What to do on Valentine's Day: eat candy and smell the roses

And aside from eating candy and smelling the roses, here are a couple tried and true suggestions on how to spend this day of sweet, sweet love - regardless of your relationship status.

Couples and singles alike 

DIY card

It's about to get all preschool up in here.

Greeting cards bought from the aisles of a drug store are generally thought to be pretty low on the scale of “popped into my mind while showering” to “your happiness consumes my every thought.” Now it’s fine to teeter around the lower end for the acquaintances that come in and out of your life (you don’t want to creep anyone out), but it’s safe to say things are very different for your lover/bf/gf/formal cuddle buddy. So why not get your hands glittery and make one yourself?

I like to create a heart shaped card, complete with ruffles, dainty borders, and sealed with a kiss. The message you leave on the inside is up to you!

Here's a more profesh shot.

You can tell my inspiration was from Design Love Fest.

Valentine’s Day from Ryan Gosling

This one may be for the ladies more so than the fellas, so if you have a special someone who happens to resonate with the RyGos fandom, consider this idea a keeper (like RyGos himself). Have you ever heard of feminist Ryan Gosling? As if our perception of him wasn’t perfect enough, this fictitious side of Ryan Gosling says things like, “Hey girl. Though the day itself originated through some non-romantic, religiously specific events, I’m always thankful to have a chance to celebrate my love for you.” Swoon. Swoon. Swoon.

Couple Ideas

Surprise bubble bath date

Nothing is quite as steamy as a shared bubble bath (literally). Set the mood with some melodic songstresses and have a glass of wine on each tub end waiting. To really drive home the cheesiness of this entire scene, add a single candle (or two, or three). Don’t be embarrassed by the cheese. Cupid has always been a fan!

Sushi date

Trying anything new with your lovely date for V day can be fun, but why can’t it be yummy too? And not just fancy dinner date yummy but feeling damn satisfied with your exotic creation yummy. Feel free to play around with the culinary theme. Italian pasta dishes are especially fun too – everyone looks rather adorable when playing the Lady and the Tramp. But if you do go with sushi, you can have sushi rolling competitions. Whoever wins, gets a kiss. Win-win, eh?

Single Ladies

A date with your movie crush

Every gal or fella has that one unattainable specimen of perfection they lust over from a tragically far distance – aka the distance between the seats of a movie theater and the screen. At least there’s good popcorn. Well, you know what? Up that quality time with your movie crush. Make him your date all night long with a long list of his favourite movies ready to play, a devilishly large bowl of popcorn awaiting, and a friend or two who shares an equally ridiculous obsession. So keep out, boys! One, you have cooties. Two, only fangirls allowed in.

Secret admirer party

Whenever a Secret Santa pops up over the Christmas holidays, I rejoice in the giving spirit that infectiously spreads through us all, because it’s responsible for this wonderful game of guessing who gave you a present. The best type of guessing game ever, if I do say so myself. Well, now you only have to wait two months (but really this can happen anytime you please) for another reason to get a bunch of friends together and gush over the copious amounts of chocolate received. Instead of signing Secret Santa, sign your secret admirer. You can get as cheesy as you like given the date, and go on to list just what you admire about them. Valetine’s Day is about spreading the loooove, even the platonic variety.