7 Last-Minute Gifts for Mother's Day

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Gifts for Mother's Day are on the minds of many right now, as the big day itself is in less than a week. If your spring’s been crazy and you need some last-minute ideas, relax. Here are seven quick gifts for Mother's Day that take both time and money into consideration. (See also: Free Ways to Celebrate Mother's Day)

1. Matching Aprons

This is more of a “mommy and me” type of gift for mothers and daughters to enjoy together. You can whip some up on your own using any number of free apron patterns online, or for less than $30 each you can order matching aprons from the popular Flirty Aprons company. They have a variety of aprons in a sassy, retro style.

2. Wine

Sons-in-law looking for something suitable will find this a workable solution. Chances are your wife’s doing something especially girly with her mother. So if you’d like to make a gesture that’s just from you, and your mother-in-law is a wine lover, then consider bringing a couple of bottles to dinner on the big day. That way, there’ll be one for everyone to share that day, and another for when she wants to have a girlfriend over for a gab fest. If you want to splurge a bit, Cellars Wine Club offers wine-of-the-month packages as inexpensively as $19.95 per month.

3. Magazine Subscription

If the mom you’re shopping for is anything like me, indulging in deliciously glossy magazine pleasures isn’t something I set aside funds for on a regular basis, even though I might like to. If there’s a magazine you know she’d particularly enjoy, then ordering a subscription is an affordable way to go. Like the wine-of-the-month club idea mentioned above, this is something that will make her remember your thoughtfulness every single time a magazine arrives for the next year. Subscription Agent offers bargain rates on a number of magazine titles for women.

4. Chocolate-Covered Yum-Yums

Looking to get the little ones involved in a simple DIY gift idea? Try coating any number of things in chocolate and refrigerating them on a nice serving tray the night before. Chocolate-covered pretzels are cheap and easy, as are dipped strawberries. Another fun recipe idea to try with the kids is homemade raisin and peanut clusters. They make as much of a statement as the pretzels, but take less time to make per batch. Plus, like most raisin recipes, they are ridiculously inexpensive.

5. Spa Therapy

What mom doesn’t love a little spa time? If a gift certificate to the salon isn’t in your budget, check out some of these recipes for homemade beauty products you can whip up inexpensively at home. Got teen girls? They’ll have a blast helping out with sugar scrubs, body mist, foot balm, and more. Toss in a couple of hand-made gift coupons for a bubble bath drawn on demand, and you’re in business. If you’d like to round out the gift selection a little more, there are numerous affordable spa items at Dollar Tree, such as manicure supplies and scented lotions.

6. Flowers

There’s a reason certain gifts are called classics; it’s because they are timelessly appreciated and always appropriate. Wise Bread’s own Andrea Karim has written a guide to frugal flowers that should provide you with some inspiration, or you could dress up some of the grocery store bouquets with tissue paper and wired ribbon. Out of town and need an affordable delivery option? This bouquet of assorted tulips is only twenty bucks. Top that.

7. Lunch With the Girls

Sure, having dinner as a family on the big day is a great idea. But if Mom's on a budget most of the time, lunch with the girls probably doesn’t happen all that often. That’s where a restaurant gift card comes in handy. If you only have a moderate amount to spend, then $25 goes much further at lunch. This also works if you’re out of town, as Amazon has gift cards from several restaurants available for delivery.

Gifts for Mother's Day don’t have to be stressful. While some of these suggestions do take a bit of effort, they are way less time consuming than sewing a custom quilt or building a new deck. All of these ideas are less than $50, many are less than $20, and some cost less than $5. With this many budget options at your disposal, last-minute gifts for Mother's Day are as easy as pie.

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