10 Photo Projects and Products Sure to Make Your Mom Smile This Mother’s Day
With Mother’s Day just around the corner, it’s probably a good time to share some inspiration for gift ideas. So, we’ve put together a little collection of items, both DIY and available for purchase to make your life a bit easier come May 11th.
We’ll start from least expensive and work our way towards the more expensive gear. Along with each project or product will be a short summary of what it is and an accompanying link to find out how to make it or where to purchase it.
Photo Booth Cards
As shared over on Minted, an extremely personal, but photo-centric way of making your mother smile this Mother’s Day is to create these little cards, reminiscent of photo-booth days past.
All you need for the project is some card stock, scissors, adhesive photo corners, a photo booth strip (which can be made from Instagram), and a printer to print out the card designs.
Short, sweet, and sentimental. Something your mother will most certainly proudly display
Estimate cost: $5 at most
Freestanding Photo Collage
Using between 14–20 old prints you might have laying around – or even some fresh ones you just had printed off – this project by Better Homes and Gardens is a fun, creative, and rearrangeable way to present your mother with some of your photographic work, both for her pleasure and to show off to all of her friends.
Beyond the prints, all it takes is some thick cardstock, Mod Podge (or glue), and a craft knife (to make the small cuts in each print) so you can build layers upon layers of memories for your mother.
Estimated cost: Around $5
Photo Letter Collage
Using a wooden (or cardboard) craft letter that you can purchase at your local Michael’s or Hobby Lobby, this little project shared over on Better Homes and Gardens involves nothing more than some prints of photos you want to share with your mother, some paint to get the letter your desired color, and some Mod Podge to get the photos to stick to the collage.
Estimated cost: $10–15
Stained Glass Photo Frame
In what is the last little DIY project from Better Homes and Gardens, this unique approach to creating a stained glass-looking framed print is sure to add some nice decor to your mother’s place, while keeping it personal and sentimental.
All it takes is a float frame, some paint, painters tape, and a print of your choice (monochrome seems to work best) to create this little gem.
Estimated cost: Around $15
Photo Calendar
As shown off over on Martha Stewart’s website, this neat little photo calendar is as simple as it is clever.
All that’s needed is a frame, a print to go into said frame, and a printer to print off the calendars which are available for download over on the project page
Estimated cost: Around $15
PopPhoto Subscription
For the photography mothers out there, what better way to keep her interest and inspiration in photography than to give her a subscription to Popular Photography. Coming in at only $15 for a year worth of monthly magazines, it’s a great option that doesn’t break the bank;
Estimated cost: $15
Glif
There are times when your mother may actually want to be in a family photograph that she snaps with her phone. To help her with that, Studio Neat’s GLIF is the perfect solution.
Small enough to put into a small pocket in her purse, the GLIF will allow her to mount her phone and actually get in on the family shenanigans being captured.
Estimated cost: $30
Moo Minicard Frame
Making use of Moo’s Minicards, the Minicard Frame allows you to print up a plethora of pictures and rearrange up to 20 of them in almost unlimited patterns, all within an extremely good-looking frame that comes in either black or white.
The perfect combination between DIY and available for purchase, this gift is rather unique in that it can change and be updated as time goes on without much more investment.
Estimated cost: $50
Kelly Moore Camera Bag Purse
When it comes to camera bags, very few are mother-friendly. You usually have the choice between a backpack, a messenger bag, or an insert, many of which are poorly constructed. And while not cheap, Kelly Moore camera bags manage to fit in the niche perfectly for the mothers wanting a fashionable, but still protective way of taking their camera gear around.
Combining the best of both a camera bag and a purse, the twelve bag collection over at Kelly Moore’s store is sure to present some great options. Starting at $150, this isn’t the cheapest option on the list, but it’s sure to impress.
Estimated cost: $150 and up
Sony Smart Lens
Speaking of gear and purses, we couldn’t leave out this little guy, the Sony QX100. Featuring a 20-megapixel sensor, Zeiss glass, and wireless connectivity to a mobile device, this piece of photography gear is perfect for the mother who wants something compact enough to fit in her purse, but capable of punching out quality images.
Estimated cost: $450
Whether DIY or something you purchase, it’s almost a guarantee that any of these will light up your mother’s eyes this coming Mother’s Day. However, more so than any money can purchase, a simple I love you, a hug, and a kiss will go leaps and bounds above what many realize, so be sure to not forget to just show her love.
