Mother’s Day 2020 is for sure a totally different Mother’s Day than any that we’ve ever had…and hopefully any that we’ll ever see in the future! I typically recommend all sorts of DIY projects that require materials from Michaels, Joann, or Amazon, but with people feeling less anxious to spend money these days, it’s harder to say “hey, go buy this and this and this!”

So this year we have to be a little more frugal and resourceful, so I wanted to offer you, dear readers old and new, this FREE funny printable phrenology chart of MOM! (Choose the skin tone that suits your superwoman best!) If you want to type your answers in before printing, use download this fill-in PDF version.

What’s phrenology you ask? Well, if you had to guess what’s on someone’s mind, how would you break it into seven categories? That’s what the 19th century study of Phrenology was—the belief that different areas of the brain controlled different character traits, thoughts, and emotions. Over the years, this belief has been debunked, but you may recognize famous posters like this one that hold a certain kitschy appeal.

For a fun celebration of your mom, grandmother, best friend, or neighbor, show them that you pay attention to what they love, how they think, and what their mind is made up of! Print out the illustration that best matches your mom, and treat each color as a different category and fill in words that apply to the mom-hero. The categories that I used were food/drink, TV, virtues, family members, craft supplies (haha!), and favorite places I’ve traveled.

Illustration by Hannah Perry.

Cardboard has always been one of my favorite craft supplies…it’s like the workhorse of all materials. It’s sturdy enough to build rocket ships, and its availability and abundance makes it un-precious.

At an influencer conference earlier this year (Alt Summit), my craft-sisters Rachel Faucett of Handmade Charlotte and Jodi Levine of Super Make It and I led a crafting session that we called Upcycled Cardboard Jewelry that even SJP Would Wear! Basically we covered tables with painted cardboard and cereal/cracker boxes, Colorshot paint pens, and various string and let the collective creativity happen! We made some examples, but we were blown away with what was produced in the 90 minute craft sesh!

If you are looking to make some fun homemade Mother’s Day gifts this year, this is easy and practically free!

Here are the materials that we used and LOVED!

• Cardboard (obviously)
• Colorshot paint pens
• Colorshot acrylic paints
• Colored twine
• Nylon knotting cord

Of all the paint markers I’ve ever used (and I’ve used a lot), Colorshot is by far my fave!

Yarn, paracord, twine and nylon knotting cord are all great for stringing and decorating!

We arranged the cardboard by color. We painted it with Colorshot acrylic paint and the vibrancy was amazing!

These are all made from cardboard!

Metallic paint on simple rectangles of cardboard mixed with a paracord chain can look super elegant!

Attach small shapes of cardboard to hair clips and look what you can make! Crafted and modeled by the talented Sara Walk of Tell Love and Party!

I was blown away by the creativity of Sarah Chambers’ earrings! She really look this assignment to the next level!

Nicole Choules of Salt & Honey Market in Salt Lake City made this gorgeous statement piece to match the clothes on her back. Three simple shapes glued together and she even let a little of the cardboard show!

Kristen, co-owner of Treehouse Kid & Craft in Atlanta and Athens GA took a different approach to collaging shapes. Color, shape, and balance are all working together here!

And one of my favorite people on the planet, Jodi Levine of Super Make It, rolled her cardboard to make these chunky beads.

Heather Donohue created a cool pattern adding Colorshot paint pen designs on top of a painted piece of cardboard to start her jewelry project.

Embroidery feels so calming to me these days and I’ve wanted to get my kids involved in the craft. Now I’m certainly not an expert embroiderer, but I find it very easy to pick up and to improvise.

Here are 10 of my favorite embroidery crafts for kids out there! If you want to buy some basic materials like yarn, embroidery floss, and kid-safe needles for embroidery projects, visit this page on my Amazon Influencer profile to find some great supplies!

Pretty Life Girls made these cool, abstract patterned wood stitching boards. While it may seem like a lot of effort, just think how much your kids could create and recreate using these wood boards!

These cross-stitched initial pins from Handmade Charlotte have been one of my favorite projects for years! I love how they used the holes that naturally appear in perler beads to stitch initials.

I love the reuse of the styrofoam food tray for this embroidery project from Creative Jewish Mom. If you feel icked out by using trays that held meats, you can use trays that held veggies or even buy some fresh ones on Amazon.

I made these projects for Family Fun magazine years ago and I still love them! I used burlap as a base so that it would be easy for a kid to push the needle through the holes. Also, the grid mimicked a needlepoint canvas very well and offered nice even lines to work within.

These simple sewing cards by Say Yes are made from cereal boxes. Literally this project could not be simpler!

Use spice jar shaker inserts as needlepoint canvases to make these cute award ribbons!

This project was featured in my first book, Project Kid: 100 Ingenious Crafts for Family Fun and it’s one of the few crafts that I STILL have from that book! It was an ode to my mom, who is a genius needlepointer!

I love this more process-art embroidery project that I spotted on Tinkerlab’s Instagram feed! I love the mix of beads and buttons in the design!

How cute are these printable sewing cards by Molly Moo Crafts for the Kids Activities Blog!

Another printable project, this one from Mr. Printables just sends me! Using the cross-stitch technique to create a sweater is so darn cute!

