Twenty-five Christmas stockings created from former Sandringham House curtains will go under the hammer from today as part of the King’s Foundation’s 12 Days of Christmas auction.
Bidders can secure their own piece of royal history with starting prices set at £250 per stocking.
The Norfolk estate’s old curtains have been given new life as festive decorations through this charitable initiative.
Twenty-four stockings will be sold to raise funds for the foundation, whilst the twenty-fifth has been reserved as a Christmas gift for the King himself.
Twenty-five Christmas stockings created from former Sandringham House curtains will go under the hammer from today as part of the King’s Foundation’s 12 Days of Christmas auction.
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GETTY
The auction opens on December 1 and continues until December 12, offering the public a chance to own fabric from the monarch’s private residence.
The Dumfries House Sewing Bee, a community project led by the foundation, dedicated more than six hours to crafting each unique stocking.
Traditional skills including hand embroidery, piping and seam matching, were employed to transform the historic fabric.
Each piece bears an individual number, ensuring every auction lot remains one-of-a-kind.
Bidders can secure their own piece of royal history with starting prices set at £250 per stocking.
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PA
The curtains’ age, design and material suggest they previously adorned a prominent room, possibly a living area within Sandringham House.
Sarah McClymont, lead tutor for the King’s Foundation’s Future Textiles initiative, said: “This was such an exciting project for the Sewing Bee to work on.
“Being given the opportunity to work with such historically significant fabric was a real honour for them and they are so proud of how the stockings turned out.”
This marks the third year running that royal curtains have found new purpose through charitable ventures.
The curtains’ age, design and material suggest they previously adorned a prominent room, possibly a living area within Sandringham House.
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PA
In 2023, window dressings from Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle were transformed into high-end kimonos, whilst 2024 saw fabric remnants become eight distinctive footstools.
The footstools gained particular attention when eight dogs awaiting adoption from Battersea Dogs and Cats Home were photographed with them at Highgrove, the King’s Gloucestershire residence.
Students and community groups collaborating with The King’s Foundation created these pieces using leftover materials, thought to have decorated windows in family and private quarters during Queen Elizabeth II’s time.
These fabrics had remained in storage following various clear-outs across the decades.
The initiative originated from the King’s personal intervention after discovering the unused material.
A spokesman for the King’s Foundation previously revealed that it was “very much the King’s idea to use the curtains”, adding: “He found out about the material and said, ‘Right, this can definitely be put to good use’.”
Revenue generated will benefit the King’s Foundation’s educational programmes, which provide heritage skills training to over 15,000 students annually.
Ms McClymont emphasised how the project exemplifies “The King’s Foundation’s commitment to craftsmanship, responsible design, and sustainable fashion and textiles. We hope that whoever is lucky enough to win one of the stockings at auction will pass it down as a family heirloom to be treasured for decades to come.”