How To Care for Your Christmas Stockings

Your family’s Christmas stockings are treasured keepsakes, but they’re bound to get dirty and dingy as the years pass. How do you safely clean and care for them? We aim to help.

When it comes to properly cleaning Christmas stockings, the type of fabric and embellishments play a major role. Read on to learn how to clean a range of stocking types, as well as how to store them during the Christmas off-season.

How NOT to Clean Christmas Stockings

While it’s tempting to simply throw your Christmas stockings into the washing machine on a gentle cycle, we strongly recommend against this for a few reasons:

• Christmas stockings are made from delicate materials and washing machines (even on the gentle cycle) can cause damage such as shrinking, fading, stretching, loosening or removal of beads and embellishments.
• Depending on the material, too much water will most likely cause a Christmas stocking to become misshapen and change the texture of the fabric.
• Naturally, after a machine wash it’s tempting to toss stockings into the dryer. But even on low heat, you run the risk of distorting and shrinking your Christmas stocking. The dryer can also cause pilling, which no one wants.

General Cleaning Instructions for Different Types of Christmas Stockings

As previously mentioned, the fabric and style of your Christmas stockings will determine your cleaning protocol. Below are cleaning recommendations for velvet, felt, wool, quilted, needlepoint, and Bucilla Christmas stockings.

How to Clean Velvet Christmas Stockings

When it comes to cleaning stains off velvet Christmas stockings, we recommend taking your stocking to a reputable dry cleaner. This is perhaps the simplest and safest way to ensure the velvet remains vibrant and undamaged. If you’re dealing with a buildup of dust, use a soft-bristled brush attachment on your vacuum cleaner to gently remove dust and dirt.

How to Clean Felt Christmas Stockings

Some suggest a washing machine approach to felt. But similar to velvet stockings, our team recommends taking your felt Christmas stockings to the dry cleaner. Felt is a fickle fabric and if it becomes saturated with water it can easily fade and shrink. If you’re looking to remove dust, try using a lint roller or a soft-bristled vacuum attachment.

How to Clean Wool or Knit Christmas Stockings

Most wool Christmas stockings and cableknit Christmas stockings can be hand-washed in lukewarm water with a gentle detergent. The key here is to make sure you rinse the stocking well, rather than wringing out the access water, you should squeeze out water without twisting. Then, lay the stocking flat, reshape as necessary, and let it air dry.

Note: If you have a special design or any embellishments on these types of stockings (your stocking has been personalized with an embroidered name or is adorned with glitter), do not submerge that part of the stocking. Rather, we recommend that you use your finger to gently rub the cleaning solution in.

How to Clean Quilted Christmas Stockings

Quilted stockings can also be hand-washed. But rather than lukewarm water, we recommend cold water to prevent any fading or color bleeding. Similar to wool stockings, rinse well without wringing, and lay flat to air dry.

How to Clean Needlepoint Christmas Stockings

Needlepoint Christmas stockings are incredibly detailed and delicate, which means we don’t recommend submerging them in water to clean them. Like other very delicate fabrics, we recommend dry cleaning to remove stains or a good vacuuming with a soft-bristled brush to remove dust.

How to Clean Bucilla Christmas Stockings

Bucilla Christmas stockings are incredibly intricate. And more than likely you’ve taken the time to make the stocking yourself, which means protecting it from damage is crucial.

Because the main material used in Bucilla Christmas stockings is felt, the same rules apply as above: If the stocking is stained, take it to a trusted dry cleaner. If the stocking is dusty, carefully vacuum the surface with a soft-bristled brush on your vacuum cleaner.

How to Remove Smoke Smell from Christmas Stockings

As tradition dictates, Christmas stockings are hung by the chimney with care. But for those of us with wood burning fireplaces, stockings can begin to take on a smokey smell. How can you remove this smell?

If your stocking is velvet, felt, needlepoint, or Bucilla, dry cleaning should hopefully take care of this. If you own wool, knit, or quilted Christmas stockings (stockings that can be carefully hand-washed), follow the steps below:

• Make sure all goodies have been removed from the stocking.
• Fill your sink or tub with 2 to 3 inches of water (lukewarm water for knit or wool; cold water for quilted). Then mix a cleaning solution composed of 1 part baking soda, 1 part ammonia, and 2 parts vinegar and add it to your water.
• Wash your stocking while wearing protective gloves.
• If you have a plain Christmas stocking, you can submerge the whole stocking in the mixture. Gently, rub the stockings to release the smoke odor.
• If your stockings have designs like an embroidered name or glitter, submerge only up to the design. Do not place the designed area under the water or in the solution. Rub this area with the solution using your finger, but DO NOT submerge it.
• Repeat this process to get rid of the smoke smell.
• Rinse the stocking with clean water (lukewarm water for knit or wool; cold water for quilted) three times. Again, be careful not to run the designs under the water.
• Squeeze out excess water after rinsing; do not wring the fabric.

Using any clean surface, lay your stocking to dry. Make sure that your stocking is flat all over and check for areas that stick out. Push any misshapen areas back into place.

How to Store Your Christmas Stockings

When it comes time to put your Christmas stockings away for the season, we recommend that you wrap your stockings in a lavender scented linen sheet and store it in your closet or a suitcase. Why? This will protect it from moths, moisture, and mold.

Now that you know how to care for and clean your beloved Christmas stockings, share this valuable info with your family and friends. And if you are giving one of your precious handmade Christmas stockings as a gift, be sure to tell them the best way to clean and store their new Christmas stocking.