I was cooking a new recipe the other day, and it called for a teaspoon of turmeric. When I took off the lid of the spice jar, I had to pull off that little shaker insert that comes with all spice jars. After I removed the insert and set it on my counter, I dipped my teaspoon into the spice to add to my recipe. I was cleaning the kitchen later that day, and I realized that I hadn’t replaced that little plastic circle and for some reason, in that moment, a lightbulb went off in my head. These inserts are like tiny, star-shaped needlepoint canvases just waiting to be stitched!

It felt like one of my most outlandish craft ideas, but I’ve really been attracted to needlepoint, embroidery, and stitching lately. I grabbed some yarn and needles and started playing. Then I went into the spice jar and removed as many shaker inserts as I could find on spices that I KNOW I will never shake!

I turned my stitched circles into award ribbons, but I think there are so many ways to use them: necklaces, refrigerator magnets, framed in a grid and turned into wall art!

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Spice jar shaker inserts
• Yarn
• Needle
• Felt or ribbon
• Glue
• Pin backs

Let’s make it:

1. Remove those goofy little inserts from your spice jars. Who really shakes out spices unless you are making cinnamon toast??
2. Cut yarn and thread the needle. Tie a double knot at the end of the yarn; make sure it’s large enough so that it won’t go through the hole.
3. Stitch as though you were working on a canvas. Here are a few tips:
   • When you are stitching through a hole that already has yarn though, try to push the yarn to the side so that you are not stitching through the yarn. That could pull the strands of the yarn in a funny way and mess up the look.
   • Try going around the entire shaker insert to create a sun-ray effect. Think outside the circle!
   • Stitch with two yarn colors at the same time to create a cool striped effect.
   • If you want to create a “french knot,” you can sort of cheat it. With the yarn on top of the “canvas”, tie a knot in the yarn close to the surface of the shaker lid. Thread the needle back through the hole. This is a great way to hide the hole.
4. If you choose to turn yours into award ribbons, Cut 1-to-2-inch pieces of felt, about 1/2″ wide. Trim a triangle out of the bottom to make it look like ribbon ends, and glue them to the back of the stitched shaker insert. Feel free to add some stitching to make the ribbons dynamic too! Also, if you happen to have ribbon, you can certainly skip the felt step and just use ribbon.
5. Glue a pin back to the back of the center of the circle.

I had asked Sommer if she preferred the ribbon design or the one that looks more like a military medal, but she had no reference for that, so we went with the award ribbon design. But here’s what that looked like just for your reference!

One of my favorite things to do when I craft is to really transform the material into something so different than it was when I began. Whether it’s using it in a different way, deconstructing it and rebuilding it, or adding a material to change it’s shape, it’s fun to play with the possibilities.

This DIY yarn birdcage is such a cool AHA! project that kids will love! When we made the cage, we left the bottom open, because why cage up a bird that wants to fly around, even if that bird is made from paper? You can have fun experimenting with fun bird crafts like origami birds or pom-pom birds.

This project is an excerpt from my first book, Project Kid: 100 Ingenious Crafts for Family Fun. This post contains affiliate links.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Balloon
• Vase (approximately 5 by 5 inches)
• Painter’s tape
• Plastic wrap
• Cookie sheet lined with wax paper
• Yarn
• Scissors
• Aleene’s Fabric Stiffener & Draping Liquid
• Disposable cup
• Large bead
• Hot-glue gun
• Cord or twine 
• 2- to 3-inch long dowel or stick

Let’s make it!

1. Blow up a balloon until it fits snuggly in vase. (If you don’t have a vase, you can cut off the bottom of a 2-liter drink bottle.) Adhere a piece of painter’s tape around where the balloon meets the edge of the vase, then cover the whole thing in plastic wrap. Place this on the cookie sheet.

2. Cut 4 pieces of yarn that stretch from the bottom edge of vase to the bottom edge of the vase on the other side. Cut 2 of these in half. Then cut 3 pieces that wrap around the circumference of the vase. Lastly, cut 1 4-inch piece.

3. Pour Mod Podge into a disposable bowl. Dip one of the long pieces into the glue and squeeze off the excess with your fingers. Drape the yarn over the top of the balloon, centered, until it reaches the bottom edge. The yarn will stretch out a bit when wet, so just lay the excess on the wax paper. Smooth it down over the surface of the balloon and vase. Repeat, adhering the next long piece exactly perpendicular to the first. 

4. Take one of the 4 half pieces, dip it in Mod Podge, and adhere it centered in between 2 of the lines. Repeat in the next 3 spaces.

5. Dip one of the other 3 pieces of yarn, and wrap around the base of the vase. Smooth it down. Dip and wrap the other two pieces where the balloon meets the vase, about a ½ inch apart. Set cookie sheet aside and let it dry, about 4 hours.

6. Dip 4-inch piece of yarn and make a circle flat on the wax paper. This will become the hanger.

7. Once it’s hard and dry to the touch, use scissors to pop the balloon. Wiggle the vase, plastic wrap, and balloon out of the cage. With your fingers, scrape off the excess dried Mod Podge. Trim off excess strings on the bottom.

8. Hot glue bead to the top of the cage, then glue the dried yarn circle on top of that.  Thread cord through the top loop for hanging. Tie dowel to 2 pieces of cord, thread the cords through the holes in the cage, and knot behind the hanger.