Most apartments don’t have a fireplace, and stockings still need to go somewhere. The good news is that once you stop thinking “mantel,” there are lots of places that work just as well, and most don’t need a single nail.

A stocking stand

The easiest answer: a floor-standing stocking holder (on Amazon). It’s a freestanding post with hooks, and it can go anywhere: next to the tree, beside the TV, by the front door. Once Christmas is over it comes apart and goes in a closet.

Best for: a room with no free wall and no furniture to hang from.

A shelf with hooks

A wooden wall shelf with hooks underneath, like the one in the photo, gives you a mantel without a fireplace. Stockings hang from the hooks and the shelf above holds garland, small trees or candles. In a rental, put it up with a couple of screws (easy to patch later) or use a shelf light enough to hang on heavy-duty adhesive hooks (on Amazon).

Best for: a living room wall that’s empty in December anyway.

Adhesive hooks straight on the wall

Skip the shelf entirely: a row of adhesive hooks at the same height, one stocking each. Run a garland (on Amazon) above them on a couple more hooks so the wall looks finished. Stockings are light until they’re full, so take them down before stuffing them on Christmas Eve.

A blanket ladder

A blanket ladder (on Amazon) leaning on the wall holds a stocking on each rung, staggered. It looks lovely and doesn’t touch the wall at all. After Christmas it goes back to holding blankets.

A bookshelf or console

Use weighted stocking holders (on Amazon) on top of a low bookshelf, a sideboard, a console table or a dresser. They’re made for mantels but they work on any sturdy flat surface. Leave a little clearance below so the stockings don’t drag on the floor or block drawers.

Stairs

If you have a staircase, tie one stocking to every other baluster, or to the railing with ribbon. It’s practical in a house where the stairs are the main thing in the hallway.

The window

A tension rod inside a window frame, or the existing curtain rod, can hold stockings on clips or short ribbons. Lovely with the light coming through in the day.

The back of a door

For one or two stockings, or a kids’ room, an over-the-door hook holds them without any tools.

Making them match

Stockings look tidiest when they’re a set. A matching set (on Amazon) in one color, with names on tags or embroidered patches, looks intentional on any surface. Mismatched family stockings collected over the years look good too, just hang them close together so they read as one group.

A note on full stockings

Hooks and stands are rated for the empty stocking, not one stuffed with an orange, chocolate and a small gift. On Christmas Eve, take them down and lay them under the tree or on the sofa to fill them. Nothing ends up on the floor at 6am.