How to Creatively Hang a Christmas Stocking on a Mantel

Every year we proudly display our Christmas stockings with care on the mantel. Every year they get filled with goodies from Santa and fall to the ground pulling our beautifully decorative hooked holders with them. This is not a safe option if you have little ones in the house or if you don't want your goodies in a million pieces. There are a few simple and decorative things you can do to keep your children, stockings, and presents safe this year.

Hammer and Nail

I know that the idea of hammering a sturdy nail into your mantel doesn't sound very festive or pleasing to the eye. Try slapping a little craft paint on the end first. Use a tradition Christmas color and then after it dries, hammer that baby in there. Now you are faced with a painted nail and a stocking. It looks better than the un-painted version but still not gorgeous. After you have put it in place and have hung the stocking you can do a couple things to pretty it up. You can string together a few jingle bells tightly and place them over the head of the nail. How about a beautifully painted pine cone. You simply slip the nail in between its edges and it will sit there very nicely and look cute. Another option is to string some lights and garland from nail to nail and they will be completely covered with stockings in place.

Craft Wire

This is a less obvious way to conceal your hanging options. Cut a long piece of craft wire and place your stocking loop in the middle. Now start twisting the wire together until you get to the end. Once you get to the end you need to twist that together so you have a small circle. Place the small circle at the top base of your mantel. Where the top of the mantel meets the wall. Affix it there with a small nail or thumb tack and then with the craft wire laying flat on the mantel you simply bend it at the edge of the mantel leaving your stocking suspended from it. Now you can decorate the top of the mantel with your village or snowmen and no one is the wiser. You can also embellish the craft wire with strings of tinsel or even apply a bit of craft glue and glitter. It just depends on how much of it you can see.

Take them Down

In my family we were such angels that Santa really loaded us up on the stocking goodies. We always hung the stockings on the mantel weeks in advance with a small thumb tack on the inside of the loop. When Santa arrived he would fill the stockings to the brim with candy and toys and any type of Christmas novelty item he could think of. After they were so full, instead of hanging the stockings back in the original place, he would lay them on top of our each individual piles of gifts. This was kind of nice because when we came down in the morning, there was no confusion as to who got what. We saw or own stockings and knew what was ours. I think my parents also liked it because it meant no giant nail holes in the mantel. Santa still practices this for my kids, he's so thoughtful.