Receiving and giving gifts is really important to some people, but we’ve all been convinced that spending money is the only way to really prove you care.
Consumerism isn’t particularly eco-friendly though and that goes for Valentines Day as well as any other time of year the shops are filled with themed tat.
What to avoid for an eco-friendly Valentines Day
- Don’t buy things for the sake of it
- Ignore all valentine themed, plastic wrapped cards
- Don’t buy themed gifts
- Walk past the bunches of flowers wrapped in plastic
- Ignore the balloons with a “Be my Valentine” message (Balloons are always a bad idea).
If your other half expects flowers for Valentines Day go to an actual florist and ask that no plastic is used in the bouquet! I actually love receiving flowers, but I absolutely despair at the plastic it comes wrapped in.
What To Do Instead
Over the years the purpose of Valentines Day has largely been forgotten. Valentines Day is about showing someone how much they mean to you. Buying a cheap card, cheap supermarket flowers and a box of chocolates doesn’t really do that in my opinion.
If you like to mark the occasion of Valentines Day there are a few ways you can do it with little to no harm to the environment.
Eco-Friendly Valentines Day Ideas
- Cook a nice meal from scratch
- Pour a bath for your other half and scrub their back (or bring them a nice glass of Prosecco while they’re relaxing in it.)
- Go for a romantic walk somewhere beautiful or in the moonlight
- Give your other half a foot massage (this would be my preference!)
- Buy them something second-hand (even better if it’s something they actually want)
- Draw them a picture of something they love (their cat or dog or something else)
- Do something else crafty – do some needlepoint with a loving message
Making something, and spending the time to do that, is far more meaningful in my opinion than spending money just because you feel you have to.
In short, making your other half their favourite meal or drawing a picture of something that means something to them is way more romantic than buying plastic wrapped crap from the shop.
If you really want to buy your other half a present why not check out some eco-friendly gifts.