Category Archives: Valentine’s Day

Two weeks ago I reminded everyone to get their Valentine’s Day gifts organised, book those flowers, the meal, the trip away and guess what? I still haven’t organised mine!
Am I worried? No, actually, because I know that virtually until the last minute I can ask Cosmea Gardens to deliver a perfect bouquet of flowers and this year I can even get 10% off the cost by quoting HAPPYREADER at the checkout meaning that I can get 50 euros of flowers for only 45 as long as it’s before the big day.
In a previous Valentine’s Day article I brought you quotes from literature that speak of love but there are many novels too which, when accompanying a bouquet of flowers on Valentine’s Day can stir your loved one’s heart or at least make them realise that you’ve got one!
Looking back at my favourites over my reading career, I loved the book – and the film of the book; The Time Traveller’s Wife. It’s such an original story as two people fall in love from different times in history and meet only fleetingly at the same time. The story certainly tugs at the heart strings throughout.
Another great read but not one you’d perhaps give your wife after many years of marriage is The Bridges of Madison County where a put upon housewife gets a chance of love and passion from a passing stranger only to be left with a terrible decision to make as the story heads to a conclusion.
One of the best but most underrated romantic authors who could also hold his place in tragi-comedy was Thomas Hardy. He’s an author who, once you’ve read one of his books, simply can’t wait to get hold of the next. Who can forget the tragedy of Tess of the d’Urbervilles or the Mayor of Casterbridge but for me two of his best and most romantic and yet tragic are The Well-Beloved and A Pair of Blue Eyes.
A modern classic, also turned into a film, is PS, I Love You, by Cecelia Ahern. Again, the love story and humour is born of tragedy and the lead character faces up to life without her partner by him leaving her little gifts to be opened in the year following his death. The book is truly touching but the film left a lot to be desired.
Finally, if your Valentine evening is going to be spent at home snuggled up on the sofa with your partner and you want a good, romantic film to watch, try Valentine’s Day with Ashton Kutcher, Anne Hathaway, Julia Roberts and more who complete a star studded cast in a melange of stories about love and the influence of St Valentine’s Day on it. It’s a little silly in places but has many heart-warming touches and stories to make you think.
That’s just a few more ideas on what to do or buy for Valentine’s Day but whatever you do, make it personal and if it’s too early in your relationship to do it this year, over the next twelve months, try to get to know what your partner likes and if not this year, then next, try to buy them something or do something that will really let them see how well you know them and how much you love them.

It’s just over three weeks now until Valentine’s Day and already male friends of mine are getting edgy over what to buy their loved ones on February 14th.
I must admit that I’m inclined to join them, realising from past experience that cutting back on the 14th means days or even weeks of payback from wives or girlfriends.
Carl, my friend from school whom I’ve known now for forty years split up from his wife last year – and before you ask, not because of a bad Valentine’s gift. He’s recently got a new girlfriend who he is keen to impress and is spending lots in the hope of cementing the still slightly fragile bond between them. He’s regularly waving the air tickets to Paris at me, so much so I’m beginning to wonder if he’s actually inviting me. He’s got a limousine to pick them up at the airport and booked a ‘chic little hotel’ for their stay.
It would be nice to have the money to be able to do that kind of thing every Valentine’s Day but alas, for most of us it’s not possible.
Geoff, who I work with has been married now for five years and each year gets his wife a huge but tacky card and takes her out for a ‘specially overpriced meal for the occasion’ where he sits and tells her how wonderful she is.
For me though, my wife knows how much I love her and says I don’t need to show her on Valentine’s Day because I do so during the rest of the year too. Sounds like a good get out if only I could believe her. I just know that if I don’t do anything then I’ll be for it!
Out in Cyprus, the focus on commercialising every occasion isn’t so prevalent and so we’ll still go for a meal to our favourite restaurant but in the morning, before she wakes, I’ll bring in a bouquet of flowers ordered from Cosmea Gardens and it’ll be there for her when she wakes up. I’ve just noticed that Cosmea Gardens are offering 10% off a bouquet of flowers of €50 or more, ordered online if you quote the code HAPPYREADER and order before the 13th February but don’t tell wives or girlfriends! There’ll be the card – my wife loves the ‘Tatty Teddy’ cards which aren’t too sickly – and some chocolates, specially brought over from England by a friend.
I’m not sure how well my friends will get on with their partners on the big day and wonder too what they might expect to get in return by way of a gift. I know that my Valentine’s Day will be as happy as all the other days I spend with my wife and, despite the relatively small amount of money I’ll be splashing out this Valentine’s Day compared to Carl I think the look of surprise and pleasure she’ll have on her face when she wakes up will be just as good.

Yes it’s that time of year again when those with a partner want to remind them how much they love them and those who’ve caught the eye of someone they like hope to receive at least a Valentine card or if they’re luck, a beautiful bouquet.

I’m still apart from my wife, she’s in England and I’m here in Cyprus so it’s even more important that she knows that although I think of her every minute of the day, she’s especially in my thoughts on that special day for lovers.

Over the years I’ve tried different gifts for her, perfume, lingerie and jewellery but none has been more appreciated than flowers. Last year I ordered a bouquet of roses for her from Cosmea Gardens and they were truly beautiful. She loved them and after the reaction I got from her when she received them I’ve decided that this year, whilst we’re apart, I’m sending her another beautiful bouquet from Cosmea Gardens.

Hi and thanks for joining me for our first steps through the world of cut flowers, bouquets and arrangements. I hope that by visiting me regularly, you’ll learn about the fascinating and beautiful world of colours and scents that have brightened homes and lives for thousands of years.

I love flowers. From my tentative years as a budding gardener aged 7, planting a riot of mismatched colour in my parents garden, through a lifelong interest in wildflowers and on to the look on my wife’s face when she notices the bouquet of fresh flowers in our hearth, flowers have played a big and very happy part in my life. Nothing raises the spirits like the gift of flowers from a friend. There doesn’t have to be a reason and I hope, like me, you’ll soon come to appreciate the difference that flowers can make to our lives.

I stole a quick glance at the calendar today amid the rush of day-to-day life and saw that it’s only two days until Valentine’s Day. If you’re not the wealthy type that’ll buy diamonds then you can’t beat a beautiful bouquet of flowers. Roses, it HAS to be roses, but did you know it doesn’t have to be red roses?

Rose colours have all kinds of meaning so you could send her a secret message by the colour of the roses that you send.

• Red roses signify passionate, sincere or romantic love

• White roses signify secret, worthy or heavenly love

• Pink are for perfect happiness or admiration

• Orange roses denote desire or fascination

• And red-tipped yellow roses are for those newly together as it says ‘Falling in Love’

Whichever you decide on, don’t leave it until the last minute, or she’ll be as prickly as the last plant left on the florist’s shelf!! See the selection available now at CosmeaGardens.com.