Every year I struggle with ideas for Mother’s Day gifts. My mom has everything she needs and wants so it is always hard to come up with something unique that I know she will use or treasure. Some easy ideas are to just spend time with your mom. Plan on taking her to brunch and a movie. Or how about a spa day. Short on cash, how about a picnic at the park and you make a really nice lunch for the two of you. Here are a few of my favorite gift ideas in a variety of price ranges. If you have a favorite please share!
Does your mom garden, if so these cute bags of seed bombs from Anthropologie would make a great gift. Put several in a basket with a small trowel and gardening gloves.
One of my favorite gifts that we gave my mom was a charm bracelet with all of the grandkids pictures. It was beautiful. We got it from VintageFaerie.com. I also love all of the custom jewelry (above) at Vintage Pearl. Speaking of personalized gifts, why not get your mom a custom cell phone case? They have great ones at KodakGallery.com.
My mom still writes handwritten notes so personalized stationery would be a great gift. This one is from TinyPrints, but they also have great options at LookLoveSend.com and SimplytoImpress.com.
Looking for an inexpensive but really thoughtful gift? Make a “Why I love you” jar. Use scrapbook supplies to decorate a regular canning jar and then just add strips of paper with your personal thoughts about your mom. I made one a few years ago for my mom, it was really fun to think back to my childhood and let her know what meant a lot to me. You can add a Starbucks gift card as a treat.
I love eating fresh fruits and veggies especially in the summer. Last year we decided to build our own vegetable garden. We built two 4′ x 8′ boxes. Each season we switch out what we grow and try new things. Not everything is a success and it is definitely trial by error, we are far from experts! Our most successful crops so far have been broccoli and cauliflower. We had tomatoes which only did okay. We also planted leeks, peppers, herbs and cucumbers. This year our selection includes tomatoes, cilantro, basil, lemon cucumbers, melons, squash, eggplant, lettuce and a few other herbs. Sometimes we want to kill our dogs or the squirrels that dig in the planters but overall it has been a really fun experience. Our kids love seeing what new veggie is growing and eating it fresh off the vine. This year I hope we have a bumper crop that lasts all through the summer. We often rely on Sunset Magazine to help with ideas, it is a great resource. What are you planting this year? Any favorites that we must try or special tips on getting the most from your garden?
When I graduated from college and moved out on my own (a really long time ago!) my mom bought me an antique armoire for my bedroom. I decided several years ago to paint it white and loved how it turned out. I also had an antique rocking chair that I recently decided to reupholster and paint white. Most everyone knows that I do not sew! The nice thing about reupholstering chairs is that you only have to be good with a staple gun, which I think anyone can handle! I only needed a small amount of fabric and the nice thing about this chair is that I can change the fabric often since it is easy to do. I sanded down the chair and wiped away the dust. I used a flat white paint (leftover from another project) and gave the chair two to three coats. After it had dried a few days, I took sand paper and just sanded all of the edges to let some of the wood underneath show through and give it a shabby chic feel. I may finish it off with a semi-gloss clear spray, but I haven’t decided on that yet. I am happy with the way it turned out and it was a pretty fast project, only a couple of hours total. I was able to easily squeeze it in to a Sunday afternoon.
My painted armoire.
Before
Stapling the fabric to the cushion. I removed the old fabric first.
My new rocking chair!
Graduation is just around the corner and now is the time to plan your grads announcements and party invitations. Whether your son or daughter is graduating from elementary school, middle school or high school, an announcement is the perfect way to spread the happy news. There are so many choices in cards these days. I love adding photos and if you pick a card with multiple photos you can do a current photo with a baby photo, cute idea! You can also find cards that match your school colors or even your party decor.
This Hawaiian themed invitation from SimplytoImpress.com comes both with and without photo options (also in boy/girl versions). The Luau is always a popular party theme. And every party store carries plenty of luau party supplies year round. I love the classic black and white look and the invitation below, found here, is perfect for a more formal look. Add your son or daughters baby picture or even a sports picture, to jazz it up.
School colors are always a great option. Blue and gold are very popular. The invitation below from Invitationbox.com comes in a variety of colors.
Finding the card is pretty easy just make sure to do it in enough time so you are not rushing around the week before. Start ordering now and enjoy a stress free and exciting day with your graduate. Here are some previous post we did on the subject that you might find useful, Photo Books and Extended Senior Photos.
We hope everyone enjoyed the blog hop! Congratulations to our Blog Hop winner, Megan W. of Kansas City, MO! She will receive over $250 in party planning prizes, including stamping supplies from PSA Essentials, party supplies from Simon + Kabuki, designer stationery from Dena Designs, fabric & watercolor kit from Monica Lee, scrapbooking paper from Sparky & Marie, and a stationery suite from Expressionery.com!
Hope you enjoy your Simon+Kabuki party supplies!
Even though we are having off and on rain the sun does come out every once in a while to prove that it is Spring around here. I think we were spoiled by having such a mild and warm winter that even the smallest bit of rain makes us cranky! All of my flowers in the backyard are blooming and beautiful and they probably really needed the rain. Our new fabric In the Meadow, reminds me of a bright sunny day. Below are some close ups of the quilt detail. You can get the quilt pattern from Quilting Treasures. We also have a line of checks, through Checks in the Mail, using In the Meadow, super cute. Don’t forget to send us any of your favorite projects using our fabric, we’d love to see them.
Remember this?
My little “work room” had become a place to put crap so I decided to reorganize. I took all of the furniture out so I could get a fresh perspective on the space. Then I noticed that I hate the carpet that’s been in there for 10 years. So I tore it out. Then I had crappy plywood floors. Then I figured since the carpet was torn out I might as well paint. Now it looks like this.
My new favorite room.
It was important to keep the desk clear of clutter so I have a place to do projects and wrap gifts, hence the industrial shelving with baskets so I can see that I already have a hundred spools of ribbon before I run out and buy another one.
Necessary components of gift wrapping.
I wanted a place on the wall to pin up inspirations and momentos so I made a pushpin board out of cork squares. I layered some burlap with a sheet of gift wrap that was too beautiful to use on a gift. The “wallflowers” are from Target.com, they’re super easy to put up and come in other shapes and colors.
Waiting to be covered with pinups.
Burlap valance. Yeah, I made this.
I didn’t really need a curtain on the window but I wanted a nice finished look. So I glue gunned sewed this valance out of burlap and used some Simon+Kabuki white patterned cotton fabric for the panels.
My effin’ home office project is finally almost done. I still have one blank wall that needs some loving care but I’m taking a little break to give my addled brain a chance to air out and come up with something supercute. And hopefully easy.
Hopefully you’re enjoying our blog hop! What a great way to introduce you to the Expressionery.com blog. If you have not had a chance to enter yet, no worries you still have a few days left. Make sure to go to each blog and then follow the directions at the last hop for a chance to win some wonderful prizes!
Here is a list of the participating blogs in order of the hop:
- PSA Essentials
- Monica Lee
- Simon + Kabuki
- Sparky & Marie
- Dena Designs
- Expressionery
Good Luck!!
