Mother’s Day is a special day that’s reserved to celebrate the most incredible woman in your life: Your mom. She has dried your tears, kissed your boo-boos, mended your broken heart, instilled values in you, cheered you on, nurtured you, and above all else, she has loved you without exception. You are the person you are today because of your mom. Here are the best mother’s day gift ideas.

To thank your mom for everything she has done for you throughout your life, you want to give her something special. But shopping for the perfect Mother’s Day gift can be difficult, and while she’s bound to love anything you give her (that’s just how moms are), you want to give her something that’s a bit more meaningful than flowers, candy, or (yet another) “#1 Mom” mug; a gift that really shows how much you appreciate her and that she’ll treasure forever.

Stumped on what to get? We’ve curated a list of personalized gifts that are truly amazing (if we do say so ourselves) that your mom will be sure to love and that will make your task of choosing an awesome Mother’s Day present a cinch. A word of caution: make sure you pack a box of tissues with whichever gift you choose, as these personalized Mother’s Day gifts are sure to move her (and you) to tears.

Turn Family Photos into Artwork

What mom doesn’t love family photos? While she’ll be sure to love an album of printed pictures, to make her Mother’s Day gift extra-special, turn those photos into artwork! Whether you assemble your family for professional photographs or you’ve snapped some great pictures on your mobile phone, have those photos on canvas!

There are plenty of photo-to-canvas printers out there who can turn your pictures into artwork, but you want to make sure you choose a reputable company that offers high-quality products, an array of options, fast shipping; and of course, affordable pricing. Whether it’s a single image or a collage, your mom will be sure to love a canvas print of your family. It’s personalized artwork that she’ll be able to enjoy for years to come!

Birthstone Jewelry

Instead of just giving your mom just any old ring, necklace, or bracelet, give her an extra-special bauble by incorporating birthstones; specifically, the birthstones of you and your siblings, or if she’s a grandmother, the birthstones of her grandchildren. You can have a jewellery store create something special for you, or there are plenty of online retailers that can craft a customized piece for your mom.

You can certainly have precious and semi-precious stones (sapphires, rubies, emeralds, etc.) set in gold or platinum, but if you’re on a budget, lab-created stones or specially made glass can closely resemble the real thing and are just as beautiful; of course, because she’s your mom, she’ll think anything you give her is beautiful. Every time she wears the piece, she’ll think of you, your siblings, or her grandchildren and will beam with pride.

Handwritten Jewelry

In keeping with the jewellery theme, instead of birthstones, have a piece made up for your mom that features a handwritten message. In conducting our research, we found that there are several companies that engrave handwritten messages onto jewellery; cuff bracelets, for example. Write up a special message on a piece of paper, or if you’re shopping for your wife or a Mother’s Day gift for grandma, have your little ones write a note on a piece of paper (a simple “I love you” will work just fine) and have the note engraved onto jewellery, where the message and handwriting will be eternally immortalized.

Personalized Mobile Phone Cases

In the age of modern technology, there’s no doubt your mom or wife (whoever you’re shopping for) uses her phone on a regular basis. Give her a gift that will keep her mobile phone protected and make her think of you, your children, or her grandchildren whenever she uses it; have a personalized phone case crafted just for her! Several reputable manufacturers can turn family photos, hand-drawn pictures, and even handwritten messages into personalized phone cases.

A Family Recipe Book

Does your family love to cook? Are there recipes that have been passed down from generation to generation? Does your mom or wife have to constantly shuffle through tattered pieces of paper whenever she wants to prepare one of those beloved dishes? If so, then a family recipe book is a great Mother’s Day gift idea!

Snap photos of your family cooking or dining on the recipes you plan on including in the book. Handwrite (make sure it’s legible!) or print out the step-by-step instructions and add the photos you took. Mom will absolutely love this heartfelt personalized DIY Mother’s Day gift.

Plan an Experience

Instead of giving something she can unwrap, consider giving one of the most important lady’s in your life an experience that she will remember for a lifetime. Experience gifts have become very popular, for good reason; there’s nothing better than spending quality time with the people you love most in the world and making memories that will last a lifetime.

Plan an experience for your mom or wife; a play, a special dinner, invite the whole family over for brunch, tour a museum, or spend the day soaking up nature, for example. Think about your mom or wife’s interests and plan an activity that incorporates those interests. For instance, if she loves to cook, you might consider having a group of you take a cooking class together, or if she loves gardening, maybe plan a trip to an arboretum followed by lunch.

A Custom Keychain

A keychain may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you’re trying to find the perfect Mother’s Day gift, but make it personalized and it certainly will be! Just like jewellery, you can have a custom keychain made for that super-special lady; for example, you could have a picture that a grandkid drew or a note that one of your children – or you, yourself – wrote made into a keychain. Whenever she reaches for her keys (if she’s like most moms, that’s pretty often), an instant smile will come to her face as this sweet gift will remind her of the people she loves most in life.

A Family Tree

Turn your family tree into customized artwork! Whether you purchase a pre-printed family tree that features blank spaces to fill in, it’s professionally printed on canvas, engraved into the metal, or etched into wood, a family tree is a wonderful gift idea for Mother’s Day. You can go back as many generations as you can, or you can have a tree made up that just features your immediate and close distant relatives. Either way, mom will surely love having a family tree to hang on her wall!

Name Jewelry

Yes, yes; we’ve already mentioned a couple of jewellery mother’s day gift ideas, but having names printed into jewellery is another awesome Mother’s Day gift idea! While researching, we found multiple online retailers that create personalized jewellery and will engrave names into rings, necklaces, and cuff bracelets. Have the names of you and your siblings, you and your wife’s children, or your mom’s grandchildren engraved into a piece that you feel she’ll be most comfortable wearing. Might we make a suggestion? – If there are multiple names, consider doing stacked jewellery; for example, if you have three children, you can have the names of each child engraved on individual rings that can be stacked on top of one another. You can do the same thing with cuff bracelets and bar necklaces (just make sure if you’re doing necklaces that the lengths vary). The stacked look is very popular, and it’s a great way to incorporate all of those special names into a one-of-a-kind Mother’s Day present.

Create a Gallery with Children’s Art

Little ones love drawing their moms and grandmas pictures. How about turning those pictures into a “gallery”-like the artwork? Pick a few favourite pieces or ask the kiddos to sketch or paint some fresh artwork. Have the drawings or paintings mounted and framed and display them on a focal wall in your home. You could even include placards underneath the artwork with each’s artist’s name, the date the artwork was made, and the age of the child when he or she created the masterpieces. To take it one step further, install sconces over the artwork and you’ll really have a gallery-quality art display.

Final Thoughts

When it comes to Mother’s Day gifts, moms are going to like pretty much anything they receive; that’s just their nature (and one of the countless reasons why they’re so special). But if you want to give your mom, spouse, grandma, or any other mom-like role model in your life a truly special Mother’s Day gift that will be sure to tug at her heartstrings, a customized gift is definitely the way to go.

Choose any of the above-mentioned gift ideas (we particularly like the photo-to-canvas artwork suggestion, for obvious reasons), or get creative and think up something outside of the box that you know your mom, wife, or whomever you’re shopping for, will love.