From us: their fish, small enough for a stocking
A mug with their catch photo on it, or an A4 poster of their best fish, both fit a stocking. These are the live prices for everything we sell under £20:
- Poster from the fish collectionA4From £15.99
- Mug from the fish collection11ozFrom £16.99
- Their catch photo, printed as it isPoster, A4From £15.99
- Their catch photo in a house styleMug, 11ozFrom £19.99
Start with their catch photo, printed as it is, or choose a plate from the collection. Our fishing mugs page explains the mug. An A4 poster measures 210 x 297 mm, which fits a standard shop-bought frame if they want to hang it later.
Small things anglers use
We don't sell these. They're things that get used, and none of them depends on knowing how the angler fishes.
Hand warmers
Reusable or single-use, they earn their place on a frosty morning. Cheap and useful. Reusable ones save money over a winter.
A neck warmer or beanie
Plain and warm beats branded and thin. Dark colours suit the bank better than bright ones.
A waterproof notebook
For a catch log, or for writing down a rig before they forget it. Pick one that copes with wet hands.
A spare head torch battery or a small torch
Check what their head torch takes before you buy, or get a small spare torch for the bivvy, which is always welcome.
A phone pouch
A waterproof pouch for the phone, for the day it rains harder than forecast. It also protects the phone that takes the catch photos. Pick one with a lanyard, so it can't slide into the margin.
Lip balm and sun cream
Not glamorous. Every angler who's spent a day in the wind will still be glad of them.
By the kind of angler
A carp angler
Long sessions and nights in a bivvy. Hand warmers, a spare head torch battery and a good mug for the brew. A mug with their mirror on it ticks two boxes at once, because it's personal and it'll be in the bivvy by New Year.
A sea angler
Cold beaches and wet hands. Fingerless gloves, a neck warmer and lip balm. Mackerel are among the fish UK sea anglers catch most, according to the Angling Trust, so a mackerel mug rarely misses.
A fly angler
Lighter kit, more walking. A waterproof notebook for the flies that worked, and a small print of a brown trout for the fly-tying desk. See trout and salmon prints.
Kit for better catch photos
A stocking can make their next catch photo better. A mini tripod or a phone clamp for a bankstick holds the camera still. Add a Bluetooth shutter button, which Angling Times puts at under £5, and they can take the shot with both hands on the fish.
Then, when the PB comes, the photo's sharp enough to print big. Our catch photo guide explains the rest.
Under £10 or under £20?
Under £10, stick to consumables that get used up and replaced: hand warmers, lip balm, a notebook, batteries. They get used up and they're always welcome. Under £20 opens up the personal stuff. A mug with their fish on it, or a small print, says you thought about them rather than the shop.
Mixing both works well. One personal thing and two useful ones make a good stocking for an angler.
For a junior angler
A junior licence costs nothing, so it can't go in a stocking. The GOV.UK licence page sets out who needs one by age, and a note reminding a teenager to get theirs does the job. A mug with their first fish on it is the kind of thing a young angler keeps for years.
Keep hooks and small sharp parts out of a young child's stocking, or wrap them for a grown-up to open with them. A float or two is safer, and it's still exciting.
One personal thing
Every good stocking has one thing that couldn't have been bought for anyone else. For an angler, that's their own fish. An A4 print of a PB, rolled in its tube, or a mug with the photo on it, makes the rest look thoughtful. If you can't get their photo, a species plate of the fish they love comes close. See fishing prints.
What to leave out
Hooks, leads and rigs come in hundreds of sizes and patterns, and the wrong ones aren't any use. Leave tackle to the angler unless they've written you a list.
Bait is the same. It's seasonal, it's personal and some of it needs a fridge. For bigger presents, see fishing gifts. For office gifts, see secret santa fishing gifts.
Wrapping a print
A poster arrives rolled. Keep it in its tube and wrap the tube. Don't fold it, and don't flatten it under heavy books, because the creases won't come out. If you'd like it framed for the day, a framed poster at A3 or A2 arrives ready to hang, in black or natural wood. That won't fit a stocking, so it goes under the tree.
Want to hide a tube in a stocking? Put it in last, so it stands up behind everything else. Ordering for Christmas? The last order dates are on our Christmas fishing gifts page once they're set.