A handmade card is the most personal Valentine’s Day gift. You can’t buy it in a shop, it shows time and care, and people keep such valentines for years. Here are simple but striking ideas — from a pop-up heart to an edible card — with step-by-step tips and suggestions for what to write inside.
Fresh flowers for your home or as a gift: red roses and roses in a box.
One of the earliest known valentines is a poem that Charles, Duke of Orléans, wrote to his wife in 1415 while imprisoned in the Tower of London after the Battle of Agincourt. From the 18th and 19th centuries, cards with hearts, lace and flowers became a mass tradition in England and then worldwide. Customs vary: in Denmark people send joking “gækkebrev” letters with a pressed snowdrop, and in Japan women give men chocolate on 14 February, with men returning the favour a month later on White Day, 14 March.
Cover a matchbox in coloured paper and decorate it with hearts, ribbon or paper flowers. Inside, place a rolled-up note, a tiny booklet of confessions or a ring. This palm-sized “treasure box” always surprises.
Press a few rose or violet petals or small wildflowers between the pages of a book. Glue them onto a card in a heart shape and cover with tracing paper or clear film. The card will recall a bouquet given long ago — see how to preserve flowers in oshibana: pressed flower art.
Heart-shaped biscuits with an iced message, a chocolate bar in a homemade wrapper, or a “tea” valentine: replace the tea-bag tag with a paper heart carrying a wish.
Draw a short cartoon frame by frame in the corners of a small notebook — two hearts flying towards each other, for example. Flick through the pages with your thumb and the story comes to life.
Write reasons, memories and compliments on small slips, roll them up and put them in a jar or stitch them into a booklet — a gift to read all year.
For more handmade gift ideas see DIY Valentine’s gifts. A card pairs perfectly with a bouquet — tuck it into the flowers for a complete gift.
Thick card of 200–300 gsm for the base and thin coloured or kraft paper for decoration.
Yes — an origami heart or a card with slots that hold the pieces.
A bouquet of favourite flowers, sweets or a small keepsake.
Flowers to go with your valentine are available with delivery in Kyiv from UFL.
Ready-made valentine messages are in Valentine's Day wishes.
Author: Maria Svitlovir
Graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Institute of Biology and Medicine (2001). BSc in Biology, MSc in Horticulture. Writes about plants, works at a garden centre selecting and repotting plants, and contributes to plant reference guides.
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