Every year, OffCite posts gift suggestions for Valentine's Day. The tradition started when Kathryn Fosdick collaborated with Miah Arnold, the wife of Cite editor Raj Mankad, who is known to be Valentine's-Day-challenged. (The working conditions of the women in the Columbian cut-flower industry upset him.) Fosdick and Arnold's post, Will You Design My Valentine? Great Gift Ideas for Your Love Bun, was a blockbuster. Christine Cox's My Love For You Is Locally Grown: Great Gift Ideas for Valentine’s was a wonderful follow-up. This year, Kathryn returns as Kathryn Turner and with a new perspective.
This will be Josh and my first Valentine's Day as a married couple. So I thought rather than focus on the traditional gift giving this year, I would share some ideas for subtler gifts and experiences.
Josh and I have made a point to write notes to each other on Valentine's Day. It reminds us of what is special about our relationship, and provides a moment of reflection on how far we’ve come. PH Design Shop in the Rice Village is a perfect spot to find some amazingly beautiful cards with just the right amount of romance and cheesiness for the occasion.
My husband is a book lover, so this year, I might head over to Domy Book Store and find some things there that I know he would love (in addition to me). A collection of love stories edited by Jeffrey Eugenides might make the cut.
But if I think about it, we definitely don’t need more books in our house. At print from justafewprings.com of an art work made from the spines of romantic books would be better?
Recently, we’ve gotten into cooking together. The tasting, the adventure, it can be a great couple activity. And rather than going out this year, I was thinking we could take a trip to Penzey’s in the Heights and find some intoxicating spices for an exotic evening of flavor.
If a gift is what you are looking for your chef partner, Penzey’s has great gift boxes and these measuring spoons would be a great addition.
If there’s one spot we will always end up going to for dinner, it’s Divino. This sweet spot of Italian food and delicious wine will consistently deliver. It’s also where we met, so a Valentine's Day dinner might just be in our cards.
In addition to reading, cooking, and eating, Josh and I love music. And there are few songs that will forever inspire romance for us. And if it’s on vinyl, even better. Cactus, Black Dog, and Sound Exchange are some great places to find records in Houston.
With a Girl Like You – The Troggs
Song for You - Alexi Murdoch
Love and Some Verses – Iron & Wine
Home – Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
"Home" is a favorite of ours, and we danced in the moonlight to Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros playing live in Marfa, so it kinda has to be on the list.
It Was You – Aretha Franklin
A version of "It Was You" was our first dance song at our wedding. Nothing beats Aretha. Except maybe Etta. And this year honoring her sultry voice might be part of our evening.
Sunday Kind of Love – Etta James
If you must give me a gift of jewelry, it’s not like I’ll refuse it. These earrings from Anthropologie would make me smile for sure.
Or what about a road trip?! Instead of a bunch of roses that will die in a week, take a trip to the Antique Rose Emporium, just an hour and a half outside of Houston. Maybe you could bring back a plant to remember the day with. And have roses for years.