Mother’s Day is fast approaching. Kiddos all over the world will be looking for something special to make in celebration of their mamas. All moms know there’s something extra-special about a handmade gift. 

When it comes to Mother’s Day gifts, it’s truly the thought that counts. One look at a handmade gift and mom knows their little ones (likely with some help from another parent or caregiver) put time and energy into making something special. 

There are a lot of Mother’s Day crafts that kids can make. Those crafts can be made environmentally friendly by upcycling things you’ve already got at home. Parents, chances are you’ve got quite a bit of fabric hanging around that you’re not even thinking of. After all, what else would you call those clothes your kid has outgrown? 

Put that fabric to good use by incorporating it into your Mother’s Day crafting. Whether your children are new to working with fabrics or have been sewing for years, they’ll be proud to gift these crafts to mom for Mother’s Day.

If you’re searching for play condition clothing, try looking on BundleUp, a marketplace app for buying and selling kids’ clothing in bundles. Sort by condition and you might find some used clothing worthy of crafting with! Or stock up on clothing for next season. 

Travel Makeup Organizing Case

If mom loves doing her makeup and is always on the go, she’ll get good use of this makeup case. It’s a relatively easy project too, as it involves a lot of sewing and folding with a few squares of fabric. You’ll sew everything together, then add in the different sections for different brushes and products.

Next, add ribbons to each end that can be tied together around the case once it’s rolled up. If you’re unsure, simply Google a similar case and you’ll see just how to situate the ties.

This project can be done by hand or with a sewing machine. If it’s done by hand, you’ll need quite a bit of time, so plan accordingly. Mom will love opening this up, and since it’s machine washable, it’s easy to keep clean between trips and looks.

Fabric Flowers

The great thing about making fabric flowers is that you can find a version of them for any skill level. Start simple with little ones using simple stitches and button middles. They take just minutes to make and can do a lot to boost confidence in a beginner.

As they get more confident in their sewing (or their fabric gluing, we don’t judge) they can go on to making more intricate flowers. For really little ones, you can draw some stems on a page and have them cut out petals from fabric, and then paste them on. There’s a lot of flexibility with this fun craft and your kids are sure to enjoy it, whichever one you choose.

Decorative Pillow

Making a pillow itself is a really basic and easy project. What’s great about it is that you can make it your own. Younger kids can use iron-on designs or patches to attach to pillows to decorate. Older kids might be interested in sewing or embroidering a more custom, skilled decoration. No matter what, mom’s sure to cherish it. 

Keepsake Quilt

Use pieces of the kid’s clothes to make a keepsake quilt that will bring mom to tears. It’s especially great for a family with a new addition. Have older kids help you sew together scraps from the baby’s wardrobe, or include pieces from the whole family. 

While this idea is one of the cutest and most heartfelt, it’s also a pretty time-consuming one. You’ll want to watch some videos and read up on everything you’ll need to do to make sure you’ve got the time to pull this one off. It’s a worthy trade-off once you see mom’s reaction.

Aprons

If mom loves making magic in the kitchen, in the garden, or both, she’ll appreciate her very own, custom-made apron. Use mom’s favorite existing apron to model the size so it’ll fit her like a glove. 

Environmentally, aprons are a great use for synthetic fabrics that are harder to recycle. It’ll be more resistant to water and dirt, which means mom can get more use out of it.

Sleeping Mask

We all know moms are looking for as much good sleep as they can get. Make it a little easier for mom to get quality shut-eye by making her a sleep mask she’s sure to love. You’ll want to cut the shape out of fabric, then fill using felt or additional layers of fabric. Once you sew them all together, add a simply elastic on the back to keep it on mom’s head through all her sweet dreams.

Card Pouch

Some moms would rather an easy pouch to carry their basics in than toting around a whole huge wallet. You can make mom a pouch that’s perfect for her needs. Patterns make this project pop, especially if you use one pattern inside the wallet and a contrasting one on the outside. Keep mom’s favorite colors and patterns in mind when making your selections.

Like some of the other projects, pouches can be made based on kids’ experience level. Zippers can be tricky to add, so feel free to explore buttons and magnets as equally helpful alternatives. 

Bookmarks

The bookish mom will love a custom-made bookmark from her kiddos. Little ones can work together, while older ones can make one or more each. Simply sew a few layers of fabric together, then get creative decorating. It’s especially cute if you use fabric with bookish, reading themes.

Scarf

Making a scarf out of fabric scraps can be fun because you can make a really unique piece. To make a scarf out of little clothes, make rectangles of equal sizes that you can sew together to make a scarf. Compare with mom’s favorite scarf to make sure you get the length just right. You can also use scraps to make the fringe, so there’s a lot of opportunities to use your excess fabric.

Fabric Greeting Card

Use different pieces of fabric to make mom’s mother’s day card with a different medium. Instead of writing a heartfelt message, you can write one with fabric markers or, for advanced crafters, stitch one into the card. This is a great choice to let kids’ creativity run wild.