In last week's Finance
Fridays we were looking at reasons why you may be struggling to
sell your house. Thanks for all the extra tips that you provided. For
this week we're looking at one of the biggest commercial rip-offs of
the year – Valentine's Day! Once Christmas is out of the way the
shops look towards one of their biggest money spinners of the year. I
realise many people shun Valentine's Day altogether but there are
many ways to enjoy the fun of the day without getting caught up in
the madness.
My love is like a red,
red, rose – If I did a word association game with Valentine's
then red roses must surely come up at some stage. My favourite are
the big, deep red Grand Prix roses which of course are some of the
most expensive. I told Mr JibberJabber many years ago not to waste
money on 'Valentine's flowers' Naturally, due to the high demand the
price will be much higher than normal. Also Valentine's Day is in the
middle of February so these roses are completely out of season and
will have been airfreighted in and kept in cold storage until needed.
If you're wanting to buy flowers go for something British and in
season such daffodils. At the moment they are selling for around £1
a bunch.
Keep away from the
underwear – If your beloved doesn't normally wear red, lacy
lingerie or tight fitting Calvin Klein boxers then Valentine's is not
the time to introduce such items. If however they genuinely do like
socks with animal faces or Star Wars characters on then go ahead and
buy a pair. They will appreciate and actually wear them plus they'll
only cost a couple of pounds.
No teddy bears holding
hearts – Also forget the balloons, heart plaques and anything
else you see on sale at the card shop. I can't deny that there aren't
a few cuddly toys (mainly cats) lying around JibberJabber Towers but
special themed Valentine's gifts will look naff and out of place in a
couple of weeks. If you're going to buy a gift make sure it's a
lasting one.
Make a meal of it –
Most restaurants will be trying to flog their overpriced Valentine's
menu. Instead of the quiet, intimate meal you dreamed of it will be
packed and the service rushed. If you want to go out for a meal then
go the night after when the restaurant will have returned to
normality. Alternatively make the effort with a meal at home. For the
second year running Miss JibberJabber is hosting our Valentine's
meal!
Remember when it comes to
Valentine's Day it's the thought that counts not the amount of money
spent!
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It's definitely the thought that counts on Valentine's Day. I personally love to receive flowers but a nice bunch of blooms, not roses, are preferred as I know the price just shoots up (no pun intended!).
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your suggestions. My husband finds Valentine's Day especially tricky as this falls the day after my birthday. This year we'll be eating in at home as we usually find that overpriced menus don't usually result in better food or service!
ReplyDeleteWe do Valentines on a budget by not bothering ;)! I have to say I am a Valentines Day humbug, I prefer my romance spontaneous - however there are some lovely ideas here!
ReplyDeleteI have to admit that we don't do Valentines Day as we see it as a waste of money and hubby is normally working. May get the kids to pick me some daffodils instead
ReplyDeleteWe will be in Greece this Valentine's Day. No hype there over the love celebration so we may sneak out for a lovely meal if my SIL obliges and keeps Emma for us for a few hours.xx
ReplyDeleteSome lovely ideas here - we made some paper flowers recently and they were cheap as chips. Me and my husband got together on 13th February (1999!!!) so we don't really do Valentine's. It's a nice sentiment though :)
ReplyDeleteWe don't do Valentine's day at all, but I love your ideas.
ReplyDelete