Love-ly gifts
After perhaps the longest, most never-ending month ever, February is finally here. And with the joy of a new month comes pancake day, throwing your new year’s resolutions to the wind (we gave them a good try, after all), and Valentine’s Day…which can prove rather tricky.
What do you buy those you love for Valentine’s day? Do you go all out, or do something small and extra thoughtful, or is it simply a wing it and hope for the best strategy? Some people spend thirteen days of panic to find a perfect gift: deliberation, mild confusion, a touch of desperation. Others have it all planned out, a well-oiled ship of an idea that is executed to perfection. And some people wake up on the day and remember just at the end of their lunch break that, in fact, the 14th of February is indeed Valentine’s Day and they have completely forgotten (oops!).
Whatever the gifting strategy you adopt we are on hand to help, guide and advise. Think of us as your Valentine’s Day fairy godmothers that save the day!
Valentines is synonymous with bouquets of flowers, boxes of chocolates, and cheesy cards. And whilst there is absolutely nothing wrong with any of these, as a self-certified ‘home of the unique’ gift shop, we’ve found some love-ly gifts (sorry for the pun, we couldn’t resist) for those you cherish most. If you want to change it up a bit this year – inject a little humour, choose something a little quirky – then we’re your place!
What is Valentine’s Day, if not expressing your love for those most dear? The practice of writing love notes for Valentine’s can be traced all the way back to the fifteenth century. In fact, the oldest Valentine note was actually a poem, written by an imprisoned Duke to his wife, after his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. If you, like the Duke of Orleans, would like to channel the romance of poetry this Valentine’s day - minus the fighting and imprisonment, of course – we have plenty of options. Poetry pharmacy have released a ‘Love’ poetry pill bottle, which is filled with excerpts for tenderness, affection and amorousness. These Love pill bottles are a thoughtful and unusual way to convey love, containing prose from poets such as Yeats. All the paper is biodegradable and recyclable too.
And it isn’t Valentine’s Day without cards, and mass-produced cards as we know them became popular from the 1800s. If you are looking for something a that is a little different (or a bit of explicit humour, we have that as well!) then you’re in the right hands! We have the lovely, the sweet, the simple, the naughty, the downright terrible…something for everyone!
We also have the gorgeous red velvet Lobster range in from Elizabeth Scarlett (but only limited quantities!), arriving soon! You may be thinking…what have lobsters got to do with Valentines Day?! (And well, that’s fair enough). It all comes down to pop culture - as these things often do - more specifically ‘Friends’, where Phoebe Buffay explains that lobsters mate for life, telling Ross that Rachel is ‘his lobster’, symbolising a lasting love! And since then, lobsters have been firmly part of romance-culture. There have been many more references between these crustaceans and love since (films, books, and much more). So if the one you love adores ‘Friends’ (or likes lobsters)…this is the gift!
If that isn’t quite the vibe you’re after, birds, particularly lovebirds, are closely associated with Valentine’s Day thanks to Geoffrey Chaucer (one of medieval England’s OG top poets) who wrote about the courtship rituals of birds in relation to Valentine’s Day. Whilst we are not perhaps the first place you would look for ornithological-related gifts, we do have some rather beautiful matches with birds, such as blue tits, robins, pheasants, and lovebirds aka ‘the inseparables’ ranging from £8.50 to £10 as well as some Valentine’s cards which feature birds too.
And if you fancy bringing a little Parisian ‘City of Love’ flair, why not choose one of our gorgeous heart shaped brass padlocks. The Pont des Arts became famously known as the ‘lock bridge’- a place for couples to attach padlocks and throw the keys into the Seine River, symbolising eternal love. Perhaps you don’t quite fancy buying something to throw it in a body of water (we get that), but as much as the locks can be used for this, they also make wonderful keepsakes, or even used for their intended use as a padlock! Each lock comes with two sweet keys, one for you and your love (or two for you, in case you are forgetful and likely to lose it!) Still timeless, still eternal, no matter what the intended use.
Chocolate solidified itself as a Valentine’s staple once again in the 1800s, as the Victorians took Valentine’s Day very seriously. Heart shaped boxes began with Richard Cadbury (yes, that Cadbury, as in the Dairy Milk King himself) as a marketing tactic. As we are not quite as shameless in our selling strategies, you’ll find only few hearts around the shop. But chocolate however, we have plenty of. From the beautifully illustrated and delicious tasting Arthouse chocolate (of which proceeds go towards helping those with additional needs), to local connoisseurs Ganache, with their handcrafted chocolate tablettes, there is lots of choice.
Or perhaps try our Cinnamon Hot Chocolate from UK based company Harth. All made with unalkalised cocoa, and vegan friendly, its fast become a staple of the shop. Cinnamon itself has close ties with romance, being a ‘warming’ spice with magical and spiritual symbolism for harmony, devotion and love. If you fancy some ‘spice’ for Valentine’s day, this might be the answer!
If you would like to brighten the day with a little something, look no further! Perfect for yourself, friends, or family, as much as partners, the ‘Share the Love’ gift package (available in two sizes) can be a sweet reminder to those around that you’re thinking of them. The mini size (£19) includes a Spacemask, rose geranium lip balm and a cinnamon hot chocolate, whilst the larger size (£33) contains a Spacemask, rose geranium lip balm, cinnamon hot chocolate, two pink taper candles, and some matches. Both are available in-store and online to make things easy! Ready made, no fuss required - and delivery sorted too if you order online! (although please allow for between three and five business days for delivery if you order from our website).
Whilst Valentine’s Day is unequivocally all-about-love, it doesn’t just have to be about romance and sparks. It can also be providing a shoulder to cry on for that friend having a rough time at the moment, or sharing something small and silly to make someone smile. St. Valentine may be the Patron Saint of Love, but that doesn’t limit just to passion and date nights! Love, after all, is not just that between partners, but in a different - and still fulfilling way - with your parents, your siblings, your friends, your pets and your work colleagues (anyone that you care for!). And whilst it’s easy to be swept up with the romance of the day (or lack-thereof for some), it’s also important to remember that love is just as much showing up for yourself than it is just telling or showing those you hold dear that you care about them.
Whatever your gifting strategy for this Valentine’s Day, the team is on hand to help wherever we can. We’re always happy to chat, give advice or provide assistance, to ensure that you leave the shop feeling that you’ve found your ‘perfect’ gift for your recipient (or yourself! We are all about a bit of self-love!).
