The Right Way To Celebrate Valentine’s Day [InfoGraphic]

The Right Way To Celebrate Valentine's Day

Valentine’s Day is often seen as a day only for couples who want to celebrate their love and affection for each other. However, Valentine’s Day can also be a great way to celebrate many different types of love within relationships with family or friends. It is a day that is tempting to ignore or even get depressed about, but we feel that it’s actually the perfect opportunity to celebrate and just have a good time. To help you towards your ideal 14th of February we have provided this helpful flowchart, following it should give you at least a couple of ideas that really appeal to you and fit your situation perfectly.

Valentine’s Day is not just about making yourself feel good, it’s a fantastic opportunity to make other people feel great about themselves as well. We hope you can use our suggestions to make yourself and a loved one smile and, by doing so, have a great Valentine’s Day!

Infographic produced by Basekit

A Valentine’s Gift for your Man, Whatever the Stage of the Relationship

Christian Singles

As Valentine’s Day approaches most couples start to think of the card and present they’ll get to show each other that they care. If you’ve been in a relationship for a long time then you may have developed some sort of established routine, or thought up a new surprise to celebrate the day.

Young Love

When relationships are new and you have only been together a matter of weeks it’s not always easy to know what your new boyfriend might like as a Valentine’s gift. In the beginning a small gift is more appropriate, such as a CD of a singer that you know he likes, or perhaps a book or DVD.  If you want to get something a bit more personal, and you know his size, you might want to get him a shirt or some other unique menswear item, perhaps from a Hugo Boss or Barbour outlet.

Shopping for the man in your life is never easy, but most women get more adept at it as time passes. When you get to know each other better, perhaps when your relationship has passed the three months mark and you begin to think of yourselves as a couple.

When you have been seeing each other for a few months you are still getting to know each other, if you want the relationship to continue you might want to find him a Valentine’s gift that will impress. Even though you don’t know everything about each other, you’ll know whether your guy has a particular interest or whether he is into the latest gadgets. If you know he’s been coveting a particular boy toy, a particular radio controlled car for instance, then why not make his day with that present.

Getting Serious

If Valentines Day comes around when you have been together for six months or more then other people will see you as a couple and the relationship is probably on a more serious footing.

If the weather is still very cold, as it often is in February, you might want to get him that sweater, part of a unique menswear range that would bring out the blue in his eyes. If you want to give him a Valentine’s gift of a shared experience, then why not book a table at your favourite restaurant. When you’ve eaten you can produce cinema tickets for the film you’ve both been meaning to see, surprise him why don’t you?

Long Term Partners

Once you’ve been together for a year or two, you may be looking at the long haul; there are plenty of personalised gifts available at stores like a Versace or Barbour outlet. By now, if you’re like most young couples you’ve probably been on holiday together and have lots of things to talk and laugh about.

One of the things to emerge in recent years has been the gift of an experience, or better still a shared experience. It’s possible to book experience weekends and although these are often sought after by businesses for a corporate team building exercise a growing number of individuals and couples enjoy the experience.

Shared experiences are the things that help to build and cement a relationship and Valentine’s Day is one of the best times for doing this.

This article was written by Crispin Jones on behalf of Anna Davies the renowned Barbour outlet who stock a great range of unique menswear ideal for gifts.

9 Ways To Avoid Ruining A First Date

Christian Singles

There’s a lot of pressure on a first date. First impressions aren’t always make or break, but they certainly count for a lot. Listed below are some of the dangers that must be avoided if you want to reach date number two. Follow this list of don’ts, and everything should be fine.

Don’t get drunk

If the date isn’t going well don’t think that turning to drink will get it back on track. Sure a little bit of alcohol will help you relax and be yourself, but misjudge this and things will only end horribly.

Don’t take a friend along for “moral support”

You might be feeling more nervous than you ever have before, but it’s probably best to go on your own. Even if your date is the most understanding person in the world, it’s unlikely that they’ll be happy for you to pull up an extra chair.

Don’t order the most expensive thing and then ask them to pay

This applies to both men and women. Obviously it’s traditional for the man to pay on the first date and if he offers that’s great. But if you like him don’t scare him off by demanding his money, especially if you’ve ordered lobster with caviar. If he’s a nice guy he’ll probably offer anyway.

Don’t talk about politics

It’s best to save this for a later date, when the foundations are strong enough for the relationship to survive. At best you’ll establish that you have similar views, and have a pleasant chat about healthcare. At worst it will cause a shouting match that only ends when your date storms out leaving you to foot the bill for their lobster and caviar. Why take the risk?

Don’t talk only about yourself

I don’t care how brilliant you are, nobody wants to listen to three hours of self-promotion.

Don’t be too touchy feely

There’s nothing wrong with a little bit of flirting. Lightly stroking your date’s arm is acceptable. Grabbing them by the face is not!

Don’t go on about your crazy ex

This is a big mistake that a lot of people fail to avoid. Talking about your axe wielding ex-boyfriend who owns a Rottweiler, or an ex-girlfriend who’s been stalking you the last 15 years, and is sat at the next table, might just scare them off.

Don’t take their picture

You might be doing it with the best intentions, but it’s not cool. It’s just going to make you look weird and creepy.

Don’t forget to go

I know you’ve got a lot of things to remember, but make sure you don’t forget to go! Although if you’re planning to do too many of the above then maybe it is better for everyone if you just stay at home.

Despite her occasionally tongue-in-cheek tone, Alison Carmichael is really a romantic soul who gives expression to her feelings through blogging about Valentine’s Day and – just in case they are subsequently required – about all things wedding gift related!