The Complete List Of Mother’s Day Ideas

It’s time. It’s time to spoil Mum. 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 Mum out or bring the meal to her. Either way, don’t let her cook!

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

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

Mothers Day Ideas - Forest Walk With Family

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

Charity fun run
Pay for Mum’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 Mum 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 Mum is not the arty type, find a beginner art class to attend together. Force Mum to step outside her comfort zone. She won’t regret it!

Mothers Day Ideas - Painting Class

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

Movies
Treat Mum to a gold class movie 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 Mum 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 - Collage Canvas Print On Lounge Wall

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

Jewellery making workshop
Does your Mum have a passion for fashion or fine jewels? Treat her to a jewellery or bead making class.

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

Colouring in
This is the latest trend. Buy Mum (and you) an adult colouring in book. Spend a few hours together doing some colouring in.

Mothers Day Ideas - Colouring In Book

Sewing class
You’re never too old to learn – or improve. When your Mum 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 Mum 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 Mum’s life
Surprise Mum 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 Mum 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 favourite recipes.

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

Flowers
Every Mum loves flowers. What are your Mum’s favourite? 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, Gift and Card

Jewellery
Whether it’s fine or fashion jewellery, there’s an abundance out there to gift to Mum. 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 Mum a portable speaker so she can play her own favourite music from her phone no matter what she’s doing and where she is (gardening, housework, picnic).

Smartphone case
Did Mum 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
Mum loves scarves, but buys herself the cheap $10 ones on sale at Kmart. Treat Mum 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 Mum will never lose her car keys again.

Sports bag
One for the active Mums. 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 Mum’s favourite charity
Does your Mum love to give back? Don’t choose your own favourite charity. Find out your Mum’s and make a donation on her behalf. Nice warm fuzzy all round.

Handmade sweets or chocolates
If your Mum 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 Mum, usually in the form of an online gift card or subscription.

Mothers Day Ideas - Gift Certificate

  • Canvas Factory Gift Voucher (of course!)
  • iTunes or Google Play Gift Card
  • Fruit and Vegetable Box Subscription
  • Subscription to Mum’s favourite women’s or craft magazine
  • Case of wine (winner!)
  • New Hair Do 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 Mum 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 washer, 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 Mum’s favourite 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 bubbles; some boutique beers; gourmet cheese selection; biscuits; 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; tea towels; oven mit; 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 Mum. 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 Mum. Use cardboard and paste different textures of paper onto the card along with the 10 Things text. Hole punch a corner, pop it on a key ring and voila! Lots of Mum love. Check out this example.

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

Get Mum 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 Mum 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 Mum can take one home at the end of the event. For craft instructions check out Martha’s ‘how to’ guide.

Make Mum 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 Mum 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 baking 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.

  • Write a poem
  • Give Mum some computer tuition
  • Clean her house
  • Declutter one of her rooms
  • Help her with her volunteer work
  • Treat her to breakfast in bed
  • Give Mum a back rub
  • Give Mum a hug
  • Wash her car
  • Weed the garden
  • Vacuum her house
  • Dust her house
  • Walk the dog for her
  • Digitise her old photos
  • Create a cheap canvas print
  • Make her a playlist of music (new and old favourites)
  • Bake her a cake or her favourite biscuits
  • Call her for a chat
  • Visit and prepare/cook all the meals for the day

Happy Mother’s Day to all the Mums! We love and admire all that you do!

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Eli is Canvas Factory's resident blogger and social media buff. She has a passion for art, craft, design, fashion and photography. She loves to explore the joys and challenges of family life, relationships, motherhood and pet ownership. Eli finds it's more funny to poke fun at herself than others. She's travelled extensively and considers herself a citizen of the world.

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