Being frugal and happy on February 14th can be easy, creative and fun when you plan ahead. This is your opportunity to declare your love and pinch pennies with a touch of class. Enjoy yourself. It’s all about love, not the amount of money you throw at a gift. Tell everyone!
Create an Experience
- Make dinner at home. Create a romantic atmosphere. Use a nice table cloth. Get out your best dishes and put a single flower in a bud vase. Cook his/her favorite foods. Make a special dessert. You could do this together and invite another couple. Dress your best…something special.
- Have an inside picnic. Create a magical place in your living room. Light candles and turn the lights down low. Place a blanket on the floor. Serve a fresh loaf of bread, cheese, fruit, dessert and your favorite drinks.
- Go out during “happy hour” when food and drinks are less expensive.
- Plan a progressive dinner with three other couples. Each couple chooses to serve an appetizer, dinner or dessert in their home.
- Go to a coffee shop and feast on coffee and fancy cupcakes.
- Pick up take-out food from an unusual place and include an inexpensive bottle of wine or your favorite beverage.
- Make a chocolate fondue with different exotic fruits. Include cut up pound cake, Twinkies and cookies. Take turns feeding each other.
- Make Valentine's day a family affair. Have the kids decorate with crepe paper, confetti and hand made hearts. Purchase sugar cookie dough and make and decorate cut out cookies together.
- Go on a date. Choose a special place out of town to spend the evening. Poke around in new places. Make it an adventure. Get dessert.
- Have a "Spa Nite." Give each other a massage. Rent a DVD if you need instructions. Use special oils and lotion. Make the room nice and toasty! When you are finished you can take a bubble bath together, drink champagne or sparkling water in fluted glasses. Later serve finger foods to each other.
- Play your favorite music and dance the night away.
- Rent a romantic movie, for example, Casablanca, The Notebook, Hitch, PS I Love You, Pretty Woman or The English Patient.
- Take a romantic walk on the beach, riverfront, in a historic city, public garden or park. Stop for hot chocolate or a drink.
- Go to a bookstore, browse and purchase a favorite book for each other.
- Take your date to a free or inexpensive play or concert at your local community college, near by university or a local city theatre.
Give a Gift
- Give an exquisite rose and one delicious truffle.
- Bake favorite cookies, cupcakes or candy for your Valentine. Serve warm.
- Create a goodie bag containing Hershey's kisses, hugs, candy hearts or any other pink, white, red or chocolate candy.
- Gather wild flowers or flowers from a friend or neighbors garden. Tie with a pretty ribbon and present with a hand made card.
- Written word is powerful. Plan ahead to write each other love letters stating the top 10 reasons you love, admire and adore each other. Put them in a fancy envelope, roll it up and tie with a pretty ribbon or put it in an inexpensive frame.
- Spend the evening writing haiku poetry. Haiku is Japanese poetry consisting of three lines, with the number of syllables of 5 (first line), 7 (second line), and 5 (third or last line). It can be fun, creative, intimate and meaningful.
- Decorate your home with red, white and pink balloons and leave love notes everywhere: in side shoes, a packed lunch, a coffee mug, a briefcase and on the mirror. You could do this in his/her car as well.
- Write short quick love notes. See if you can do 365 of them. Put them in a gift box that you decorate and give a gift good for one year.
- Create and give gift certificates or coupons that promise you'll wash the car, clean the garage, do the dishes, or whatever would make your sweetie smile.
- Decorate a memory box and fill it with your favorite souvenirs, photos, and other favorite or meaningful things that represent your love for each other.
- Create a photo journal. Purchase an inexpensive journal or scrapbook and put photos from the past inside. Write down your memories, stories and feelings next to each one.
- Get a friend to do a photo shoot of you. Create a calendar or frame some pictures as a gift. Make them sexy, fun and/or special.
- Create a video declaring your love for your Valentine, post it on You Tube and email the link to your sweetie.
- Download his/her favorite music and make a CD. Label it with a special photo and enjoy listening and dancing together.
Give rather than receive
- Gather materials to create and decorate special valentines for friends and spend the evening delivering them.
- Together send free e-cards to friends and family members.
Happy Valentine's Day!
