Every year people empty their wallets in order to impress their spouses – I won’t make this a rant about February 14th only because my wife will probably read this 
! Last year, planned Valentine’s Day spending was $103 per person, and that is just for gifts alone!!! Add in dinner, dessert, traveling, lodging, and entertainment, and you’re sure to whip out a credit card just to handle it all! Below you will find a few frugal Valentine’s Day ideas to help your wallet feel a little love.
Frugal Valentine’s Day Ideas:
Have A Candlelight Dinner At Home
There is no rule that says that you have to go out to enjoy a romantic evening! You can get all dressed up and have a wonderful, romantic dinner at home. If you really want to enjoy the atmosphere of an expensive restaurant, you can have dessert or coffee there, after you enjoy your meal at home!
Some people love cooking special dinners, but if you think that the prep work may drain you before the evening even begins, just pick up something from a local restaurant.
There are actually a few frugal Valentine’s Day ideas that you can incorporate into dinner, but those were just a few.
Celebrate On Another Day
I must admit that I hate the markups that come around Valentine’s Day! Once the paper hearts are hung, you will pay double or triple for flowers, candy, jewelery, and even meals! However, if you wait until the following weekend, then most of those prices will be back to normal!
Out of all these frugal Valentine’s Day ideas, this is the one that I practice every year without exception!
Stay Home From Work
If February 14th happens to be on a weekday, then stay home from work and use the entire day to celebrate! Actually, since my favorite of all frugal Valentine’s Day ideas is to celebrate on another day, then my suggestion is to combine these tips. Take the following weekend to celebrate, and then take a vacation day on that Monday! Then you’ll have a chance to incorporate many of these tips (and the ones suggested in the comments below)!
Find A Free Concert
Many colleges and universities offer free shows during the semester. These concerts are usually performed by the music majors, and are at a pretty high level. If there isn’t one directly on February 14th, then choose a night close to it (see above)!
Share Creative Expressions
I really hope my wife doesn’t see this. You can write a poem or a love letter to your spouse. If you have musical talent, then try writing a love song to them – or at least singing one that captures your feelings!
You can even make a video expressing your love! Just be creative, but be sure to do something from the heart.
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Go For A Walk
If you live in an extremely cold climate, then this may not be for you. But if the weather and temperature permit, go for a walk under the stars. This is one of my favorite frugal Valentine’s Day ideas!
Couple this with having dessert and/or coffee at a fancy restaurant, and you’ll make the night even more romantic!
Create A Playlist
Gather together all of your favorite love songs and create a master playlist! Make sure that it is long enough for dinner, dessert, a little dancing (maybe I just shouldn’t show this article to my wife at all), and other extra curricular activities.
Give A Creative Gift
Give a gift from the heart. Honestly, I hate buying flowers and other traditional gifts…because they are so “cliche” and have lost their umph (yes, that is a technical term)! Homemade gifts make great statements of your affection!
Make A Coupon Book
Remember, when coming up with frugal Valentine’s Day gift ideas, creativity is the key! Something that is fun to do is to create coupons or gift cards that your spouse can redeem for various things from you. You can offer a massage, running errands, cooking their favorite meal, etc.
Make A Slide Show
Take your favorite pictures from your wedding and make a slide show out of them! You can also take pictures from your dating days, and other special events in your lives together, and include them as well. Be sure to have good music picked out for the slide show.
Make A Scrapbook
This is more of a general idea. Whenever you create something that expresses your love, or find something that captures a memory, put it in a scrapbook. Then, every Valentine’s Day, take it out and look at it together! My wife keeps EVERYTHING – playbills, ticket stubs, receipts, everything that will help us remember special moments together…and I love it!!!
photo by The Pink Peppercorn
Your Ideas
- So, what are your ideas (please keep it “family friendly”)?
- What creative things have you done to demonstrate your love, without emptying your bank account?
- Be sure to check out frugal Valentine’s Day Gifts
from Amazon.com!
This article was featured in the following carnivals:
Totally Money Blog Carnival – Valentine’s Day Edition
Best of Credit Cards and Money – Art Edition
Carnival of Money Stories: My Funny Valentine Edition
Best of Money Carnival #90: Valentine’s Day Edition
The Wealth Builder Carnival #28
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{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
Here are a couple of ideas that were fun, inexpensive and personal.
Last year my kids and I made a whole bunch of hearts and wrote the things we love about my husband/dad. We made a poster that said, “You’ve been showered with love.” We blew up red, pink, and white balloons. We taped the poster on the door to the bathroom, and then taped all the hearts in the shower. We filled the shower and bathroom with the balloons.
A couple of years ago, we made hearts with compliments/things we like about the grandparents and then made a poster that said, “You’ve been heart attacked.” We put the poster on their door and taped all the hearts all over the door.
These are some great tips to enjoy Valentine’s without blowing your budget. Did you hear what women wanted most last Valentine’s Day? http://bit.ly/h2DOvI
I thought it was a bit corny but it came off quite nicely – I sprinkled the entire floor of the apt with Hersheys Kisses and in the farthest room from the front door, I had a cardboard cut-out of a heart with this statement, “I KISS the ground YOU walk on!”.
Great ideas, and variations on some of my favorite means of celebrations. I tend to spend the entire day and evening with my husband watching movies and….other things lol.
I like the idea of staying home from work. We’re considering going out on Sunday night, but a surprise stay at home, or half a day off on Valentine’s might be a good surprise to spring on the Missus.
Since my husband’s birthday is on Valentine’s day, we usually will celebrate the day close to Valentine’s day. Restaurants are crazy busy and we hate to wait to get a table.
All really good ideas. I have always liked the coupon book one. It’s a creative way to show that you care, and keeps the memory of the day and original gift alive for an extended period of time.
I love all of these frugal ideas, especially celebrating “on another day”.
Thanks for the tips.
Great list! My husband and I love to create playlists for road trips and such.
Great tips! I especially adhere to the advice not to go out on Valentine’s Day. We did that once and had to wait 3 HOURS for a seat. Never again.
It is much better to just have a romantic dinner at home a few days before or after Valentine’s Day.
We never go out on Valentines’ Day itself; just too crowded. Instead, we’ll have a smiliar evening to KrantCents: a nice dinner, roaring fire and appreciation.
I haven’t done any creative things for my hubby but what I can share is what he has done for me. My most memorable valentine day is last year. He told me he will be out of town on valentine’s day and I was surprised when I woke up that morning the room was filled with flower petals and he has already prepared a morning breakfast for me. So sweet of him.
I plan on bringing dinner in, some flowers, light some candles and maybe a fire in the fireplace. A nice quiet romantic evening at home.
I don’t think I will be going for a walk around here anytime soon- I fell into a snowbank today!
I love your ideas! We often celebrate on a day other than Valentines Day. I think we have a couple high school basketball games to attend this year on Valentines Day- but maybe my husband will take half a day and take me out to a nice lunch!
Love your new site too!
Thanks for the tips. My hubby and I actually did the candle light dinner at home a couple years ago. It was super romantic and we really enjoyed it, especially because it was in the privacy of our own home.
I think that the privacy is the biggest benefit of staying home!
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