The Best Easy Mother’s Day Projects for Kids

This year, the grandkids and I aren’t making any Mother’s Day projects together. Miss T has been in close contact with a number of kids who later tested positive for COVID, so we are distancing this week.

Still, I’ve gone ahead with a Mother’s Day project for their mom that the kids can contribute to.

A Mother’s Day Video Greeting Card and Gift Wrap

The children’s mom is a minimalist so I try to avoid gifts that take up space. No projects like milk bottle vases or egg carton flowers, for example.

This year’s Mother’s Day project is a video greeting card. I’m also downloading it onto a flash drive that the kids can give their mom.

There are two parts to today’s post: 1) making the video greeting card and 2) creating the packaging.

If you’re not interested in a video or know how to make one already, scroll down to the gift wrap instructions. It’s a great way to transform the lowly toilet paper roll into something elegant and useful!

Another good use of toilet paper rolls: make cars with your grandchild.

How to Make the Video Card

I used two sources. For the opening of my video, I relied on Canva, a graphic design website and app that provides templates for everything, from designs for social media platforms, to making posters, logos, greeting cards, and more. I have a professional account, but you can use a free one.

Below is a screen shot of the first page of Mother’s Day card templates available on Canva. I downloaded my card image and used it as the opening for my video. You can see that some images are free and others require payment. Simply edit the words and swap out the photos to customize your project.

Then I gathered digital photos of the two grandchildren that I wanted to use for my video and created an album on my iPhone, so they were in one place.

Next I uploaded all the images into a video editing app, including my Mother’s Day card cover; my paid app, Splice, allowed me to add music.

Finally, after I had completed the video, the grandkids came by with their dad (we met outdoors) so I could video a “Happy Mother’s Day” message from each child. I added those snippets to the end of the video, along with a cute shot of the two children together for the final image.

I’ve posted the video on private setting to my YouTube account and my daughter-in-law will be able the view the video on Mother’s Day.

Finally, I’ll copy the video onto a flash drive and wrap it as a gift to mom from the children, using the origami toilet roll package.

How to Make the Gift Packaging

Standard origami paper, measuring 6 inches square, is the perfect size for the gift package. There are many elegant patterns to choose from.

To make the gift wrap, simply cover the toilet paper roll with origami paper using a glue stick. Squish in the ends to close the tube on each side. That’s it.

Of course, I like to perfect the gift package, so I made a pattern for the part that gets folded in, and scored it with an x-acto knife. The pattern ensures that the folded part is centered on the tube, and ensures crisp folds.

Materials Needed

• 2 cardboard toilet paper rolls (one for a pattern)
• 1 sheet patterned origami paper, 6- X 6-inches
• Glue stick
• Narrow ribbon

Tools Needed

• Scissors
• X-acto knife
• Pencil or pen

Make the Pattern

Flatten 1 toilet paper roll in half, lengthwise, then in half lengthwise again. Now you have four lengthwise folds, equidistant from each other.

Placing your finger at the top of one of the folds, press the edge of the toilet roll down and towards the opposite side, keeping the neighboring fold on each side rigid, to make a crescent shape. Repeat from the opposite side.

Now cut out the crescent shape from each side of the roll to make the pattern. This is only to be used to trace the crescent shape with a pencil onto the second roll. Cut the sides of the roll; you only need one half of the roll for a pattern.

Make the Package

Flatten the second roll in half lengthwise. Place the pattern on the roll and trace the crescent shape with a pencil. Lightly score the crescent pencil marks with an x-acto knife so the roll will be easier to fold. Do not cut out the crescent shape from this roll because these are the closing flaps of the package.

Trim the origami paper to fit the roll, with enough extra paper to overlap lengthwise. Glue in place with a glue stick. Fold in the crescent shapes in to form the box. Insert the gift and hold the ends of the box together by tying with ribbon.

More Mother’s Day Projects

Here are some other easy Mother’s Day projects you can do with the grandkids.

Photo magnets make a useful and compact gift. Use images of the grandkids or their artwork.

Select from a variety of greeting cards, inspired by watercolor blots, music, torn paper and scrap paper.

Chocolate truffles are a delicious gift year-round. They’re easy to make with kids, although a little messy.

Heart frame is a collage of heart shapes. We made them for Valentine’s Day, but you can have kids make the hearts for Mother’s Day and frame them as artwork for mom.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers, grandmothers, aunts, friends, and everyone who supports and nurtures our children!

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