• You can't go wrong with breakfast in bed!

  • A huge, vanilla scented candle (or lots of them, in every size, shape and colour).

  • A bottle of French champagne - or if the real stuff is too pricey, try Graham Beck's superb Brut Rose Cap Classique.

  • A soft, luxurious pashmina - the height of style and something she'll wear forever.

  • A gleaming espresso pot and some heavenly Italian coffee.

  • A beautiful piece of jewellery you know she won't buy for herself.

  • An imported glossy fashion or decor magazine - roll it up and tie with a huge bow

  • Body Butter, pampering face masks, imported soap - buy a pretty packet and present as a beauty treat.

  • A pretty tin filled with home-made biscotti.

  • A huge bunch of roses or her favourite flowers will always go down well!

  • A beautiful, beaded evening bag - scour antique markets or look at accessory shops.

  • Her favourite perfume - and throw in a matching body lotion.

  • A box of chocolates never fails to please - but make sure they're imported!

  • A silk kimono, fan or set of chop sticks from a Chinese gift shop or warehouse.

  • Home-made nougat - look at delis.

  • Take her for a special Mother's Day brunch at a restaurant or chi-chi hotel.

  • Take her to that movie she's been dying to see.

  • Pearl earings.

  • Make your own Mother's Day card (works best if you are little!!)

  • Make a compilation tape or CD of her favourite songs for her car.

  • A box of speciality teas.

  • An antique teaset - or just tea cup - from an antique market.

  • Buy her tickets to the ballet or opera.

  • A container of fragrant vanilla pods - to be found at most delis.

  • A beaded or embroidered shawl - also at antique shops and markets.

  • Invite her to a picnic lunch in your garden or the park.

  • A pasta-making machine.

  • A voucher for a facial, aromatherapy massage, pedicure or manicure at the beauty parlour.

  • A set of beautiful, delicate Japanese bowls.

  • Buy her a pair of embroidered velvet or silk chinese slippers.

  • Wear a suit and be her chauffeur for the day and night.

  • A set of satin-covered coat hangers.

  • Create a treasure hunt in your home with lots of small, hidden gifts for her to find.

  • A bonsai tree.

  • A juicer, so she can make herself healthy fresh fruit and veg drinks at home.

  • A pure white fluffy dressing gown.

  • A bamboo steamer - find at health shops.

  • Buy her some potted herbs to get her herb garden started.

  • Serenade her with a specially composed song.

  • A huge bottle of good olive oil, Verjuice or imported balsamic vinegar.

  • A beautifully illustrated cookbook.

  • An antique mirror.

  • Hurricane lanterns so she can burn candles outdoors without the flames blowing out.

  • Be the chef and waiter at a special candle-lit dinner for two held in her honour - go to Henrie's Hotch Potch for some great, easy-to-use recipes.

  • Take her bungee jumping.

  • A pair of goldfish in a stylish glass bowl or enormous vase.

  • A subscription to a decadent glossy magazine she'd never think of buying for herself.

  • Do all the housework and tell her the fairies did it.

  • Satin Pyjamas.

  • Prepare her a gourmet lunch to take to work.

  • Buy her the novel she's been dying to read.

  • Write her a poem and hide it under her pillow.

  • Take her for cocktails somewhere really swanky so you can dress for the occasion.

  • Commission a photographer to take a portrait shot of you and your siblings, and get it nicely framed.

  • Aromatherapy soaps and oils.

  • Plant her a pretty tree.

  • Pick some lavender, tie it with a ribbon and put it on her pillow before she goes to sleep.

  • Put a heart-shaped chocolate on her pillow.

  • Take her car for the full valet treatment - or wash, polish and hoover it yourself!

  • Send her an e-card.

  • Make her a personal website.

  • Sprinkle rose petals into her bathwater.

  • Phone her, even if you live on the other side of the world.