Good Morning everyone! I can’t believe how fast the year is already flying by! Can you believe that it is Valentine’s Day in just a week? I don’t know about you, but I have been looking for some budget-friendly ways to be able to celebrate Valentine’s Day this year with my husband. We are both trying hard to cut our spending way back this year and be able to pay some debt off so we are being very picky where we spend our money. This made me think that a post giving tips for celebrating Valentine’s Day on a budget might be the perfect topic to share right now!
Budget Friendly Tips for Valentine’s Day
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Decorating:
It’s always a nice treat to come home and be surprised with Valentine’s decorations waiting for you! Here are a few decorating ideas that will keep the costs down but the romance factor up:
Banners- You can make a beautiful Valentine’s Day banner for your home at little cost. Go over to thepartyteacher.com for her list of 28 free printable Valentine’s Banners!
Handmade Cards- Do you struggle to find just the right card? When you make a personalized Valentine’s Day card, it will always be perfect and convey the exact message that you want. Use construction paper, cardstock or scrapbook paper and get as creative as you like with decorating your card!
Flowers- I know, you’re thinng “Flowers at Valentine’s Day are expensive!” But you can make your own for pennies on the dollar! Whether you use ribbon, toile, felt, or paper you can make beautiful flowers that will last for years to come! Go to my Craft Ideas board on Pinterest for steps to make your flowers.
Homemade Gifts:
It has been said “It’s the thought that counts” and nothing could be truer when it comes to homemade gifts. These are personal gifts where someone put in serious thought and time to make the gift extra special for you. Here are a few awesome homemade gift ideas for Valentine’s Day:
Coupons- This is always a fun one because it is so customizable. Make coupons for your significant other that they can turn in throughout the year. Here are some great ideas for your coupons:
- back rubs
- foot rubs
- movie night
- candlelight dinner
- hugs and kisses
- snuggling on the couch together
Date Night Jar- This is so much fun to create! You can write date night ideas on pretty pieces of paper or even on popsicle sticks and place them in a jar. Decorate the jar as well and you’ve got date night ideas ready to go! You can make 12 of them so there’s one for each month, or go crazy and load the jar up!
Personalize a Playlist- This one takes me back to my teenage years! Remember making mix tapes for your boyfriend or girlfriend? This is today’s alternative. Make a special playlist for your significant other, and don’t limit yourself to just love songs. Make it personal – use their favorite songs, songs from concerts you’ve attended together, whatever strikes your fancy!
Candy Gifts- Candy has been a staple of Valentine’s Day for decades, but you can mix it up and make it more fun than just a box of chocolates. How about filling a mason jar with Hershey’s kisses and adding a cute little label saying “Kisses from me to you!”? Or maybe a decorative bag of their favorite nuts and a label saying “I’m just nuts about you!”? Maybe pick up a little metal bucket at the dollar store and fill it with candy hearts a note that says “My hearts belong to you!” Maybe even go a little wild and make a candy poster – just take a piece of posterboard and tape miniature candy bars and bags to the board with cute little sayings for each candy you’ve added. Have fun with it!
Dry Erase Board- This one is so much fun and super easy! Pick up a frame that is the size you want the dry erase board to be. Then place a decorative piece of paper inside the frame and add a dry erase marker. You can decorate the frame as well if you want to personalize it more, or even use letter decals on the top of the glass to add a special message.
Memory Jars- This one is so special! If you’re like me you have a box in your closet with all sorts of movie stubs, concert tickets, and souvenirs from vacations and special occasions together. Fill a mason jar with these lovely reminders and present it to your loved one for a trip down memory lane together!
Personalized Mug- This one lets you be as creative as you like to be! You can pick up a plain mug at the dollar store and decorate it to make it special and personal for your significant other. Check out my blog post on Homemade DIY Christmas Craft Ideas that walks you through decorating it.
Decorative Art- I have found so many wonderful ideas for making your own pieces of art to give as Valentine’s Day gifts, and this is one that I’m going to do this year myself! Here are some ideas to get your creative juices flowing:
- make a heart out of corks with the ends painted red
- place a decorative piece of paper along with a message using scrabble tiles or use red, pink, and white buttons glued into the shape of a heart for a cute picture
- take a small canvas and glue a photo onto the front, then use decorative ribbon to hang it
- stencil your state onto a piece of canvas, burlap, or construction paper and place a red heart over the city you were married using paint or markers and frame it
- take cardboard and cut out a heart in the center, then decorate it with colorful washti tape and tape a picture of the two of you onto the back so it shows through the heart cutout for a handmade picture frame
- take cardstock, poster board, or cardboard and put the longitude and latitude of where you were married on it and frame it
- take cardstock, poster board, or cardboard and put important dates in your life together onto it and frame it (some dates you could include: first date, wedding day, date you purchased your home, date of your children’s birth)
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Food:
I’ve heard that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, but I think that food can make both men and women happy at times. We all appreciate a special meal or favorite dessert when someone takes the time to make it especially for us. Here are some great food ideas for Valentine’s Day:
Chocolate covered strawberries- These can be expensive to buy, but they’re inexpensive to make yourself. Melt milk or white chocolate and dip the strawberries (hold the stem while dipping) and decorate with sprinkles or drizzle caramel, hot fudge, or strawberry over it and let cool and solidify on waxed paper.
Chocolate dipped pretzel rods- Following the chocolate dipped theme, these are fun and festive to make as well. Dip the top 1/3 to ½ of a pretzel rod in melted milk chocolate or white chocolate and cover with sprinkles or drizzle caramel, hot fudge, or strawberry over it and let cool and solidify on waxed paper. You can even arrange them like a bouquet standing up in a vase or glass when you present them on Valentine’s day
Breakfast in bed- This one always gets me – who doesn’t love breakfast brought to them in bed? Not having to get up right away is what some of us (who really don’t enjoy mornings) look forward to and is a real treat! Add a delicious meal to that equation and you have the perfect treat for your special loved one!
Fancy meal or dessert- This might take a little more planning, but you can plan to make a delicious meal or dessert at home that your significant other will love. If you’re looking for new ideas they might love, check out my Spring/Summer Holiday Recipes board on Pinterest for great ideas
Activities:
You can still find some great deals for planning an outing to celebrate Valentine’s Day this year. One of the ways to get discounts is to check out Groupon for deals on a nice dinner out, massages or spa treatments, and fun things to do like movie packages or wine tasting. You can also see if there’s a local concert or play being held that you could go together to hear. Don’t forget to check out your local college’s schedule of events for a fun but reasonable time!
I hope this list has given you some great ideas to celebrate Valentine’s Day and still stay in budget this year. I’d love to hear any ideas you have as well so please comment below to share your tips and tricks. And don’t forget to share this post with your friends on social media so they can plan their budget friendly Valentine’s Day too!
