Valentine’s Day, do you love it or hate it? And how do you find an ethical Valentine’s gift?
My husband and I aren’t big Valentine’s day fans, but we do like to do something to mark the occasion. So here are my alternative ethical Valentine’s ideas for you. But before I start, I would like to say that these ideas could be for anyone; husband, friend, co-worker or housemate. Just someone you’d like to tell that they are amazing. And I promise that my ideas will be; thoughtful, affordable, suitable for anyone and won’t involving buying yet more stuff. For sometimes all these special days just feel like an excuse to make us spend yet more money. Oh, and I know they say craft is the new yoga, but if you don’t have the time / inclination to get out your craft box then don’t worry. For these DIY Ethical Valentine’s ideas don’t need any skill in that department at all.
5 DIY Ethical Valentine’s Ideas
Hire Some Help
Imagine how you’d feel if you came back home to a perfectly clean home on Valentine’s Day? Personally, I’d find it the best present ever. So why don’t you arrange for someone to come and give the house a once over? If it’s for your partner then it will mean you can spend the evening together, and not doing endless clearing up after putting the kids to bed. There are a number of apps you can use. We use housekeep.com as they are transparent about their pricing and you can choose to pay your cleaner the London living wage.
Cost: They charge £13.50 per hour, but add 70p and you’re paying the London Living Wage
Create A Spotify Playlist
The days of creating mix tapes (somewhat illegally) are sadly over, but the modern version should not be overlooked. Creating a Spotify playlist can be romantic and thoughtful, plus it doesn’t actually take that long. And if you’re a Spotify subscriber, it is completely free. Plus you get to name your Spotify Playlist, so just make sure you make it really cheesy. I recently curated a list of songs for my husband’s birthday and titled it ‘Stories of our life’ (original!). The playlist has every song on it from our first wedding dance, to the song from the Snowman and the Snowdog that we both secretly love.
Cost: Absolutely free
Make a Movie Box
This is a real blast from the past, yep a DIY movie night gift basket. I made one for my family when I was about 10. Except in those days it included a VHS of Friends & was filled with popcorn & pizza. Today, choose your favourite movie online & fill the box with a yummy meal to have as a TV dinner. I particularly love Cook’s frozen meals. They are all prepared by hand in their kitchen and then you just literally throw them in the oven and 20 minutes later you have dinner, just buy a bottle of wine to go with it. Alternatively if cooking is your thing, but you don’t want the hassle of getting all the ingredients then Abel and Cole* do recipe boxes from £14.50 which serve 6 people.
Cost: Meals for 2 from £7.50/ luxurious Valentine’s meal boxes from £14.25
Flowers & Plants
I know buying flowers as a Valentine’s gift might seem a little obvious. But who doesn’t enjoy receiving a bunch of flowers? And you don’t have to be traditional and just buy red roses. Bloom & Wild and Patch both sell succulents, ferns and other beautiful plants as well as bouquets of flowers. Patch are particularly helpful as they’ll give you advice for how to keep your plants alive. Vital if you as ungreen fingered as me.
Buying flowers is also a great opportunity to support your local florist. Just ask them to wrap them in brown paper rather than the plastic film. You also might like to buy British grown flowers. For did you know only 10% of the flowers sold here are actually grown in the UK? Just think of all those air miles. And believe it or not, the UK does have some seasonal flowers in February such as wild primroses, crocus and aubretia. Online floral boutique, The Great British Florist, has options to just select only British grown flowers. Or bunches ethically source from around the world and give 10% of profits to those in need. Or if its pure luxury you are after then have a look at Appleyard, who kindly sent me these beautiful roses. They use British flowers whenever possible, hand tie all their bouquets and use minimal packaging. For 20% off any bouquet please use the code N4MUMMY (expires 31st December 2019)
Cost: Plants & Flowers from £14.99+
Arrange A Special Treat For Loved One
As a country we’re currently going mad for “me-time” & “self-love”. And I can’t tell you the number of requests I’ve had for my instagram to advertise a product for wellness and self-love this Valentine’s Day. It has actually made me feel a little bit sad. Don’t get me wrong, I do think taking care of ourselves is really important. After all we can’t look after our family if we don’t look after ourselves. But, we shouldn’t forget the value of putting someone else first. Organising a special treat, such as a bike ride or a massage for a loved one is a great way to show them that you appreciate them. And I can guarantee you’ll get back a much happier husband, friend, house mate or partner which in turn will make you smile.
Cost: you decide
If you do fancy buying your loved one an Ethical Valentine’s gift then I have a couple of posts that might be helpful, so do have a look at 6 Ethical Jewellery Brands That Shine or Affordable Ethical Clothing Brands, or even my Ethical Gifts For Mums for Christmas. Also if you’ve got any other great Ethical Valentine’s ideas then do let me know below, as I’d love to hear them.
Happy Valentine’s Day to you all, and don’t forget to make it an Ethical Valentine’s Day
Xxx
Disclaimer – the flowers featured were gifted to me by Appleyard London, the shoes are from Miista which I bought myself. Items with a * show an affiliate link, which means I make a small commission if you make a purchase.
Great ideas, and I love your red shoes! Where are they from?!
Author
Hi, they’re from https://miista.com they are in the sale at the moment 🙂 x
Hello! Great to see people thinking more about the ethics of gifts. In case anyone wants to know more about the ethics of cut flowers, this blog post might be of interest – there are a few issues it doesn’t mention that might also be worth thinking about, namely Fairtrade, modern slavery and whether land for flower plantations has been subject to deforestation. https://www.organicblooms.co.uk/2019/02/10/valentines-day/
Author
Hi Lucy, Thanks for your really helpful article, I loved their suggestions of buying something that has more longevity like a plant for the garden, or a workshop to teach a new skill. Yes there are so many issues around cut flowers and air miles aren’t the only problem by far, thanks for highlighting them x
These are great ideas! And I know I would love if I would come home to a clean house!!
Author
Ah thank you Lii, a clean house it one of my favourite things it just makes everything seem better x