12 Easy and Beautiful Mother’s Day Crafts For Kids to Make

You don’t have to put a whole lot of effort into getting Mom something nice for Mother’s Day, but you know what they say: The less thought you put into a gift, the less likely it is to be remembered. Or treasured. Or cared about at all! We’re pretty sure that even a young child can detect the fleeting thought of “Oh cool…a flower from the gas station” in their mom’s eyes, even if they appreciate the sentiment. That’s not to say that every purchased present is worthless – far from it! On the other hand, if your kids give you a gift that they toiled over, worked hard on, and used their creativity to create? Well, that’s another story. 

Young children will (of course) need a little help getting from point A to point B, but that’s okay. Dad can do it! Or maybe you’re a teacher looking for a fun classroom activity. Or maybe you’re a mom who enjoys the idea of sitting and helping your kids make Mother’s Day crafts…even if it might spoil the surprise a little. That’s no problem. The problem is, where to begin? Thankfully, there are tons of great crafting ideas floating around out there, so you don’t need to come up with a project from scratch. In fact, here are 12 easy and beautiful Mother’s Day crafts that your kids will have a blast creating. 

Sewn Paper Cards

Yes, yes, we all buy them, but can we agree that there’s something just a tiny bit soulless and boring about greeting cards? We’re not going to get on a “Bah, commercialism!” rant or anything, but when it comes to cards, we can do better. For instance, what about making stitched paper cards as a substitute for the Hallmark collection this year? Cut a shape – it can be anything from a flower to an animal – out of craft paper, use a hole puncher to create a line of holes around the border of the shape, and then use yarn to stitch the holes. The end result is a charming little card that you can even attach to a length of pipe cleaner to make a cute stem. SO much better than a poem from some writer in a cubicle, don’t you agree?

Creative Homemade Planters

It’s easy enough to buy a ready-made pot for planting at your nearest retailer, but you can add a lot more fun and personalization to your gift of flora when you make the planter yourself! With a simple collection of goods – tin cans, acrylic paint, alphabet stickers, and a drill – you can make a Mother’s Day craft that won’t soon be forgotten. Start the process by having an adult drill a small hole in the bottom of the can so that the plant can drain properly. Stick your alphabet stickers on the can, using them to create a unique and personalized message. Paint over these stickers (and the rest of the can) with your acrylic paint. Then, once the paint has dried, peel off the stickers, leaving your message in stark relief. From there, fill your can with soil and the plant of your choice!

Lovely Cake Toppers

Does Mom have a taste for the sweet stuff? Well, it might be nice to present her with a Mother’s Day cake or, for better sharing purposes, a pan of cupcakes. But why stop there? With a handful of bamboo skewers, some glue, and some paper cotton ribbon, you can easily make flying banner cake toppers that can be adorned with any message you like. For extra fun, try putting a different message on every banner before gluing them into shape on your skewers. This is a simple and fun way to add some creativity and sentimentality to an ordinary cake. 

Colored Pasta Jewelry

This is a fun and engaging activity for the whole family, and it makes for some really impressive results. All you need to get started: Tube-shaped pasta (penne and rigatoni work really well for this), watercolor paints, and paint brushes. Dump your pasta into enough bowls for every child, give them their watercolors (and some extra water for brush-washing) and let them go to town. If there’s anything to be careful about, it’s that you shouldn’t use too much paint because you might start to soften the pasta. When the noodles are all colored, set them aside to dry. When done, you can thread the pasta with yarn or string to make everything from bracelets to necklaces to ornaments. 

Handprint Butterflies

What would a collection of Mother’s Day crafts be without at least one handprint activity? Long a staple of kindergarten classrooms around the world, these inspirational and easy crafts are the perfect way to engage children and show mom how much you love her. To make handprint butterflies, you’ll need: Paints (colored pencils work, too), scissors, glue, a photograph of the child, and paper. The child starts by tracing an outline of their outstretched hand on the paper before cutting it out. Do it again. Now you have two “wings” you can glue to a separate piece of paper. Draw the body of the butterfly between the wings and then glue the photo to the head of the butterfly! Nothing to it. Use the paints to color the butterfly however you like and add a special message for Mom. 

