May to me is “Mothering Month”; Mothers Day of course, falls in May as well as my own mama’s birthday. While Mums special day may have come and gone, I’m always looking at unique gift ideas to give to the special ladies in my life. There’s something special about a homemade gift to me, the time and effort that goes into it and the fact that it was made just for you, it’s my favourite type of gift to give (and receive). Having two young kids to jump in and help with the crafting is just the cherry on top!
Here are 3 quick and easy DIY gift ideas to use for your next gift – ALL are kid friendly, in fact my boys did 70% of these and all take no longer than 5 minutes (apart from the drying process).
1.Popsicle Stick Picture Frame
You’ll need:
- 4 craft ice cream sticks, in colours of your choice (I got mine from CNA)
- Glue Gun
- A Magnet
- Various decorations of your choice (I used stickers and pom poms)
- A picture of your choice
I used a glue gun to stick all four sticks together, i wanted this to be strong so the kids didnt help me here as glue guns can get super hot! Attach the picture to the back of the ice cream sticks.
Using a good quality graft clue (for kids) or a glue gun (for mama), stick on any decor items of your choice. For the first frame i found a gorgeous paper butterfly that I wanted to utilise so I stuck that on the corner and then the kids went crazy with their stickers (a good compromise ๐ ). For the second I hoped onto the pom pom trend and made another frame with a fiesta feel.
Lastly I took the glue gun again and just put a blob of glue on the back of the photo to attach the magnet to, so it can sit proudly on Grandma’s fridge!
Seriously one of the quickest and most heartfelt gifts you could give, and what kid doesn’t like decorating their own masterpiece?
2. Air Dry Clay Necklace
You’ll Need:
- A Packet of Air-Drying Clay (I also got this from CNA) – you could also use Salt Dough, see my previous recipe here – but the Air Dry Clay is easier and more time effective
- Paints of your choice
- Ribbon/Twine
- A straw
Get the kids to knead their clay to a nice soft consistency. Roll it out to the thickness you desire and take your mould, whatever shape it is ( I used cookie cutters). Cut it out and take a the straw or toothpick to make the hole for the chain to string through. Dry your pendants by placing them on a flat tray with some wax paper. Drying time varies, I gave mine 12 hours and it was perfect. Once the clay is dry let your kiddies paint away ! Its quite hard to tell from the picture but the purple heart has the boys thumbprints indented into it. I filled their thumbprints with glitter and now I’ll always remember their little thumbs at 4 and almost 3 years old.
The sky is the limit with this one. The versatility of air dry clay is endless and really with this idea your imagination can take you anywhere. I have seen so many options, you could add beads at each end, stamp an initial for a monogram charm, really do whatever your heart desires.
3. Personalised Mug
You’ll need:
- Plain porcelain mug of your choice (I feel white is most effective)
- Porcelain pens/oil-based pen markers (Any guesses where I found mine? Yup, CNA is my go to craft shop).
- Vinyl stickers – the thicker the better
To start off; make sure your mug is completely grease free. Take a little bit of vinegar on cotton and just wipe your mug down. Once that is prepped use your stickers to spell out whatever you want, or just use a monogram. Give your pen a good shake and press it down on a piece of paper a few times to get the liquid flowing. Next, make dots all around your stickers, you want your dots as close as possible at the start and you can gradually space them out as you move further away from your chosen word. The closer together they are initially, the better your word is formed. You can add in as many colours as you like, or you may even chose just one. You have to let the paint dry before peeling the stickers off. 4 hours is a safe bet. Once dry, preheat your oven to about 160 Degrees Celcious and “bake” your mug for 90 minutes. This sets the paint and ensures it wont come off in the wash. Its best to hand wash these mugs in any case.
Its that easy!! Your Eid/Christmas presents for this year are sorted ! You can personalise a mug for every member of the family. We have literally done this as teachers gifts, Christmas gifts as well as Mothers Day. The boys adore it and in a way, their designs are more effective (they have less patience with the dots and tend to scribble towards the end).
SO there you have it! 3 super quick and easy DIY gift options, perfect for the Mothering month of May.