Switch off now if you're a Valentines Grinch. I for one, am certainly not. I love every celebration, whether it's Valentines day, Easter, birthdays, you name it. I love to get involved in celebrations. Any excuse to show some love. For me, Valentines day is a day dedicated to love and as someone who loves all things romance and is the soppiest person in the world, the day was basically made for me (last year, my boy failed to even get me a card and I was gutted, not because I'm materialistic but because I just love Valentines day and the thought!). I completely agree that yes, it can be a bit of a brands dream blah blah blah and that we should show love every single day, but I for one am all for Valentines day and any excuse to give someone a card and pop open a bottle of something nice. Why not have a day dedicated to love? You don't HAVE to buy gifts but similarly, if you want to buy a gift, why not. I'm going to be putting a wide range of Valentine's presents below, from low priced to high priced and also, I'll be putting some things on there that are free too and some ideas about what to do this Valentines day. My ideal Valentines day actually would just be to be appreciated, I've only ever really felt special once on Valentines day, for me, tiny gestures mean everything so actually remembering it's Valentines day (February 14th boys) in the first place, and even if as a boy you don't believe in it or you hate it, it's nice to make a little bit of effort (you don't have to spend any money and if your girlfriend is anything like me, she'll love little gestures). Let's discuss...
For her:
LVNDR Crystal Heart Necklace
1. Jewellery - I'm pretty biased but as far as I'm concerned, LVNDR is the best for Valentines jewellery. It's affordable, beautiful and it comes hand-wrapped straight from a family run company plus it's so cute. I don't think you can beat a gorgeous piece of jewellery as a gift, particularly if it comes beautifully packaged and doesn't break the bank. The Valentines range is my favourite and I want it all for myself, you may have spotted me wearing (and never taking off) the gorgeous crystal heart necklace. If you're wanting to spend around £10-20 on a really high quality piece of jewellery (exact same material as Pandora!) then check out the 925 sterling silver range with the cutest designs. My favourites are: the elephant ring, the ears and paw ring, the giraffe necklace, the Valentines ring, the love you ring set. Shop online here. I got a ring for my birthday and I honestly haven't taken it off since. I love sentimental jewellery and with LVNDR, all the pieces have meaning which is really nice.
2. Heart Shaped Sweet Assortment - Obviously everyone is different but for me, personal things are the best and anyone who knows me knows that nothing makes me happier than a bag of pick a mix. If I was buying for myself this Valentines day, I'd get myself some sweeties because I just love sweeties. I found this heart shaped sweet assortment online and it's a really nice idea. You could easily recreate something similar yourself too! My friend loves sweets so I once ordered her a pick a mix station for her bedroom. Online here.
3. Champagne - If she likes to drink, how about getting her a nice bottle of bubbly? Or, her favourite bottle of anything, or, something you could share. Another good idea is taking round all the ingredients to make her favourite cocktails e.g., a mojito kit and then you can make your own cocktails together for the evening (I found a good one online here). My fave champagnes, Moet online here or cheaper, Bottega Rose Gold prossecco online here.
4. Candles/Bath - I'm a sucker for candles and relaxing baths. There's a great selection of candles online here and from them, I'd recommend The White Company, Neom, Jo Malone and Diptyque as the best candles (I'll take all 4 please). If she's more of a bath gal than a candle gal (I personally light my candles around my bath) then you can't go wrong with Jo Malone bath oil - the dream.
5. Watches - You can't beat pretty watches. I personally adore Larsson and Jennings, Olivia Burton and Daniel Wellington. Again, a watch is something really sentimental that someone can keep so if you are going to spend money, I think it's a really special gift.
6. Flowers - I get so upset when boys say they don't believe in buying women flowers because they die. I LOVE flowers so much that I always end up buying them for myself. Nothing beats fresh flowers. I don't think you can go wrong with flowers and I don't know one girl who doesn't love them. You have no excuse because in local supermarkets, gorgeous bouquets start from £5, with tulips and roses even cheaper (trust me, I've seen them in Aldi, Lidl, Tesco! They're so affordable nowadays) and you can order them online too for a little bit extra - my favourite place to order flowers from online is Marks & Spencer (online here). Obviously this roses bouquet online here is the dream but you don't have to spend that much money, don't worry. I wouldn't leave it until the day of the 14th to buy them though as they probably will sell out, so maybe grab them the day before.
7. Purses - Like a watch, I think a nice purse, handbag or wallet is a lovely gift. I love this little heart coin one (online here) and you can't go wrong with Aspinal purses (online here). I always find Coggles (online here) do the best priced, good branded accessories such as Ugg, Aspinal, Marc Jacobs etc.
8. Perfume - You can't go wrong with perfume! I love this Diptyque Roll On Valentines Perfume, Flowerbomb is always a winner (my favourite scent) too and Lancome La Vie Est Belle is beautiful and amazing. Not forgetting Jo Malone - the best scents ever.
9. Chocolates - Oh you can't go wrong with chocolates. I personally adore Lindt, so anything Lindt wins me over. Godiva do some amazing Valentines selections too (online here).