Heart-Shaped Bookmarks

Our next craft is perfect for Mother’s Day, but it’s one you can also use for Valentine’s Day. As long as Mom likes reading, this gift is a terrific way to give her a functional and beautiful reminder of your love. All you need is red origami paper and a pair of scissors. Fold the paper in half and cut along the fold. You should now have two long, rectangular pieces of equal size. Fold one of the pieces in half lengthwise. Then fold it in half in the other direction. Open it up and you should have a crease down the middle. Fold one half of the paper up against the fold so that you have what looks a little like a backwards L. Do the same with the other side, giving you something like an arrow pointing down. Use a bit of Scotch tape to hold the halves together. You should now be able to see that the bottom of your craft looks like the bottom of a heart, so all you have to do is carefully fold down the tops of your paper until you get a heart shape. Flip it over, and your heart bookmark is done! It easily slips onto the bottom corner of a book page (and can be used as decoration in many other scenarios). 

Flower Button Cards

If you’re looking for great Mother’s Day crafts to make in an elementary school classroom, we have just the thing. These flower button cards are not just interesting and unique, they give kids the creative flexibility that’s so important to instill at an early age. To get started, you need: Buttons, cardstock in multiple colors, strong glue, green foam, and scissors. The craft begins with folding an 8.5 x 11 sheet of card stock in half. The kids then proceed to cut strips of the foam out; these are then glued to the card stock and will serve as the stems to your button flowers. Next, glue large buttons to the tops of the foam stems and then use the smaller buttons as petals encircling those. That’s all there is to it! You now have a perfectly crafted card to which any message can be added. 

Colorful Picture Frames

Kids love bright, bold colors, and moms love displaying pictures of their beloved children, so why not bring those two things together for a Mother’s Day craft that’s sure to please everyone? These colorful picture frames are easy to make, so it’s a great craft for kids who are less inclined to excellence in art. All you need: A wooden frame, some bright acrylic paints, and some foam stamps to print messages all over the frame. Have the child (or children) paint the frame, give it some time to dry, and then stamp it with the message of their preference. “Mom” works great! Finish it off with your favorite photo and you have a Mother’s Day present she’ll adore. 

Handcrafted Gemstone Soaps

If you have children who want to work on a craft that’s a little more advanced, consider making some homemade gemstone soaps. These soaps are beautiful, functional, and really fun to make. To start, you need: Clear glycerin soap base, gemstone silicone molds, soap colorant, fragrance oil, and a measuring cup, all of which you can get at a craft store or Amazon. Take your 2 lb. soap base and cut about a fourth of it off – this should be enough for one batch of soaps. Cut it into cubes, put it into a clear measuring cup and throw it into the microwave for about 30 seconds at a time, stirring well after each period. When the soap is fully melted, add your colorant and fragrance oil, still until mixed, and then pour it into your molds. After approximately an hour, they should be cooled, hardened, and ready for display or use!

Handprint Flowers

We said previously that no collection of Mother’s Day crafts would be complete without at least one handprint activity…but why stop there? If your kids enjoyed creating handprint butterflies, they’ll have just as much fun making these handprint flowers. To start, you need: Washable paints in floral colors, green paint, paintbrushes, two sheets of white paper, scissors, and glue. The kids begin by painting their hands with the washable colors and then pressing their palms against the white paper. Be sure to have them lift their hands directly up from the paper so there is no smearing of the print. Make four more handprints of various colors in the same way and then set the paper aside to dry. Later, return to cut out the handprint shapes and glue them to a separate sheet of paper. Use your green paint to draw flower stems, decorate the page with a Mother’s Day message, and voila, you’re done!

Clay Necklaces

Why not give Mom the gift of jewelry this Mother’s Day? While she would certainly appreciate a nice necklace from the store, kids can also make these handcrafted clay necklaces instead. To start, gather your materials: Air-Dry white clay, colorful beads, a circular cookie cutter, an unsharpened pencil (flat tip), yarn, and a rolling pin. Use the rolling pin to smooth out a small portion of the clay and use your cookie cutter to cut out a circle of flat clay. Use the pencil to poke a small hole in the top part of the circle, and then the kids can press the beads into the clay. Let your finished amulet dry for 24 hours, thread yarn through the hole, and you’ve got yourself a wonderful homemade necklace. 

Hand Painted Cactus Pot

This is one of our favorite Mother’s Day crafts on the list, simply because it’s both ridiculously easy and remarkably effective. Done well, this really does look like a pot filled with cactus plants. To start, you need some river rocks (available from most craft stores…or the nearest river). Get approximately three rocks for each pot (which you can usually nab for a steal at your local dollar store). Use green paint to give your “cacti” their color and then use white paint to dab realistic-looking “spines” onto the rocks. Fill the pots with some floral moss, embed the rocks in a creative way, and you’ve got a cactus pot that looks weirdly similar to the real thing. No watering required!