlier but I did spend £128.... big improvement which reflects our circumstances.

The reason I gave this blog post the title that I did is twofold.

One because this was the sign I was faced with before entering the store:

Yet this (below) is the only thing that I saw that was half price (nothing I bought was even though I bought for six kids).

They were heavily promoting Furby as below.  We've all been wondering on Facebook for months: why is Furby making a comeback? No idea!

I was glad to see they have learned from last year.

Last year there was no festive spirit in there. Whereas this year someone was dressed up as Santa and the staff had Santa hats on.

The queues were horrific, but what really got me was I bought Aaron a Disney Cars' "Mater" and it was priced up as 99p yet when the cashier scanned it she scanned the £3.99 one twice.

After going through the till I saw it on the receipt and went to Customer Services, where I queued for FIFTEEN MINUTES where there was only ONE person on duty and her attitude stank.

When I finally got to the top of the queue I told her I'd waited 15 minutes for a problem caused by the cashier.  I said I wouldn't mind queueing if I was refunding or exchanging.  Her response to this was to tell the queue to "bear with me I am on my own".

I couldn't believe she was apologising to people who'd ONLY just joined the queue and not to me.

Then when she put my issue through the till she handed me a £1 and I said "shouldn't that be £3" - she just said "oh yeah" rifled in the till and begrudgingly gave it to me.

I'd bumped into my Dad and his wife in there and they said complain to a Manager but Aaron and his Dad were waiting in the car and I could not make them wait any longer and I knew blogging about it would be more effective and cathartic anyway.

Hopefully the nieces and nephews will love their presents.

Hopefully 2013 I will shop online or find an alternative toy shop.

Merry Christmas to you and yours,

Liska xx