Affordable Mother’s Day ideas for making priceless memories

What do you get for the mother who has everything – or wants nothing? This year, ditch the traditional Mother’s Day gifts of flowers and chocolates and give your mum a day of creating special memories instead. Here are some inspiring ways to spend Mother’s Day that will be unforgettable, with the added bonus of being cheap, or even free.

Get lots of family photos – with her in them

Mums are usually the ones behind the camera, snapping gorgeous photos of their families to fill the picture albums and walls of their homes. As wonderful as this is, the sad result is that mums are often absent from their own family snaps – hence why the ‘proof of mum’ trend has swept social media, to urge partners and children to take photos of the mothers in their family, without needing to be prompted.

So this Mother’s Day, organise a family day with the specific goal of taking photographs in which mum is front and centre, including selfies with every family member, some flattering posed shots, candid videos, and the ubiquitous self-timer group photo. Get the best images printed to give to her after the day, and she will fondly look back on them for years to come.

Go for a walk in her favourite place

If your mum’s favourite thing to do is spend time with her family, choose a place with a special memory attached to it for her and organise to meet there for the day.

Bring a picnic (plus a blanket and some bubbles) and use this as an opportunity to get those family photos with mum – you could designate a member of the family as the photographer to make sure the pictures aren’t forgotten about.

Recreate your favourite childhood photos

Looking for a hilarious DIY Mother’s Day gift idea? Dig out your family photo albums and recreate your favourite childhood snaps – the cheesier and sillier, the better! That includes the clothes, props, poses and facial expressions, and even the locations where possible.

Scan in the originals and make a picture book or digital slideshow, placing the original and recreated photos side-by-side. Then look through them all with your mum on Mother’s Day and enjoy making her laugh at your creativity, while revisiting lots of treasured memories together.

Make her a meal (with extra fun on the side)

Invite your mum over, or take over her kitchen for the day and make her a meal from scratch that includes all her favourite things. If you have siblings, you can share the load by each bringing some ingredients or a component of the meal.

Create a playlist of your mum’s most-loved songs to listen to while you eat, and afterwards, dig out the board games and hold a family games evening for a bit of healthy competition. If you’d all prefer to relax, line up a movie night instead, with mum picking the film that makes her happiest.

Have a crafternoon together

If your mum is the creative sort, she would love to share her skills with you, or perhaps pick up some new ones together. Dedicate your Mother’s Day afternoon to crafting with your mum, whether that’s painting or drawing, completing a small sewing project, scrapbooking, or sculpting with air dry clay – with a side of tea and cakes (or fizz), of course!

For an affordable Mother’s Day gift idea, look for craft workshops in your local area that you could do together, or book tickets for a ‘wine and paint’ evening at a bar or brewery. Websites such as Eventbrite are useful for finding nearby events and activities with low-priced tickets, or even free entry.

Header image: Freepik