Hey Red

If I had to pick only one color to wear every day for the rest of my life, it would probably be red. I love how versatile the color is: grown up but fun, classy but sexy, vibrant but not neon bright. And it looks good on me, so what else does a girl need? And it is totally right for our upcoming Valentine's day. Do you guys have anything special planned? My boyfriend hates Valentine's day, haha. I'll be a lucky girl if he even manages to return my happy Valentine's wishes! I don't really mind that much, I'm not the most romantic person myself. And it does seem a bit forced, doesn't it? But don't let me rain on your parade: if you want to enjoy the day with heart themed outfits, teddy bear gifts, jewelry, chocolates and hot, steamy sex: please do! I'm all for having fun, so I hope you do. I wrote a Valentine's day guide to romance for guys for Chictopia, and I thought I'd share it with you. Let me know what you think!

A GIFT FROM THE HEART: one for the guys!

It’s the most nervewrecking time of the year (hum along, it might help): Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and your special someone is expecting a token of your luuuuuuv. Not very creative? Don’t fret: Chictopia is here to save your Valentine’s Day! Whether you’ve put off finding a present until the very last few days because you just can’t conjure anything up, or you just want something extra to make the day even more special, these tips will sure help you along the way to discover your inner romantic.

Tip 1: Gifts: Don’t Buy!

Unless your lover has been throwing hints at you for months about a certain something she is madly in love with, you probably have no clue as to what to buy her. People already have everything these days. This brings me to my first tip for you: try to let go of the idea you need to “buy something”, and consider the thought of MAKING something. No, she probably won’t be very happy with a macaroni pictureframe, so you’ll have to be a bit more creative than that. 

Vintage isn’t only a wardrobe trendword, it can also inspire you to do something else on the gift-giving field. Remember mixtapes? Making your partner an actual tape probably isn’t the best idea in the world, since tapes practically don’t even EXIST anymore (do they?), but you CAN however make him/her a CD, or sneakily steal their mp3 player and create a special Valentine’s day folder. 

What to put in? Hey dude, you’re not a baby, you can think for yourself. Try and remember special moments you shared together: do you have a certain very cheesy song you always sing along to in the car? How about the themesong of the very first movie you ever saw together? The song you danced your very first slow to? The ones your lover always sings in the shower? Try to make it mean something, and if necessary, explain to her why you chose these songs. Just talking about the effort and thought you put into it will probably have her declare you the best boyfriend EVER!

Another cool idea would be to record a spoken message for your beloved, and put it on their computer as the starting up sound. Anyway, you get the picture: be creative! Something unique from you for her will mean the world, and be way more memorable than a frigging box of chocolates.

Not that you can’t get the chocolates as a supplementary gift.

Tip 2: Activities: What Does Your Partner Like?

You know your girl better than I do. So tell me, what does she like to do? Does she love cooking? Go take a cooking lesson with her. Does she love movies? Plan a filmmarathon and rent all the movies she wants you to see, but you haven’t gotten around to seeing (read: don’t want to see because they look boring). Master tip: don’t ruin it for her, and try your best to ACTUALLY like these movies. If not: fake it til you make it. That’s romance for ya. 

Is she an active girl and not afraid of heights? Go wall climbing with her: having the other person’s back and cheering each other on is more romantic than you’d think. Has she been having a very stressful time at work? Plan a day/weekend at the spa for the two of you.

You’ve probably noticed that I’ve described these activities as something the two of you will do, rather than you giving her a gift to have fun with on her own. Valentine’s day is the day of lovers, and I have no idea why the festivities shouldn’t include the both of you! Sending her off to get a pedicure might be relaxing for her, but it isn’t exactly romantic. Now, getting a pedicure together will be both hilarious (since macho men always get very flustered in these sort of scenarios) AND romantic, because you’ll be having some extra time to spend together, having fun, talking, out of your everyday habits of “take the trash out” and “what should we get for dinner?”. Which brings me to my final point.

Tip 3: Effort: Quality T.I.M.E.

The most important thing for you to remember is to put in a bit of effort. Don’t go for run of the mill solutions like buying her lame ass jewelry, flowers or chocolates. How personal is that? About as personal as buying her a gift card. Gift cards are the devil. What you DO want to do is put in a bit of effort. The ultimate goal for Valentine’s day is to spend some quality time with your loved one, to celebrate the love you feel for each other and to give those feelings an extra boost. 

A cool idea for those who feel like their relationship has been in the dumps lately would be to try and relive your very first date. Pick her up after work/school and take her out on a surprise date to revisit the beginnings of your relationship. Try to even wear the same things you wore back then (can turn out to be very funny if you were still teenagers when you first hooked up: break out those shorts, band T-s and sneakers!), go to the same places, eat the same food, watch the same movie, dance to the same songs and fall in love all over again!

If that doesn’t ring your bell, you could try and show her the effort you’re willing to put in by doing something you usually wouldn’t do. Does she do all the cooking? Ask people for cooking advice or google an easy recipe, and surprise her with a romantic dinner at home! Again, it won’t matter if you turn out to be a crappy chef: she’ll be over the moon because you made the effort. My boyfriend once made me potato salad to come home to after a long day of work, and it was the best food I’d ever eaten. Even if he had put in about an entire bowl of mayonaise too much. And NO, don’t order in, that doesn’t require more effort than picking up the phone and dialing a number. Make something yourself, lazy bum!

If all of this doesn’t get you two in a romantic mood, you might have a heart the size of the Grinch’s. 

 top, tights, boots: H&M

skirt: vintage (T2)

nailpolish: Catrice

belt: Pimkie