Here’s the next article in the series of candid chats with some of the UK’s top money bloggers on the matter of Valentine and Money. Really good to hear things from the male perspective. The first is from Joe,  from the thriftychap.com.

On the issue of getting children involved in Valentines Day ie. gifting them or giving them cards and expecting them to do the same, he says,

 

‘I think it’s a great idea if they want to get involved. Explaining it to them and if you want to give them a gift is great. It should never be expected that they should get you something though. Perhaps spending the day as a family would make more sense than buying for the sake of buying. Make memories, not clutter.’

 

He  shared his views on his significant other’s spending habits at Valentines:

‘We both use to be quite over the top, now we are careful with our spending. We always do cards but don’t necessarily do gifts. I think she would spend more if we agreed on it. We’ll likely say to one another “I need a new shirt, I’ve seen this one, could I have it for Valentines?” Rather than chocolates – we’re still eating Christmas chocolates at Valentines & Easter is just around the corner!’

He thinks that couples should agree a spending limit for valentines, and explains why:

‘Yes. Definitely. Small gifts often mean more as time and thought has gone into them. Anyone could spend £50 on flowers if you had £50 to spend but it doesn’t necessarily mean anything. Financial worries are one of the biggest causes of stress in marriage, so don’t blow loads of cash to only worry the day after Valentine’s Day!’

He doesn’t agree with the statement that ‘men are rubbish at choosing/buying proper Valentines gifts’.

I fully disagree. I tend to buy things in the sale and put them away. For instance, my wife loves Seasalt dresses but I hate the price tag. So I shop the sale, put them away and ensure I have them to cover birthdays and Mother’s Day etc. For Valentine’s Day I’ve got my wife a little something from Paperchase, bought in the sale of course

Now the Fun Bit

• Tell us the one thing (that money can buy) that you wish you could get for Valentines Day OR share a pic of something you want or plan to give this Valentines Day (family friendly please)

 

I think time together is something money can’t buy. Spending an evening, distraction-free, in front of a movie on the TV together is awesome. We used to go out for meals but now with young children, our nights are mainly spent indoors. That’s not a bad thing at all but there are always distractions. Turn off the WiFi (unless you are streaming a movie!) or just put your phones in a drawer. Forget the washing for one night, unplug the landline and if the kids wake up, bring them downstairs for a cuddle, they are a product of your love after all!

Ah, I love this and the best bit is ‘Financial worries are one of the biggest causes of stress in marriage, so don’t blow loads of cash to only worry the day after Valentine’s Day!’

Now From Money Blogger David

David blogs at Money for Monday I asked him for his views on getting children involved in Valentines Day ie. Gifting them or giving them valentines cards and expecting them to do the same, for example.

‘I don’t think there is anything wrong in the exchange of cards for a             school  crush as a bit of fun, but the day in itself is about love and             romance, so the idea of getting children to exchange gifts and cards with             parents seems odd.’

That’s interesting! So what are your views on your significant other’s spending habits at Valentines?

‘My wife has the same view as me, in that we just don’t bother. We will exchange a card at most’.

David was asked whether he thought couples should agree on a spending limit for valentines? Why or why not?

‘Most definitely, setting a spending limit is an important part of financial             planning and budgeting.’

Here’s his view on the statement that ‘men are rubbish at choosing/buying proper Valentines gifts.

‘I don’t believe this to be a fair statement.  I think men and women can be equally as rubbish at choosing a gifts for any occasion not just valentines day.’

Now the Fun Bit

1. Share a funny Valentine story

‘I don’t share the same love in jewellery as Mr T, and nearly received             some from an old girlfriend.  I subtly had to drop hints that it wasn’t for me.’

2. Tell us the one thing (that money can buy) that you wish you could get for Valentines Day

‘I’m a sucker for white chocolate so anything with white chocolate will do me nicely.’

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I then got the chance to hear from another male UK money blogger Ken.  He blogs at The humble Penny.

What do you think about getting children involved in Valentines Day, I asked him. Gifting them or giving them cards and expecting them to do the same, is an example. We expect our children to be loving and kind generally and Valentines day is another day for them to show this

I wanted to find out his views on his significant other’s spending habits at Valentines.  My views are that she should avoid spending at this time. We usually find something fun to do, which is cost effective.

Note, that this is what he would like. But I wonder what she would think. Anyway, I asked him if he thinks couples should agree to a spending limit for valentines and why or why not. Because the day is a purely commercial affair, ideally one person should deal with booking anything, but we aim to keep total spend not more than £100. Interesting.

His view on the statement that ‘men are rubbish at choosing/buying proper Valentines gifts, he says it’s far too generic a statement. A caring and thoughtful man can buy a present that shows they have had some consideration before buying it.

Here are some ideas if your Valentine is hard to shop for. And some ideas for you.

Now the Fun Bit

 

1. Tell us about the most rubbish valentine gift you ever got.                      A teddy bear. What on earth am I to do with one? Then again, this was given to me many years ago before I got married.
2. Tell us the one thing (that money can buy) that you wish you could get for Valentines Day OR share a pic of something you want or plan to give this Valentines Day (family friendly please) A really nice beach holiday to somewhere exotic. This is highly unlikely to happen, however, doesn’t stop me dreaming 😉

 

Thanks so much to these guys for taking the time to share their views with us. Do you share their views? Do you think the day is too commercialized Let us know in the comments below.

ps. Have you seen our funny valentines post?

This post was proofread by Grammarly