Valentine’s Day is fast approaching, and while retailers everywhere have already rolled out their annual collections of chocolates and ladies perfumes, we here at Shopaholic suggest taking an alternative route to gift-giving this year.  With a nod toward the experiential over the material, here are some can’t-miss Valentine couple gift ideas for your Mr. or Ms. Right:

• Get your sweetheart tickets to see his/her favourite band in concert.
• Does your special someone have an artistic side?  Head to a local art studio to create a unique piece together that will last a lifetime.
• Take a trip to a nearby humane society and let him/her pick out a pet.
• Make V-Day a day of theatre.  Hit up a community production or take advantage of big city living with a trip to the latest West End sensation.
• Harness your talents to create a special moment for your sweetheart.  If you’re a musician or a wordsmith, why not take your significant other to an open mic night and surprise him/her by performing a custom-penned song or piece of poetry.
• Help your Valentine with his/her dream by purchasing a few months’ worth of music lessons or signing both of you up for a play or film audition.
• Scour vacation rental website VRBO for the perfect cottage or seaside abode to celebrate a quiet weekend of relaxation and love.
• Bummed out by the idea of a holiday in February?  Plan a trip for summer instead and give both you and your sweetheart something to look forward to in the months ahead.
• Take the mix tape one step further by creating a musical box set of relationship tunes, complete with liner notes.
• Take a tour of his/her favourite brewery or winery.
• Create your own wine tasting by picking out a selection of wines at the store and hiring a sommelier to come to your home.
• Keep your sweetheart guessing by sending a Valentine card to his/her work, including details of what’s to be expected later in the evening.
• Get his/her favourite recipe from mum and make your V-Day dinner an occasion to remember.
• Turn your flat into your own private bistro by setting a table in the open space of your home and projecting a romantic old movie onto the wall.
• Give him/her the full spa treatment with a full body massage, followed by a salt scrub and soothing sponge bath.
• Repeat after me: Something practical, and something fun.  Pair some socks or underwear with a tour of his/her favourite football squad’s stadium for a gift that says you’ve got them covered from all angles.

How do you plan to make Valentine’s a day to remember?  Tell us you best ideas in the comments below!

Did you know?

Though celebrated today around the world, St. Valentine’s Day was actually stricken from the Roman calendar of saints by Pope Paul VI in 1969.

-Jeff O.

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