Our Christmas stockings

This year providing each other with a Christmas stocking of gifts costing no more than £5 total was really challenging but we were determined not to up the budget. 

I didn’t do very well with my purchases for MrFF, some organic dark chocolate, two spf lip balms to take to Italy where he is prone to cold sores from the sun, a geology book and a rather lovely landscape book on water gardens costing 50p in the charity shop. It has beautiful illustrations and detailed plans, In case he ever runs out of projects in Italy I would like this one.

My stocking contained all these, he found some lovely things. 

The mini battenburgs were on their expiry in the bargain bucket, I don’t mind that at all.  

The little wooden sphere is a yo-yo, he thought the picture of the badger would remind me of our Italian garden, though not in a good way. 

My favourite item is in the white paper bag, it’s liquorice from Skipton market, where he travelled for free with his bus pass.   The disc shaped ones are Pontefract cakes, which are soft and delicious, the tiny little cats are Dutch liquorice, they are so lovely I cannot bring myself to eat them.  

Slightly less delightful is the grater for taking hard skin off your feet, MrFF thought it might be quite aggressive but it isn’t.   Finally there is a collagen face mask that might get passed on, I am not convinced such a product also containing glitter and costing less than £1 is what my 74 year old skin needs.

Of course we had gorgeous gifts from family to open later in the day but opening our stockings on Christmas morning is always great fun and cheap fun at that which is what we like.