The difficulty with having to buy gifts every year for our mothers seems to be that we all forget they are human. All the mums in the world have personalities, interests, loves and hates.
Whether it be a birthday, Mother’s Day or Christmas, your ideas this year better be more than just a bouquet of flowers with ‘Mum’ etched onto the card; the kind of thing a cartoon representation of a mum would love, but not your mum. This year you’d better push the boat out, and you can start with the 19 ideas I’ve handily arranged in this post for you.
I thought I’d bring you a few of the more unusual ones I stumbled across on my search, in case your mind has drawn a blank.
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Unusual Gift Ideas for Your Mum
What does your mum love (apart from you of course)? She could really love reading, in which case you might want to have a look at what type of Kindle would be best for her. Or she could absolutely adore espressos and all things coffee and be lusting after the best espresso machine possible. Whatever she’s into, you’ll find some unusual ideas for different often bought categories below.
Chocolate & Wine Gift Ideas
Your mum is bored of the usual box of chocolates and a bottle of rosé. She’s come to expect them both. This year, why don’t you get a raised eyebrow and smile reaction from your mum with these three gift ideas.
Firstly, the Choc on Choc All Chocolate Biscuit Selection might look like her favourite biscuits, but they’re actually all made of solid chocolate, which will no doubt be a yummy surprise once she realises.
The second is cabinet full of classics from the much-coveted Hotel Chocolat. Their collection is huge, so it is best to get your mum a box where she can try absolutely everything, right? Plus, they will last her for ages, and she will be reminded of your love every time she dives in for her next sweet fix. If you buy it off Amazon, you can get it delivered the next day on Prime (great for a last-minute purchase and she won’t even know).
Finally, to replace that rosé bottle, what about gin with a twist? For the same price as a decent wine, she can have flavours such as Rhubarb and Ginger, Raspberry, Pomegranate & Rose or Elderflower, all from Edinburgh Gin. Or why not get her a little selection of three so she can pick her favourite for the next upcoming gift?
Creative Gift Ideas
Your mum doesn’t necessarily have to be the most creative person in the world to enjoy these three gifts, but they’ll appeal more to the artsy types out there. The gorgeous Kate Spade New York Dipped Initial Notebook comes in a bold design, as well as being (almost) personalised with your mums initial on the front in gold. We all like being thoughtful with little effort, don’t we? If she is a fan of Ted Baker and pretty designs, this Mini Notebook & Pen may be a better option. With all blank pages, she can scribble away her daily to-do list or even doodle a few pictures.
Instead of buying her a new yarn of wool to knit in front of the TV, get her the much loved Millie Marotta’s Animal Kingdom Colouring Book Adventure. Yes, I know she’s not three years old. This is an adult colouring book with much more intricate creations than the usual kids colouring book; designed to help the user de-stress after a busy day. Perfect for helping your mum unwind.
Finally, if she loves looking through old photo albums, or she’s a photography nut with an array of fancy cameras and lenses, you should consider the Fujifilm Instax Mini 9, available in five bold colours. She could have all the cameras in the world and still appreciate this pretty, old-school camera which instantly develops your photos. Take a look at our pick of some other instant cameras and printers too.
Gardening Gift Ideas
Instead of buying your mum something for her garden outside, or to help her with her gardening, I’ve picked out 2 Mother’s Day ideas to help her bring a little bit of that greenery indoors.
The first is an Indoor Allotment with Basil, Coriander and Oregano seeds. She could even hide away any unused seeds in the shed attachment! Once they are grown, you can cook her a lovely dinner with the herbs she has grown.
And I had to add in the latest craze; a terrarium. This tall gold option from John Lewis and this gold glass design by George at Asda are my two favourites, so you can pick the one which will go best in the living room. Pop some artificial plants in for any mums who have a lack of green fingers.
Jewellery Ideas for Mums
Please, please, if you love your mum do NOT get her any jewellery with ‘mum’ on it. She won’t wear it. She probably won’t even put it in her drawer; it’ll be returned to the store or thrown out without you ever knowing. This year get her something she’d want to buy for herself, even though it’s not ‘Mother’s Day’ themed in the slightest.
To be on the safe side, why not get her a full set? This Bracelet Strap Watch, Pendant Necklace and Earrings Gift Set from Sekonda looks great all together but is also subtle so she can wear the watch without the earrings and vice versa. Basically a 3-in-1 gift then.
Hopefully you aren’t currently thinking “No! My mum’s jewellery collection is already too large!” But if you are, get her somewhere to keep her favourite everyday bits instead. This Enamel Bird Jewellery Stand Tree will be a real focal point on any bedside table or vanity table, but for something more ‘standard’ there is a Marble Trinket Dish With Diamond which will hold all her little rings and bracelets.
If there is a particular animal she has a fascination for, why not combine the two? I love this good quality Umbra Elephant Jewellery Ring Holder, which is also available as a giraffe or bunny rabbit.
Cooking Gift Ideas
Yes, you could do the stereotypical thing and get your mum some new pots and pans, or a pretty new apron or oven gloves. Cookery books would probably end up at the back of the bookshelf after a quick flick through and a few declarations of “I’ll never be making that!” Hopefully she won’t take those gifts the wrong way, either.
If she loves to cook, she probably already has all of the utensils she needs, and she’ll already have a nice, normal apron. But will she have an apron this useful? I’m guessing not. The Cooking Guide Apron from SuckUK comes with all the helpful stuff your mum would need to remember in the kitchen.
Instead of constantly washing her hands to flick through a recipe book or Google conversions, all the numbers (like vegetable cooking times, meat roasting times and number conversions) are down on her apron! There’s also a spaghetti amount guide in case she (like everyone else) always cooks enough pasta for a small country. And believe me, she won’t have spotted this out on the high-street.
Sentimental Mum Gift Ideas
Emotionally-charged gift ideas for your loved ones are few and far between thanks to the commercialisation of events such as Mother’s Day and Christmas. And a card with your face on it doesn’t really count. I love the first idea on this list; an illustration of your front door from NotOnTheHighstreet. If you can find a picture of your first home, then you’ll get +10 thoughtful points, but she’ll love the one she has now if not.
The second gift is a necklace, but not a tacky one. It’s a personalised fingerprint pendant, which you’d create from your fingerprint. You can purchase as many extra charms as you need if you have siblings. This is a beautiful way of keeping her kids with her wherever she goes that’s not as in-your-face as having each of their photos on a keychain. It’s also a perfect gift for grans!
Finally, I absolutely love the idea of incorporating the whole family into gifts. The Oak and Rope Company Personalised Family Charging Station means everyone can charge together (and your mum will no longer be able to complain about phones and chargers being left around the living room).
Relaxing Gift Ideas for your Mum
Ok, so I’m sure your mum would appreciate a generic bath product, but because I’m looking for more unusual things I’ve found two Mother’s Day gift ideas which are a bit quirkier.
The Magic Tea and Coffee Maker / Infuser brews loose tea or coffee grains. Then you simply pop it on top of your cup, and the liquid filters out of the bottom. Much quicker than the usual faff you have to go through to make a cuppa! There’s an automatic shut off too, so there’ll be no accidental spillages.
As a snazzy modern alternative to candles and diffusers, why not look into getting an ultrasonic diffuser? This Esteban Ultrasonic Perfume Mist Diffuser looks like a real candle but doesn’t need fire and isn’t overpowering. Pop in some essential oils and water, and there will be constant aromas.
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