Valentine’s Day is right around the corner — are you ready?
There is no better time than Valentine’s Day to show someone how much you care with a showering of gifts and activities.
Labeled a worldwide day of romance, the mid-February holiday provides the perfect opportunity for people to celebrate their love and affection for each other in a variety of ways.
The most common gifts still include flowers, chocolates and jewelry. Alternative gifts and activities, however, are available for you and your sweetheart to do together or separately.
10 UNIQUE GIFTS AND ACTIVITIES FOR VALENTINE’S DAY
1. Getting pampered is usually welcomed by all no matter what occasion. Whether you are treating yourself or someone you love, a gift certificate to a local spa or retreat can be a perfect Valentine’s Day gift.
You can give your sweetheart time alone, or share the relaxing experience together.
Who wouldn’t want to be treated to a pampered day inside a luxurious spa or retreat when the weather is otherwise frigid?
2. Naming a star after your loved one, especially if he or she is an astronomy enthusiast, is a unique way to show that your love has no boundaries.
Although it is not a tangible gift, the International Star Registry offers custom, de-luxe and ultimate star-naming packages, which usually include a certificate with the star’s name and a chart diagramming its location.
This gift can also provide for a fun activity of stargazing on a clear night.
3. Almost everyone travels. Whether you do adventure with or without your sweetheart, an appropriate Valentine’s Day present could be the gift of something travel-related.
Common travel-related gifts include a leather carrying bag, a cosmetic bag, a passport holder or a new wallet. Throwing in a trip to go with all the new equipment probably won’t hurt either.
4. Custom-made books are a popular trend right now and can be made for any occasion, including Valentine’s Day.
Find photos of the two of you and put the journey of your love on paper. This is something your sweetheart can keep forever and show to others.
And if you have enough time, get others to contribute photos and stories, too.
5. Although jewelry falls into this category, engraving or embroidering something — anything — is a very personal way to say, “I did this just for you.”
A variety of things can be customized to fit your sweetheart’s initials or funny or romantic messages, including a tree swing, wine or beer glasses, flasks, and robes or pajamas.
6. Personalized gifts that you can showcase in your home are a hit, especially if you’re in need of some new and different interior decorations. Personalized throws pillows or wall art are a great way to welcome guests to your home and also tell them, “We love each other.”
These objects can encompass your favorite love quotes, a symbol of your love or your names.
7. Consider a route that calls for more than just throwing down some cash or your credit card. If your skills allow for it, think of some reasons why you love the one you’re with.
Whether those reasons are for better or worse, this type of gift is one of the more personal ways to show your affection for them. Those reasons can be expressed in a variety of ways, from engraved stones in a velvet bag or leaflets of paper left around spaces you share together.
8. If you’re craving sweets to celebrate the day, stop at a local bakery. Chances are some kind of Valentine’s Day special is being offered, such as cookies and cupcakes.
Although these two options are equally as bad for you, if not worse, than the chocolate you would normally buy, their personal touch, which can come in the form of your sweetheart’s favorite flavor, shows more affection than generic square, boxed pieces.
Dieters, beware, however; this is a gift you and your loved one will both want to indulge in.
9. Going out to eat is considered the norm when it comes to Valentine’s Day celebrations. If you are looking to save money, however, a home-cooked meal instead of an out-on-the-town evening is always an option. Buy the fixings for your loved one’s favorite meal and dessert and make it a surprise.
Since Valentine’s Day is on a Saturday this year, it might make sense to avoid the crowds and stay at home for a nice home-cooked meal. Your loved one might want nothing more than to stay at home and relax with you. If you have kids running around, send them off to grandma’s house for the evening.
10. Say “I love you” through song on Valentine’s Day. And, if you aren’t comfortable singing one yourself, hire someone else. Barbershop groups, such as the Nittany Knights Barbershop Chorus, will be delivering love in the form of songs, both the day before Valentine’s Day and Valentine’s Day itself, to homes and workplaces across Centre County.
