Love Love Hurray For LOVE! Be Our Valentine ❤️

Did you know that Valentine’s Day didn’t start out with such a pleasant bang? In fact, its origins are traced back to the ancient Roman festival of Lupercalia according to an article on CNN.com. Originally held on February 15^th the festival was a fertility boosting experience complete with animal sacrifices and the usage of their flesh to slap nearby women, you know, for childbearing sake. (Vins a teacher he loves history, you should walk in on him when he's fallen in to a YouTube hole)

Love Bites Burnout   Cupid Boys   Pressed Floral 

The article goes on to state that the Valentine’s Day as we know it has possible origins in two men, that were both named Valentine. One of them, legend has it, may have cured a woman of blindness and one would marry couples against the Emperor Gothicus’ approval. Many of us, especially those in the LGBTQIA community, can applaud a rule bender in the name of love, right?!  

Pressed Botanical

If you find yourself celebrating individual love this Valentine’s Day might we suggest that you lean into that. Self-love is so critical to our overall health, both mentally and physically, why not use the holiday of love to practice it? We are all for self-confidence and individual expression here. How do you translate that to Valentine's Day, you ask? Well, here are a few ideas: 

1. Reservation for one – You don’t need anyone else to go to dinner with so do it and take you out to eat at that restaurant you have been wanting to try. Being empowered to dine sans company is actually super rewarding and you don’t have to worry about who will pick up the check at the end of the meal – oh and DON’T skip dessert! 
2. Stay in bed all day, with yourself! Put on whatever gets you in the mood and explore yourself. There is nothing wrong with some personal pleasure and if you like, try out a new technique or toy. Even those that are in bed with themselves get “caught in a rut” and this is the perfect time to explore you! 
3. Find a platonic friend and have a “lovers gift exchange” - this isn’t to create a moment between the two of you for more to come, but to create a fun and silly way to exchange traditional Valentine's Day gifts (lingerie, toys, food, flowers, etc.) while celebrating the fact that you are both experiencing the joys of not being in a relationship. Lean into it and have fun, create rules and enjoy encouraging each other and supporting each other. 

For the people that are celebrating together we are going to try to give some suggestions that are not your typical ideas. We think it’s fun to do something different, so this won’t be your normal jewelry gifts, cooking, send notes type of ideas list.

Here we go:

1)  We are a company that LOVES underwear so hear us out on this one...swap underwear for the day. Any couple can do it!  Check in on each other throughout the day with fun text messages and share how it makes you feel. For some the fun of being silly will be the best, for some the fun of being naughty will be the best and for some, if you are like us, centering a day around underwear in general will be the best (we also say order NOW so you can get some S&B for this if you want them in time). 

2)  If you are celebrating with someone else, what about a celebration of “normal life?” We live in the in-between moments of life but tend to think the special, fancy, or outrageous moments are better. So many people celebrate love on Valentine's Day by eating caviar, lobster, fancy meals, sharing extravagant gifts, and making big professions of love (none of which are wrong, and all of which can be fun too) but we say how about making the celebration uniquely YOURS? Do you eat take out from the same Mexican restaurant four times a month? Do you love nothing more than wine and pizza on the sofa? Do you prefer chicken fingers to braised Cornish hen, EMBRACE it and make it how you celebrate the day. There is a power in celebrating the ordinary. After all, you know what works, why not give the ordinary the extraordinary treatment?  

3)  Relationships are intricate, unique, beautiful, complex, and sexy. If you and yours are celebrating Valentine’s Day with sexual intimacy, we can certainly appreciate that. Many times one household member does the laundry and changes the linens, don’t lie, you know we are right. If this rings a bell and you are the one that doesn’t do this normally, GET TO IT! While you are at it, maybe hide a few items in the bed that you can find with each other and share the memories, feelings and sensations. You can make this romantic to naughty, your imagination is the only limit. 

With that we leave you to it! Love is love and celebrating that however you choose makes Valentine’s Day special.  

Avec amour, 

Rob and Vince