Vintage Valentine

Most of the oldest valentine treasures, produced from about 1740 to 1840, are in museums now and rarely found by romantic collectors today.

The oldest valentine gifts, what we may term as "vintage valentine", are artifacts from 1740 to 1840. Its quite amazing to know that gifts like stand up cards and paper puffs that opened up to reveal cute hearts, bells or fans were really popular gifts in the 1890s to the 1910s.

These vintage valentine gifts are indeed very popular among couples nowadays. They are even a great collectors' item. The beautiful vintage valentine cards from the 19 th century are sold for anything between $25 and $100. Relatively new ones, like those from the 1950s come for a little lesser. In fact, you can get these vintage valentine gifts for as less as $5. Many modern valentine gifts have emulated these vintage valentines in order to recreate that old world charm.

Valentine History

Valentine gifts in the yesteryears were mostly made of paper. Without the latest technology of manufacturing great gifts or sending valentine messages via email arrived, paper was the ideal thing for the lover.

Just with paper, many lovers let their creativity take over. Just with a card, they used different kinds of technique like watercolors, pinpricks, cutouts or sketches to express themselves. In fact, many often added feathers or dried flowers to increase the appeal of their valentine gift. The aristocrats often encased precious jewels or stones in their gifts to make them even more attractive and precious.

Vintage valentines had a unique charm of their own. They were usually delivered by hand and this personal element added to their appeal. In case the sender wished to remain anonymous, the cards would be left at obvious places where the beloved would surely find them.

Although the Victorian valentines are often found, the older ones from the 1740s to the 1840s are treasured in museums.

Victorian Valentines and the Era of Mass Production

The middle of the 19 th century saw the mass production of valentine gifts. From what was entirely a personal effort, it became a specific product meant for consumers. The most popular gifts in this era were red roses, crimson hearts, and artistic representations of Cupid.

In the 1870s, George Whitney started what we can call a definite milestone in the history of valentine gifts. He was the first person to develop material that was required to beautify a valentine gift. Prior to the advent of machines, fancy laces were mostly imported and therefore were very expensive.

The stand up cards and the paper puffs were very popular valentine gifts for a long time because they could be conveniently sent via mail. The puffs which would fold out to become flowers or hearts were extremely popular.

With the advent of the machine age, the Victorian obsession with machines reflected in their valentine gifts as well because of the rising popularity of mechanical valentines. These mechanical valentines were basically toys like ships or trains with a moving part. However, this trend of mechanical toys was just a passing trend in the valentine gifts sphere. But still, they have remained vintage valentines and are held at great esteem by the collectors.