What was in a stocking 70-80 years ago?

[Deleted User]

Well 55+ years ago when I was but a small child we had an orange, a small bar of chocolate, crayons, a magic painting book or colouring book and if we were really lucky a small toy. My brothers had a Dinky car,or marbles, and I remember one year having a clown strung between two pieces of wood that you squeezed together to make it do a somersalt
In those days toys were hard to come by as the War hadn't long finished.
I once had a small post-office set that I loved to play with, and one year I was lucky enough to have a forth -hand three-wheeler tricycle that my Mum had managed to find from some where, and my elder brother had repaired for me . The boys had balsa wood air-craft kits that they spent hours glueing together I also had a set of five stones that were five square stones of different colours that were used in a game .The best present I ever had though was a NEW skipping rope with ball-bearings in the wooden handles I felt that no one could be as well off as me.Often my elder brother would make toys from orange-boxes that he had scavenged from the local market on a Saturday night. I had a beautiful dolls house that he made me, and how he did it without me finding out I'll never know.
Oh the memories of playing with a JOHN BULL printing set and getting covered with ink. There was no television around to make one envious as children had to make their own games. In those days kids were always out on the street playing,but there wasn't the traffic about then either to worry about.

Yorkielass

Spendless wrote:

She did mention that too I'd forgotten. Where can you buy them from?

There's a little old sweet shop near where I used to live, they did all the sweets in jars, penny sweets etc and always had old fashioned things like sugar mice too - do you have any traditional little sweet shops in your area?

Spendless

Yorkielass wrote:

There's a little old sweet shop near where I used to live, they did all the sweets in jars, penny sweets etc and always had old fashioned things like sugar mice too - do you have any traditional little sweet shops in your area?

There's a couple of old fashioned newsagents that sell confectionary. I'd have to take a closer look at what they sell. There's also a big market on 3 times a week that definately has a couple of sweet stalls. I'll try there also.

ETA_Just noticed your username. I'm in Yorkshire too so its possible I might be travelling distance to the shop you're talking about. PM me if you'd rather not say on board.

Allexie

Spendless wrote:

She did mention that too I'd forgotten. Where can you buy them from?

There is a wonderful website that does all the old-fashioned sweets if you can't find them locally...

http://www.bagofsweets.com/zcart.search.php?Search=sugar%20mice&ThisPage=5

(scroll down a bit for the mice!)

elona

Thorntons do chocolate mice with a cream filling.

mrbadexample

Or here

jaybee

Always had a sugar mouse and a tangerine (wrapped in paper and I used to collect the papers they came in as they seemed so exotic!). Generally there was a yo-yo and a metal puzzle (like two nails twisted together) - I used to love my stocking and still do them even though partner's kids are grown up (I do one for him as well)

pavlovs_dog

another place you may source old coins is oxfam bookshops

henhog

Hi. In the John Lewis 'Celebrate' magazine thingy they said a stocking should have something nice to eat, something to keep, something to make and something to do or play with. I thought I might do this for my kids this year.

[Deleted User]

Spendless wrote:

There's a couple of old fashioned newsagents that sell confectionary. I'd have to take a closer look at what they sell. There's also a big market on 3 times a week that definately has a couple of sweet stalls. I'll try there also.

ETA_Just noticed your username. I'm in Yorkshire too so its possible I might be travelling distance to the shop you're talking about. PM me if you'd rather not say on board.

I live in Kent and there is an old-fashioned sweetshop in Rochester High street, and also in a side street behind Canterbury Cathedral.They do lots of long-lost sweets ,and they are in the big screw-topped jars