This past January I had the chance to sit down with Christy Turlington Burns, founder of Every Mother Counts, and Mariam Naficy, founder and CEO of Minted, to hear about their newly formed partnership. If you’re unfamiliar, Every Mother Counts is a non-profit organization created to increase public awareness and support for improved maternal and child health. EMC is committed to ending preventable deaths caused by pregnancy and childbirth around the world. You don’t have to be a mom to appreciate the importance of such things.
For every art print purchased through Minted 2% is donated to Every Mother Counts. But Mother’s Day seemed like the perfect time to take things up a notch so they’ll be donating a whopping 20% of art print purchases! Order by April 28th and use the code DESIGNCRUSHEMC.
Minted‘s art, journals, stationery, and decorations are all great fits for Mother’s Day. I love the idea of putting together a special little brunch full of printed touches and decor with all of her favorite foods as a surprise. Or maybe creating a tiny version of a gallery wall with some favorite art and photography from Minted’s huge selection. Any way you look at it, this is a great fit for everyone!
Mother’s Day is very meaningful to me, so I like to try and pull out a few extra stops. This year that includes a ridiculously awesome Kolo photo book that I put together for my mom. A few years ago I did something similar for my dad, an album that included photos of just me and him. But as soon as I got to raiding my photo collection I realized a little something – my mom was always the one behind the camera! That meant fewer photos of us together and a lot of photos of just me. Being an only child I hoped she wouldn’t hold it against me. (Ahem.)
It took some extra work, but I managed to find several of my mom’s favorites of me and several of the both of us together. (Yeah, there’s no injury under than bandage. I just liked to wear them.) I chose an 8.5 x 11″ photo book with a Mango cover and got to work scanning in all of the photos I’d picked out. I adjusted the color and brightness on several (ahhh, the age of technology) and uploaded them to Kolo‘s site. I was tempted to use the auto load function that places all of your photos in the album for you, but then decided to be a little more hands-on and chose the placement and size of each one myself.
The photos turned out amazing thanks to Kolo‘s Canon printing technology, especially when you consider that most of them are 30+ years old! I loved creating the perfect flow of images and personalizing the layout. I could have opted to add some text as well, but preferred to allow the visuals to speak for themselves.
Last weekend my mom came over to dye Easter eggs at my house (one of our many traditions) and I gave her this gift early. She loved it so much and with every flip of a page said “I love this picture!”. So I’m guessing I did okay, especially when she said the photo book was one of her favorite gifts ever. *pats self on back* The heirloom quality of these photo books guarantees they’ll be around for some time, and the rainbow of colors available for he covers gives my mom lots of options when it comes to expansion.
I especially love this one of the two of us at the Pittsburgh Zoo when I was about a year and a half old. My mom’s outfit looks like it would be just as in style today! Wish I could say the same for those overalls I’m sporting.
My grandmother is turning 90 this August and I think I’m going to put together a smaller version of the two of us as a special gift. Had I realized how easy it was, I probably would have done hers for Mother’s Day as well.
Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post. All words and opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that keep Design Crush going!
I love buying gifts for my mom. She’s fun to shop for and always acts like I’ve just given her the most brilliant thing in the world (as all moms are apt to do I suppose). But her birthday and Mother’s Day fall about a week apart on the calendar every year which involves some thinking ahead on my part. When Uncommon Goods asked me to share some of my favorite gifts for Mother’s Day I was excited to delve into their shop, where half of the goods are made by hand, most are made in the USA, and one-third incorporate recycled and/or upcycled materials. They also have a great selection of personalized gifts.
Of course I had my mom in mind while window shopping. Pool season shows up early here in Oklahoma, and a set of silicone wine glasses would get lots of use. She’s also been on a bit of a health kick, but water gets boring and would be much more interesting served in a flavor infuser water bottle. A wine pairing towel set would not only make a good reference, but also be a great conversation starter. My mama loves a good mojito and could muddle up her own with this molecular mixology kit! A trio of solar tealights would be perfect for early weekend mornings spent sipping coffee and reading the newspaper on the patio or late nights spent outside chatting with friends. So basically I can’t wrong. And also, I hope she isn’t reading this!
Disclaimer: I was compensated for this post. All words and opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that help keep Design Crush going!
Is Easter a big deal in your house? Growing up ours always involved a hidden basket (one year behind the Christmas tree that had yet to be taken down), plastic eggs hidden outside, and a big family dinner at my grandparents’ house. Now it mainly involves dinner at my moms and yes, baskets are still hidden! Check out these 17 projects and ideas to make your Easter Sunday extra special.
I’m doing my best to start thinking about Mother’s Day a little earlier than usual this year, my mom’s birthday is a week later and I always feel like I’m caught off guard. I’ve got my eye on these sweet personalized family trees from Evajuliet, you can choose from three to five generations and among 15 designs. (The deadline to order is April 18th.)
At some point my Easter focus shifted from shoving chocolate bunnies and marshmallow Peeps into my face and onto the art of decorating an awesome egg. My mom and I have had a tradition of dyeing a dozen or two together each spring since I was little. I love our time spent together, but our go-to has been a box of Paas most years and I’m ready to mix it up a bit. Last year we branched out a bit by creating some ombre striped eggs and this year I’d love to take it even further.
With Easter less than three weeks away, I started looking for my perfect project by doing a little research on Bing which is now iOS compatible. I recently switched my settings on my phone to make it my primary search engine, and to take advantage of Bing Rewards . Create an account for free and earn points that are good for gift cards to your favorite stores and other rewards by doing searches. There are new opportunities to earn points daily. That’s right, earn points towards gift cards for projects you’re searching – magic.
A bunch of colorful options popped up immediately and I narrowed them down. (I don’t like eating hardboiled eggs, so keeping them edible wasn’t necessary.) I ended up with a dozen keepers that are in the running and currently being passed on to the deciding deity – my mom – for a final decision. Which is your favorite?
I’m required to disclose a sponsored partnership between our site and Bing. I have been compensated in exchange for this post in the form of payment, product or experiences. Thank you for supporting the brands that help keep Design Crush going!
My original plan was to bake the most amazing pie for you guys to celebrate Pi Day tomorrow. But some unexpected moving/real estate biz-nass got in the way of that, so the obvious next best thing was to share ten recipes I’m hoping someone makes me. (Okay, that would be crazy. Maybe just five of them.) Without further ado, ten Pi Day pies!
Click on each image to go to the recipe. All photos copyright of their respective sites unless otherwise noted.
Less than 48 hours until Valentine’s Day and you’ve got nothin’? Don’t stress – we’ve got you covered! Twelve of the best free printable valentines and all that’s required of you is to hit PRINT. From box toppers to sweet sentiments, you’ll have a tough time deciding on just one! (And don’t forget our printable watercolor valentines!)
Click on each image to go to the project. All photos copyright of their respective sites unless otherwise noted.