10. Wildfox Keeper Eye Mask - Let her know she's a keeper with this cute eye mask. Online here.
11. Adventure Wear - Going on an adventure together soon or want to book one? How about buying her something for the adventure? MUSTO do an amazing range of stuff, I love this micro fleece (online here). I love nothing more than planning adventures and doing adventurous stuff so something practical like a jacket or a fleece for something you've got planned would be amazing.
(Things not on the collage above:)
Make Up - Because which girl doesn't love make up? Charlotte Tilbury is always a winner (probably one of the best make up brands out there at the moment) and don't get me started on how cute the new TooFaced products are.
ASOS Valentine's 'Who Needs Love' Oversized Tee - Anti-love? Get her this. Online here.
What I Love About You Book - Books are always cute ideas, I love this one in particular. Online here and suitable for him or her, you can fill it in! How cute.
Lingerie/Pyjamas - I'll certainly be buying this for myself, how amazing is this bra? (As shown above on the photo, online here). I adore gorgeous lingerie and gorgeous pyjamas so a box full of pretty underwear and silky pyjamas would pretty much make my day. I'm obsessed with Bluebella at the moment and ASOS always do the best range of pyjamas, or you could always get here these (online here) 'you knock my socks off socks' cute or what?
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For him:
1. Clothing - First up clothing, is he a shirt kinda guy? (I love this shirt online here) or maybe a jumper kinda guy (I love this jumper online here) - you can't really go wrong with something plain. Is he an adventurous kinda guy? You can't beat MUSTO for amazing adventurous clothes for sailing, skiing etc. You can always pick up some amazing brands online here too and I always head here for inspo if I need to find some clothes suitable for a male.
2. Wallet - You cannot go wrong with a nice sentimental leather wallet. I personally love this one (online here and here) but there's a really good selection of mens wallets online here and here too.
3. Aftershave - You can't go wrong with a yummy scent, I adore Tom Ford and Bleu De Chanel.
4. Tech - You can never go wrong with tech things, I always think speakers and headphones are good ideas. A great selection online here (love these B&O ones here and the UE boom speaker is my personal favourite) and John Lewis always do amazing tech stuff online here too.
5. Accessories - I don't think you can go wrong with accessories, for example, a nice leather belt (I love this one), a classic watch such as a Daniel Wellington (online here) I also LOVE this MUSTO Evolution holdall, perfect if you're going away together, it's an easy to carry 40 litre holdall that will keep all your belongings secure. This iPhone waterproof case by MUSTO is pretty epic too. If you’re like me and are prone to dropping your phone in water, this case, which has a clear TPU screen and Camera window, will protect your beloved iPhone from any imminent liquid disasters.
6. Instagram Snack Boxes - Is he into meal prep? Oh these snack boxes are far too cute! Online here.
7. Calvin Klein Boxers - New boxers always make a nice gift, online here.
Funny Card - Funny is always a good idea. I love this How Hot Are you? card and this I Would Shave My Legs For You card.
Hero4 Silver Action Camera - If he likes tech, he may love a GoPro camera. Online here.
Date Night Cook Book - Wanna do more cooking? I love this cookbook! Online here.
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Other Ideas/Things To Do: The best thing about Valentines day is you don't always have to spend money. I'd love to go on a cute walk or do something like go to the seaside and eat fish and chips. Thoughtfulness over money every single time. For me, I'd much prefer a thoughtful gift and card/something to do (and maybe pizza and pick a mix with some candles and rose petals) than a last minute un-thoughtful panic-buy Pandora ring.
Photo-book: I think a photobook makes a lovely present, fill it with all your best memories. It's so nice to look back on memories and appreciate each other. I once saw something where someone blew up a few heart balloons and tied a memory onto each string - I love stuff like that.
A Nice Walk: Nothing beats getting wrapped up and going for a cute walk.
A Trip Away: Obviously it costs (unless you go on a day road trip which can always be fun! I love road trips) but as someone who adores travelling, I'd love nothing more than a trip away, top hint, don't go away for Valentines weekend, go a different weekend because you'll save so much money. Just present the trip idea in a card on Valentines day and then go any other weekend. You could always get adventurous and climb up at the O2 in London, couples who make it up to the top on the day get to celebrate with panoramic views of London and champagne. The dream. I'd love to go camping, well, glamping, in a beautiful wooden hut in the woods but I'd definitely save it until the weekend after Valentines to save money!
Night In: Sometimes nights in are better than nights out. I personally adore going out for dinner, getting dressed up and going out for cocktails but make sure you pre-book early if you're going to be doing that on the 14th. With the 14th being a Sunday, I think this year, I'd prefer to go out on the 13th evening for dinner and drinks and then do something cute on the Sunday. You can always cook a nice dinner at home with candles, balloons, rose petals and you can always just have a cute pizza in bed.
So whatever you do this Valentines day, whether you stay in with your girls, go out with your girls, go all out and go away or, just have a chilled one - may you have a lovely one!
*This was a collaboration with MUSTO but as always it's 100% my honest opinion.
Do you like Valentines day? Do you like any of these ideas? How do you spend Valentines day?
Lots of love, Em x
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