Archive for the 'Entertaining & Decorating' Category

The beginning of each May, stores present us with mountains of gaudy, pink and floral-printed items tied in bows and trimmed with lace—all intended as gifts for Mother’s Day. It can be exhausting to sift through these cliché items in hopes of finding something that our own unique mother might truly enjoy.

However, even the seasoned pro-shoppers that know exactly what to give begin to run out of ideas at some point. Stop to think about what mom’s hinted at recently—or state the obvious and ask what it is she wants–and the answer is something like, “Oh nothing, my wonderful family is gift enough.”

Moms are tricky like that. They never ask for anything so it’s our job to dig deeper, think about how she lives and what she likes best, before we can come up with a gift that screams, “Wow!” and presents something she never knew she needed.

So, if you’re out of ideas and trying to get creative this Mother’s Day, how about an at-home spa? One cliché that fits just about every mom is the need for relaxation and a little, well-deserved “me-time.” She’s always on the go and always worrying about everybody else—after all, that’s her “job as a mother,” she would say. Setting up an at-home spa to surprise her with is a great way to say, “Take a day off, Mom. Relax.”

Here are a few simple steps you can follow to create a great spa-like ambiance at home for your wonderful mother:
1) Find her favorite room inside (or outside) of the house and choose calming colors as accent décor—just a few pillows to cozy up her favorite reading corner or new towels for the bathroom can give an instant makeover.
2) Next, decorate the area with lots of mom’s favorite scented candles, reminiscent of the relaxing aromas of a real spa.
3) Arrange some fresh-cut flowers nearby and a heart-felt card for mom in a prominent place to ensure she sees it right away.
4) Last but not least, light all the candles for an impressive ambiance and welcome mom to her special new relaxation spot!