The Complete List Of Mother’s Day Ideas

May 5, 2015 ♦

Eli Jenkins ♦

♦

It’s time. It’s time to spoil Mom. You know it. She knows it. This year is the year. With this complete list of Mother’s Day ideas covering activities, gifts, hampers, cards and craft as well as a range of price points (including free!) you will find something special to suit your mother’s unique taste.

Mother’s Day Activities

Breakfast, brunch or lunch
Take Mom out or bring the meal to her. Either way, don’t let her cook!

High tea
Let Mom be a lady. Take her somewhere special and spoil her with some delicious treats.

Bushwalk
Rekindle Mom’s love of nature. Take Mom to a local National Park, Botanic Gardens or drive a bit further and go on a lush forest walk.

Mothers Day Ideas - Forest Walk With Family

Bike ride
If you have an active Mom, join her on a bike ride. Find a beautiful beach, bay area or riverfront spot. Get the whole family together!

Charity fun run
Pay for Mom’s ticket to a charity fun run/walk. A number of different cities feature a morning charity event on the Mother’s Day weekend. Reward her with brunch or lunch afterwards to celebrate the achievement.

Family picnic
Take Mom out to a local park or gardens. Prepare a super spread full of food she loves. Take a Frisbee and revisit fun in the sun.

Painting class
If your Mom is not the arty type, find a beginner art class to attend together. Force M0m to step outside her comfort zone. She won’t regret it!

Mothers Day Ideas - Forest Walk With Family

Live theatre
Take Mom out to some live theatre – either professional or quality community amateur. It could be a play, a musical, the ballet, the opera, a live improv show or some stand up comedy.

Movies
Treat Mom to a recliner seat cinema ticket. Beat the crowds and book tickets in advance for Mother’s Day, otherwise save it for a quieter time.

Create a collage wall series
Spend time with Mom going through old photo albums. Find at least 5-9 photos each from her youth, from her wedding, of her with her family and of her doing things she loves (e.g. travel photos). Scan them in then go online and use the collage creator to make 5 different canvas collages. This is a great way to display 25-45 of her best memories on the wall.

Mothers Day Ideas - Themed Canvas Collage on Wall

Play a game
Join Mom for a session of her favorite sport, hobby or board game (e.g. tennis, bowls, Maa-Jongg, Scrabble).

Jewelry making workshop
Does your Mom have a passion for fashion or fine jewels? Treat her to a jewelry or bead making class.

Crafter-noon tea
Arrange a morning or afternoon of craft with Mom’s family or friends. Ask Mom to invite her friends and their daughters along and ask your friends to invite their Moms along as well. Any craft project is welcome.

Coloring in
This is the latest trend. Buy Mom (and you) an adult coloring book. Spend a few hours together doing some coloring in.

Mothers Day Ideas - Coloring Book

Sewing class
You’re never too old to learn – or improve. When your Mom says “I wish I knew how to …” listen to her desires then arrange a class for her. It could be sewing or anything, really.

Write a bucket list
Speaking of bucket lists, allocate some time with Mom to write a bucket list together. This can even be made into a great family activity for all to enjoy.

Mother’s Day Gifts

Photo Collage of Mom’s life
Surprise Mom with a photo collage of her life. Sneak into her old photo albums, borrow some of her most distinctive photos, scan them in as high resolution digital images then create a canvas collage.

Mothers Day Ideas - Canvas Collage Print

Cookbook
Is Mom into cooking? Hop online or into a bookshop to find the latest cook book. Alternatively, if she has a smart phone, download a recipe app for her like Snap Recipes – a place where she can photograph and store her favorite recipes.

Tablet
Depending on what your Mom is into, treat her to the latest technology iPad Mini (for videos, photos and Apps) or Kindle (for ebooks).

Flowers
Every Mom loves flowers. What are your Mom’s favorite? It doesn’t matter what gift you give, accompany it with a bunch of flowers – any size will do. Alternatively, a surprise delivery will make her day.

Mothers Day Ideas - Flowers And Gift Card

Jewellery
Whether it’s fine or fashion jewellery, there’s an abundance out there to gift to Mom. Consider starting a tradition or giving her a charm or a bead each year. Is she fussy? Take her shopping!

Bluetooth speaker
This is now a ‘must have’ for every home. Give Mom a portable speaker so she can play her own favorite music from her phone no matter what she’s doing and where she is (gardening, housework, picnic).

Smartphone case
Did Mom buy herself the cheapest, most drab, boring phone cover? It doesn’t have to be like that. Hop on Etsy or pop into a phone shop and find something that better suits her personality.

Silk scarf
Mom loves scarves, but buys herself the cheap $10 ones on sale at Target. Treat Mom to a gorgeous pure silk scarf instead from a boutique outlet.

Mothers Day Ideas - Silk Scarf

Tile tracker
The Tile Tracker is an amazing invention that means Mom will never lose her car keys again.

Sports bag
One for the active Moms. If her sports bag is about 20 years old with zippers broken or she doesn’t actually own one, this gift will keep on giving.

Donate to Mom’s favorite charity
Does your Mom love to give back? Don’t choose your own favorite charity. Find out your Mom’s and make a donation on her behalf. Nice warm fuzzy all round.

