So its that time of year...
Mothers Day is upon us and the pressure is on to wrack our brains and try to come up with a fun and unusual gift idea to say thank you to our Mums or whoever is a mother figure in your life for being so fabulous all year round!
If, like me, you're tired of giving the same 3 things over and over and over again for birthdays, Christmas and Mothers Day alike (Pyjamas, Flowers,Chocolates, body sprays and bottles of Coty L'aimant are all my mum ever wants!) - then you may well want to have a look at this little Idea guide I've created to try and come up with something a little bit out of the ordinary this Mothers Day but won't break the bank!
1. Stay-At-Home Spa Day!
Nothing can quite rival the experience of a day of pampering and luxury at the spa - unfortunately the price tag that goes along with spa pamper days can be a little on the high side, but there's no reason why you can't give your mum her own special spa experience in the comfort of her own home!
I would personally recommend this selection of products for the PERFECT home pamper day for Mum & Daughter alike!
*A'kin Vitamin Hair Masque - £10.50 - a wonderfully luxurious and incredibly effective hair masque! The smell alone will transport you straight into the salon experience! You can read my full review of this product here: http://sparklesandstretchmarks.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/tuesdays-tips-akin-hair-masque.html
*MyChelle Dermaceuticals Incredible Pumpkin Peel - £17.49 - Exfoliate and deeply nourish skin with this award-winning formula of Pumpkin Pulp, Enzymes and Fermented Juice.
Skin is left feeling incredibly soft, smooth and clean with a renewed healthy glow. There really is nothing closer to a salon facial peel than this! (I will be reviewing this product in full this coming Monday!)
*Spa Find Heavenly Hydration Salt Brushing Scrub - £13.15 - this is a delightfully aromatic and invigorating spa exfoliation treatment - and what I loved about it is that it can be used either in the shower or before a bath! Simply apply to skin, rub in to exfoliate (avoid any broken skin and do not use on areas affected by psoriasis or eczema), and simply shower off or get into the bath and rinse off!
Unlike some other salt scrubs, this product is NOT overly oily and so its much easier to use and exfoliates the skin far more effectively! It doesn't slop everywhere as some other salt scrubs can, its very easy to use and it leaves skin feeling very fresh and clean and extremely soft! I would highly recommend this product!
*Crazy Angels Golden Kiss Faux Tan Lotion - £14.95 - Contains naturally derived DHA and Erythulose to provide a more natural and long lasting colour. You simply smooth over the skin to apply and allow to dry - the lotion contains a caramel colour guide for ease of application and has a lush, light fragrance. Your skin is left nourished, smelling fantastic and beautifully tanned! (I will be reviewing this product in full in a couple of weeks time!)
2. Home Baked Goodies!
There isn't anything more personal than home baked gifts and Mothers Day is the perfect time to show you care by taking the time to make your Mum some yummy treats!
One product I am loving at the moment is Tiana's coconut range- including products such as Extra Virgin Coconut Oil and Coconut Baking Flour!
Perfect for making homemade coconut macaroons!! (I will be baking some myself and reviewing Tiana's range of both food and coconut beauty products in a couple of weeks time!)
Alternatively, I always think a Cook Book makes a lovely present - I don't use them that often but I love receiving them as gifts and having them out on display in the kitchen, plus I imagine once Bean is eating meals with us I'll be glad of the inspiration I can draw from my cook book collection!
A nice idea would be to buy Mum a nice new cookbook, such as the "Madhouse Cookbook" by Jo Pratt which contains a collection of delicious recipes for busy parents including "Lifesaver" and "Leftover" mini recipes! (RRP £20.00), and to make her a dinner from the book - something along the lines of Jo's Salmon Gone-in-A-Puff Pastry Parcels would be my personal choice!
Alternatively a cooking utensil makes a perfect gift! Top TV Chef James Martin has teamed up with Wahl to produce a wide range of top quality items to make life in the kitchen that much easier!
The range consists of a wide variety of items, from a spice grinder (£24.99) to a table top grill (£39.99) and many many more....For more information on the range, please click here: http://wahlglobal.com/united-kingdom/wahl/james-martin-collection.html
I will reviewing the James Martin electric Hand Mixer on my blog in the next few weeks!
3. Perfect Perfumes!
What woman doesn't love perfume?!
You may remember that I reviewed the National Trust perfume & body lotion gift sets a few weeks ago (You can view the review here: http://sparklesandstretchmarks.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/review-national-trust-toiletries.html) and I mentioned that they would make a great gift for Mums and Grandmas alike! If your Mum is somebody who would appreciate a gift that helps out a charity as well as keeps her smelling lovely, then look no further!
Natio is another lovely choice - Australian made and animal-friendly, this is a clean and fresh scent that captures the essence of a perfect Aussie day! Its refreshing and very feminine blend of citrus, rose, sandalwood, basil, coriander, ylang-ylang and Jasmine makes it a wonderfully unusual and gorgeously indulgent yet natural scent - a truly perfect Mothers Day gift!
Natio is priced at £17.00 and is available at Debenhams and Tesco.
4. Bedazzling Jewelry!
Jewelry is always a welcome gift for any woman, I'm sure you'll agree - I have recently discovered a lovely website http://www.mamajewels.co.uk who specialise in baby proof jewelry as well as breast feeding and teething jewelry!
Their designs are both beautiful and unusual! I will be reviewing Mama Jewels baby proof jewelry line in more detail shortly, and I will also have a Reader Giveaway!
We also have an EXCLUSIVE reader discount code for you!
Until 30th April 2013, use the code HM15 for 15% Mama Jewels products! Just enter the code at the checkout :)
5. Sentimental Photo Gifts!
Most mothers love nothing more than ANY opportunity to show off their offspring in photos - so I am sure that all mothers would LOVE the idea of photo gifts!!
The following two gifts are things that I will be giving to my own Mum this Mothers Day (So I'm hoping she's followed my orders NOT to read this post, eeek!).
Most Mums will have a favourite photo of their children or the family, and would love to have it transferred onto a beautiful canvas print to display in their home for years to come - HelloCanvas.com offer a fantastic service for transferring images onto Canvas - their prices are VERY reasonable, their delivery time is very fast and the quality is second to none!
Prices start from just £13 for a 20 x 30 cm print, and canvases are delivered ready to hang!
I will be featuring a full review of Hello Canvas on 12th March when you will be able to see for yourself the amazing quality of their prints, but in the meantime please take my word for it - they offer a FANTASTIC service! If you are thinking of ordering a canvas print, I seriously wouldn't look anywhere else!
Another fun photo idea is to create your very own photobook!
I was offered the opportunity to test the services of Cewe - all you do is go to their website, download their award-winning free software and use this to create your very own Photobook!
It really couldn't be any simpler to use the software - everything loads very quickly and you can either use their step-by-step guide or find your own way through the programme which is VERY simple to do!
Their are lots of background designs and layouts to choose from, so what you create can be very personal to you....
Take a look at my effort below!
I opted for the 28 page hardcover large portrait book (£28.99 plus £4.25 delivery).
I chose my own background and text for the cover, and added some photos of myself, my sister and my two nieces.
I then featured pages of photos of each of the 4 of us, and then made a few different collages -
I even included a page for Bean at the back...
There are a few blank pages at the back of the book which are ideal for writing messages, I asked my niece Amelie to write a message to Nanny....
I know that my mum will absolutely LOVE this book and I'm so excited to give it to her on Mothers Day!
Have you tried any of these items before? I'd love to hear your thoughts!
What are you planning on doing for your Mum on Mothers Day? Let me know!
