How to Bring a Victorian Romance to Your Valentine on Valentine's Day

Victorian's, as prim and proper as they may have been, enjoyed celebrating love and romance. The Victorian's were most resolutely romantic. Flowers, lace and cupids adorned many a correspondence. The Victorian Era was by all means a time that reigned of strong passion.

Passion was controlled by rules of etiquette and proper social conduct. Strict modest behavior hardly allowed for any flirtation. Having said that, how could an earnest suitor possibly know where he stood. Strange behavior, by our standards today, was cleverly implemented by the Victorians. Today if you sat in a bar and turned to the hot guy next to you and gave him your one glove (it would have to be those winter leather ones, mittens are an insult) he would just look at you and possibly say, " no, that's not mine, sorry." However, in the Victorian day this was a subtle communication of flirtation, letting the gentleman know the lady was interested. There must have been a veil of heart throbbing suspense as to whether another shared in your hearts desire. I can only think that this kind of mystery conjured deeper passions and greater imagination.

Another Way to Say I Love You

The Victorian's invented a secret language of love. Flowers were tokens for hidden meanings and lovers had to be familiar with a gardenful of interpretations. The wrong flower given with an incorrect presentation could unintentionally bring about the end of a blossoming relationship. Even stranger to us today, a flower given stem first meant the opposite of the flowers meaning. For example, a mauve colored carnation means, I have dreams of passion for you. Presented wrong would certainly be damaging depending upon your intention.

Today, roses are the flower of choice on Valentine's Day. Consider this, one full bloom red rose means, I love you, I still love you, while a coral color rose means, I desire you. How about a single rose of different colors given to your Valentine throughout the day? From a woman's perspective I would be touched with such warm feelings. And I would love all the different colors. I would interpret that my Valentine was thinking about me all day. For me to do this to my husband would create a very different response. I would imagine him to say when he got home from the office, "Thanks for the roses. Did they run out of red?" For which I would reply, red because I love you, pink because you are my forever friend and coral because I desire you.

The Valentine Card

For the Victorian, Valentine's Day was the undisputed favorite lovers holiday. Valentines or valentine cards truly came into their own in the Victorian era. The Victorian valentine actually began as a cottage industry. Ladies enjoyed sending out scented envelopes with painted images of lovebirds, and garland entwined, while gentlemen engaged in poetic sentiments. Valentines became wonderful verses of sentimentality, with ribbons, lace, and components of small hand-painted hearts, birds and flowers. in 1840, a young women of nineteen by the name of Esther Howland, after receiving her first valentine, made her own collection of hand-made paper lace valentines. Her father displayed them in his bookstore window. The cards were such a success that Esther quickly found herself in business. She organized assembly lines of girls employed to lay down layers of small colored images, paper lace, hand-painted satin hearts, silk flowers and glazed paper wafers.

By 1870 Valentines were so elaborate that pullout tabs, pop-ups and movable parts were invented to conceal the name of the sender. This added an element of mystery and surprise for the one receiving the valentine.

Add a Card with Your Roses

In the Victorian era receiving a card or letter was akin to receiving a personal visit. Often a first card or letter was kissed by the receiver. After many letters and cards they were all bound together with a silk ribbon and kissed again.

With every rose you have delivered to your Valentine attach a ribbon tied around the rose with a business size card attached. On the card write a sentiment of love. As a collector of Victorian Valentine cards I have some quotes for you to use on your small note to your Valentine.

Lovely Sentiments to Use

As a collector of old Valentines I have quoted here some nice sentiments for you to use. In the Victorian Era a bashful lover could buy a "valentine writer." Consider these as sentiments from your valentine writer.

"My hearts a golf ball for your game. You always, with me, score. If I could only with this match you'd tease my heart no more."

"You make a football of my heart, and upon my soul, If we should never be apart, I'd known, I'd reached the goal!"

"In melody divine, my heart it beats to rapturous love, I long to call you mine."

"A feast of flowers here behold a thing of joy to see. But ah! To me 'tis sweeter far to feast mine eyes on thee."

"On the shore or on the sea-thou, art in all to me. Yes! in love's divine emotion, read-oh! read-my Soul's devotion."

"Forget me not where ever you may be, and I will ever think of thee."

"Loyal friendship, pure and true, such is what I feel for you."

"Go, sweet token, with my love. To my Valentine, say that love doth hold in chains, all this heart of mine... take my greeting, then, and say I shall happy be. If in sweet return for mine, my true love loves me."

"Forget me not! No other heart can ever be more true than mine. Though many loving friends surround thy sunny path, my Valentine."

"There is no happiness comparable to that of the first hand-clasp, when one asks 'do you love me?' and the other replies, 'Yes.'"

"In melody divine, my heart beats to rapturous love, I long to call you mine."

"Thou art all the world to this heart of mine; life, and its tender hopes are thine-and only thine. Ah! love, wilt thou to me, be more than Valentine?"

"My love is as boundless as the sea. The more I have the more I would give to thee."

"Thou art to me as a flower is to a bee."

Lovely Start on Valentine's Day

Over one hundred years later the modern man or woman is always in a hurry, off to work or caring for little ones. On Valentine's Day stop and remember why you love the ones you love. Bring a fresh cup of coffee and breakfast with the first rose to someone special in the morning. Start Valentine's Day out with the excitement and love the Victorian's were so anxious to share. Be a romantic at least for the day. Valentine's Day should be everyday, but maybe we need to stop one day a year and rejoice that we are loved and that we love others. We all live a busy life, at least embrace this day to be the one day that is all about the LOVE.

A lovely mug for Valentine's Day and every day!