Handmade sweets or chocolates
If your Mom has a sweet tooth, pop into the best local French patisserie, Italian Pasticceria or handmade chocolate shop and buy her the best of the best. Let Google do the work for you.

Mothers Day Ideas - Handmade Chocolates

Last-Minute Mother’s Day Gifts

It’s 24 hours until Mother’s Day and you’ve been too busy to even scratch yourself let alone find some time to shop for a gift. Don’t despair! There are plenty of deserving options for Mom, usually in the form of an online gift card or subscription.

Mothers Day Ideas - Canvas Factory Gift Certificate

Canvas Factory Gift Voucher (of course!)
iTunes or Google Play Gift Card
Fruit and Vegetable Box Subscription
Subscription to Mom’s favorite women’s or craft magazine
Case of wine (winner!)
New Hairstyle Voucher
Massage Voucher
Mod Cloth Gift Certificate

Mothers Day Ideas - Case Of Wine

Mother’s Day Hampers

Rather than buy a pre-bought hamper, think outside the basket and put together a themed hamper, packed full of goodies Mom will love. Here are some ideas for themes and gifts:

A good night’s sleep
Include a selection of teas (Chamomile, Valerian, Lavender, Lemon balm, Peppermint); Book of relaxation quotes; a meditation CD or App; cloth eye mask; journal.

Movie night
Include a selection of chick flicks on DVD; microwave popcorn; some chocolates; bottle of sparkling wine; nail polish; nailpolish remover; gossip magazine.

Day spa
Include a facial mask, a new washcloth, aromatherapy candle, oils, bubble bath, foot scrub, manicure set, pedicure set, sponge, pumice stone, hair removal cream, luxury hand cream, foot cream, bottle of champagne.

Home makeover
New essentials (in Mom’s favorite brand) including foundation, powder, eyeliner, mascara, blush as well as a range of eyeshadows. Include acrylic nail kit, nailpolish, hair glass.

Summer fun
Beach towel, water bottle, Havaianas, a book, sunglasses, sarong, magazines, book, sunscreen, aloe vera, lip balm, beach bag, canvas wall art print of the beach.

Mothers Day Ideas - DIY Summer Hamper

Party Pack
A bottle of red, white and sparkling wine; some boutique beers; gourmet cheese selection; cookies; Lindt chocolates; music CD or iTunes/Google Play card; deck of cards; coffee, Berocca. 🙂

Cooking Case
Recipe book; fine bottles of spices, sauces and oils; dish towels; oven glove; kitchen equipment she needs; bottle of wine.

Green Thumb
Gardening gloves, flower seeds, herb seedlings, a cactus, some tools, weed killer, potting mix, a garden ornament, some solar lights.

Mother’s Day Craft

Make a card using scrapbooking materials
Get out your old (or new!) scrapbooking box and create a beautiful handmade card for Mom. Or start afresh and go shopping for some new craft items! Any excuse, right?

Create ’10 Things I Love About You’
Create a mini book that features 10 pages full of different things you love about your Mom. Use cardboard and paste different textures of paper onto the card along with the 10 Things text. Hole punch a corner, strap it on a key ring and voila! Lots of Mom love. Check out this example.

Make Mom a compliments jar
Find a jar, decorate it with a ribbon and some beautiful words in glitter glue then fill the jar with lovely notes filled with compliments for Mom. Tell her to read them when she’s having a bad day (and particularly if you’ve been the cause of the bad day!).

Make Mom an affirmations jar
As above, but fill the jar with notes featuring affirmations for all occasions that Mom can read when she’s feeling a exhausted or a bit blue. Search for ‘affirmations’ on Pinterest for inspiration.

Get Mom to teach you a craft
She will love the opportunity to hand down to you a particular skill or activity she holds dear. Even if it’s not in the genes, if she knows how to sew or knit or crochet, get her to show you how anyway. Who knows, you might even enjoy it!

Mothers Day Ideas - Knitting Craft

Crochet a take-away coffee cosy
If you already know how to crochet, knit Mom once of these! Easy to throw in her handbag, they will save her hands from burning, stop her asking for an extra cup and look pretty as well!

Make paper pom poms for Mother’s Day lunch celebration
Floral pom poms are all the rage. Here’s a super-easy, eight-minute ‘how to’ guide:

Make hanging paper flowers for Mother’s Day lunch celebration
Channel some Martha Stewart and create some beautiful paper flowers out of paper bags! They make for a gorgeous decoration and Mom can take one home at the end of the event. For craft instructions check out Martha’s ‘how to’ guide.

Make Mom a bouquet of garden flowers
The bonus with this gift is that it’s also free! Visit yours, your friend’s or your neighbour’s garden (with permission of course!) and pick a selection of flowers and foliage. Create your own flower bouquet. The results will astound you! This video, below, shows you how to create a beautiful bouquet.

Make Mom some chocolate-coated strawberries
These are easy and delicious. Buy a punnet of fresh strawberries, wash them then dry them well. Melt some dark chocolate then dip the strawberries in the dark chocolate (leaving the leafy green top free of chocolate). Place them on a dish covered in parchment paper and place them immediately in the fridge. Consume within 24-48 hours.

Free Or Cheap Mother’s Day Gifts

Select one or a few activities from the list below and write your promises in a gift card. Alternatively, create a coupons booklet. Write down each activity on card the same size then staple it together. You can find some templates online or create something yourself in MS Word.