6 Things About Valentine's Day That You Didn't Know You Needed To Know
There are all kinds of mysteries around the origin of Valentine's Day. We'll leave that detective work to you, mama.
In the spirit of our Valentine's Launch (1/18 at 8pm EST), we have 6 things about Valentine's that you didn't know you needed to know until today.
1. We can thank birds for the date.
Fancy that, friend. At the end of the 5th century, Roman Pope Gelasius declared February 14 "St. Valentine's Day". However, it's said that the holiday became associated with love and romance because it was the common belief in France and England that birds started their mating season on February 14. Thanks, lovebirds.
2. A prisoner wrote the first Valentine's card in the 15th century.
According to History.com, the oldest record of a Valentine's card being sent was by a 21-year-old French duke named Charles penning a romantic poem to his wife, including the line: "I am already sick of love, My very gentle Valentine."
3. There really is a "Mother of Valentine's Day", and her name is Esther A. Howland.
Madame Howland is credited with commercializing Valentine's Day cards in the USA. She made elaborate cards adorned with lace and ribbon beginning in the 1840s.
4. Richard Cadbury is to thank for the present-day heart boxes.
Richard Cadbury, son of the Cadbury founder, did it as a sales ploy. Boy did it work when he introduced the first FaNcY heart-shaped box of chocolates in 1861. More than 36 million heart-shaped boxes of chocolates are sold each year. What a legacy, Rich!
5. Conversation Hearts were first....medicine?
Yup. A pharmacist named Oliver Chase invented the handy machine that produced medical lozenges. Turns out, he actually invented the first candy-making machine, as he quickly began making lozenges into candy. Oliver founded the New England Confectionery Company (Necco), and those candy lozenges are now what we call Necco wafers. Wild.
6. Kids are the real winners of Valentine's Day.
Turns out, parents are more likely to gift their children something than their spouse on Valentine's Day (please do 😉). According to a Today Show conducted a few years ago, 59% of spouses planned on giving their partner a Valentine's gift while 85% of parents planned to give their children a Valentine's gift.
As for our launch?
We're launching both Valentine's Bundles (think fun little surcees to give to your child to celebrate Love Day!) AND Class Valentines for your kiddos classroom party. The goodies launch on January 18 at 8pm EST right here on our site.
Valentine's Bundles: We're launching SEVEN (!!) themed Valentine's Bundles to make their Valentine's Day a little extra special this year. Each bundle features two or three gifts and a coordinating Valentine's Card, complete with a fill-in on the back for you to keep and mark this year in their life. We CANNOT wait until you see these! (P.S. We're dropping all kinds of hints on Instagram...)
Class Valentines: We're launching FOUR (!!) unique Class Valentine's packs. They'll be sold in packs of 6 so you can buy how many you need without having 13 extra. Each pack includes 6 cards, 6 items to attach to the card, and the stuff you need to attach them. The best part? They're not sugar. And they're soooo cute.
Can't wait to see what you love the most!