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A Gift To Mom: How A Scrapbook Made Mother’s Day Unforgettable

The usual Mothers Day gift are flowers, chocolates and little trinkets to comemorate the occasion. Why not be different and give your Mom something she can keep forever, something deeply personal  and something which tells her you love her, all at the same time.

Scrapbooking is a wonderful hobby which can be used in many different ways to create gifts which will become genuine family treasures.

A star scrapbook - a small scrapbook designed in the shape of a star which can sit on a shelf as a lovely display, or pack neatly into a handbag, all tied with a ribbon, ready to be shown and admired by all. It is a personalized present and is an excellent treat for doting grandparents who wish to keep memories of family on their person. Star scrapbooks are relatively simple to make - take a look at our youtube video by searching for dinglefootdotcom and star scrapbook and you can follow the process step by step.

An alternative would be a full size scrapbook album devoted to you and your mother. You can feature pictures of the two of you from the time of your birth right up to the present day. Begin with the first picture you have of the two of you together; if you’re lucky you’ll have one taken just after you were born, then move through the album recording milestones. Most times, there are 9 two page spreads plus a title and an end page, so have a good plan before you begin, then it’s easier to get your scrapbooking supplies and embellishments for a project like this all at the same time.

Here are some suggestions for pages you could create:

•    Me as a newborn - a page dedicated to the day you were born but with more focus on your mom rather than yourself.
•    The Christening - a page showing the family - add journaling to show who was there, when it was, again from your mothers point of view. Was she stressed out arranging it? See what you can find out without asking her so it’s all a surprise.
•    Family Gatherings. Lots of families have times they get together, sometimes for big occasions, sometimes not. Whether it’s Christmas, New Year or a golden or diamond wedding, be sure to add pictures and labels to show who was who, and write about your mothers role in the event, not yours.
•    Your parents significant anniversaries. Chronicle the anniversaries your mom has celebrated. Ten, twenty or thirty years. Include the best memories she’s had.
•    Birthday Bashes. Did your Mom have a big party at 40, 50 or older? Is she regularly 21 again? Any birthday where you were together and have something to record is fair game. Don’t forget this is a scrapbook not a photograph album. Add invitations, programs, tickets etc. as well as pictures.
•    Family holidays. Maybe the last holiday when you were all together before you or your siblings left home.
•    Your graduation. A school or university graduation is usually an occasion for pictures with parents. What was your Mother wearing, where did she get it?
•    A previous Mothers Day
•    A wedding - yours or maybe your mothers!
•    Your mothers first grandchild (if she has any)

The bond between Mother’s and daughters is a very strong one, especially when the daughters become mother’s themselves. If finding the words to express how you feel, simple stamped words can show your emotion or you can also check out quotegarden.com and look up “Mothers”.

Given how special a scrapbook can be, it takes time and effort to make, if you are just starting with your gift, maybe plan the full scrapbook for next year and do something a little different; one scrapbook page, framed and placed on a wall like art to admire.  Half way between a simple picture and a full album, these single pages can make wonderful keepsakes and give you the opportunity to take your creativity in a slightly different direction. You can buy a shadow box frame easily from amazon and then, because this will be hung in a deep frame and not kept flat in a book, you can explore the world of three dimensional embellishments.

Look for good ideas in K and Company’s Grand Adhesions. These are relatively simply constructed using pads to raise some items of the page. Butterflies are easy to make 3D, one flat one duplicated cut out and added with just a dot of silicone and gently teased into shape. The same thing can be done with flowers, using something like the petal packs from Petaloo or, for a different approach the 20 blossom template from Hot Off The Press. Trace the flowers through the template onto paper, cut them out and assemble them.  Curl the petals for the 3D effect and add a little glitter, or even a gem or brad at the flower’s center. It’s all down to the paper you use, experiment with plain paper, patterns and of course vellum which gives a lovely delicate effect.

Shadow boxes are great fun, and don’t take a long time do make, showcasing your work rather than keeping them hidden in an album.

Once you are done making your gift, don’t spoil the effect by forgetting to wrap it and if you really don’t have time for any of this, visit your Mom. She’d rather see you than a whole house full of scrapbooks.

Homemade Gift Ideas

If you know someone who is retiring and you are thinking of making a retirement gift rather than purchasing one, you are probably trying to think of a funny gift to give. Most retirements try to go for humor rather than getting too serious.You also want the gift to be special for your retiree. By going homemade you may also be considering the gift to be unique, but cost effective as well since you will be creating it yourself.

By creating the gift yourself, your gift will be more personal and you can make it in such a way that others will know you put a lot of time and thought into the retirement gift.One way to come up with ideas for your gift would be to brainstorm the retirees interests, likes, and hobbies. Make a list and once you have your list you will be able to narrow it down.If you want to create a gift that also has a bit of humor in it, then brainstorm ideas that will be easier to incorporate humor into.  After all if the retiree is going to do something very serious after retirement like work with his church, that won’t provide you with a funny idea.Although, if the retiree is a golf addict and plans to live on the golf course, then you can think of a way to incorporate humor into the gift.

You want your gift to be unique, you don’t want your gift to be the same as others.This becomes easier if your are creating a homemade retirement gift. For example if you like embroidery you could purchase a white shirt and add a saying on it like “golf nut” providing your friend likes golf. If you are learning to crochet you might want to think of a crocheted golf club cover.  The best way to introduce humor in that case would be to make the cover with a cartoon head or something that is personal to the retiree.

The ideas for gifts are unlimited when you contemplate a homemade retirement gift and provided you enjoy crafting creating your homemade gift will be easy for you.Perhaps you are not the type of person who is into crafts, in which case you would need to consider a different way of making your gift.Many people love chocolate so you could consider making homemade fudge and presenting it as your gift.  It may lack the humor element, but you could always present it in a box that has been designed towards humor. 

The ideas are endless, but when you make a homemade gift, you have the advantage of creating a personal, unique, and thoughtful gift rather then just purchasing a gift. Jump start your creative processes and have fun at your retirement party!