Opinions

Valentine’s Gift Guide

The heart-shaped box of chocolates was sweet and the bouquet of roses was lovely, but your Valentine deserves a surprise this year.

For Her

Passion Superhero Necklace

$64 from Superhero Jewelry

Forget the bon-bons, Superhero necklaces are good enough to eat. They’ve gained a cult following in the Bay Area, where girls at parties strike up conversations when they see a fellow superhero. Each candy-colored piece is unique, and they’re all handmade by San Francisco jewelry designer Andrea Scher, who is a friend of mine.

A while ago, Andrea noticed that she was hoarding her favorite, most rare, vintage pink and red beads. She decided it was time to set the beads free, and this Passion necklace was the result.

All the Superhero jewelry comes beautifully wrapped with a card that grants your sweetie superhero powers. Free shipping for Valentine’s Day.

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Lace Lingerie Set

$50 from Gap Body

You’ve only been dating a few months; better hold off on the latex catsuit. These pink Valentine undies are sexy but sweet enough to pass as a gift. For her.

The bra is a push up with underwire, which means it’s flattering but not padded. The undies come in boy-short, tanga (pictured), g-string, and a g-string with a lace miniskirt over it. You can get them in pink, lavender, pale yellow, and classic black.

undies | bra ]






Silk, Tiered Ruffle Scarf

$38 from Banana Republic

She’s not that into pink, huh? Maybe your Valentine would prefer this soft silk chiffon scarf in black or pale yellow. It’s luxuriously long, and adds a bit of femininity to any outfit. Gorgeous on a windy day.

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Glamour Girl Marabou Slipper

$29 from Fredericks of Hollywood

These marabou slippers are too campy to resist. If your sweetheart has a good sense of humor and a weakness for girly goods, treat her to these “classic” satin sandals. The utterly reasonable three-inch heel is perfect for scrambling eggs on a lazy Sunday morning.






Small Heart Locket

$110 from Mondera

This little heart locket makes me nostalgic. I couldn’t resist such a traditional, sweet Valentine’s Day gift. It’s 14k white gold and comes with a 16" chain. A small photo or keepsake fits inside, and you can have the back engraved with your names, a special date, or whatever you like. Aww.





For Him

Sterling Silver Flat Foxtail Mesh Bracelet

$160 from Mondera

Jewelry for the guy who doesn’t usually wear jewelry. Even paired with a T-shirt and jeans, this flat mesh bracelet suggests that he has an eye for well-made objects. Either that, or someone who loves him has good taste.

Versatile enough that he’ll never need to take it off, which is convenient, because he won’t want to.






Wiffle Ball T-Shirt

$20 from KarmaLoop

Every man has his passion, but your man is a legend in his time. With a giant plastic bat in hand, he feels like anything is possible. Let him know how proud you are with this slim-fit wiffle-ball tee.






Lazertag Two-Player Deluxe Set

$50 from Toys R Us

Now this is love, girl. Nothing says devotion like a his ‘n hers laser-tag set. It has several different modes of team play: free-for-all, team games, protect the leader, zone games, and so on. If you think he adores you now, just wait until you get good enough to kick his ass.






Hearts Boxer

$17 from Banana Republic

It’s customary. He buys you goofy underwear, you buy him goofy underwear; then you eat an entire box of chocolate in bed.

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Think Pink Cufflinks

$50 from Kenneth Cole

There’s something about the confidence of men who wear pink that suggests they’re good in bed. These blushing fiber-optic cufflinks from Kenneth Cole are modern and dead sexy.





For Everyone

New ID Bracelets

$42 from Buy Olympia

I love the idea of ID bracelets, but they always look like you got them at some crappy kiosk in the mall. This handmade Dottyspeck bracelet is a fresh update. It’s substantial, customizable up to 12 characters, and made of sterling silver. Time to immortalize that embarrassing nickname.

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Pornogami: A Guide to the Ancient Art of Paper-Folding for Adults

$10 from Amazon

If you think the crane is impressive, wait until you see the 3-D paper penis. If your Valentine is a crafty sort, this book will spark an immediate interest the ancient art of paper folding. It even teaches you how to fold tips that will impress the most jaded bartender.






Heart-Shaped Spoon

$9 from Fitsu.com

Wrap this spoon with a pint of Ben and Jerry’s a stack of videos from the corner store. There’s nothing like a Valentine’s evening in.

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Four-Leaf Clover Kit

$7 from Buy.com

Everyone could use a little more luck, and this clover kit is like giving your Valentine a little bit of happy. It comes with a small book on luck, four-leaf clover seeds, and a pot for planting. Nothing promotes a happy relationship like a crop of good fortune.






Hand-Tied Romance Bouquet

$58 from Kabloom

Remember last year when you grabbed a sad little bunch of Valentine’s flowers from the convenience store? Turns out that baby’s breath is a highly potent form of birth control.

This year, give yourself a fighting chance. Order a gorgeous hand-tied bouquet of pink alstromeria, lemon-scented wax flowers, lavender asters, allium and purple lisianthus, asters, and cremones.

If your sweetie likes a lot of color, the baroque bouquet is awfully nice too.

From now until Valentine’s Day, code V5AFF gets you 15 percent off everything at Kabloom.