GREEN VOICE VERVE

Sustainable Valentine’s Day Trends

by Bria Zegarelli

February 10, 2025

Over the years, Valentine’s Day has gained a bit of a reputation for overconsumption and gifts that are never used again. If you want to be more thoughtful and intentional with your gifts and/or traditions on Valentine’s Day while also contributing to sustainable habits, consider keeping these 12 eco-friendly tips in mind for the upcoming holiday!

1) Buy timeless jewelry pieces

We’ve all been there: seeing a product being talked about online and then immediately purchasing it as soon as we are interested in it, only to not use it at all or to not use it as much as we thought. Going into 2025, try to be more intentional with your purchases, and ask yourself whether you would truly use that particular product. Waiting a few days before making the purchase can also be helpful; trying this method can help you prove to yourself whether you actually want the product after the initial excitement dies down.

2) Valentine’s date instead of Valentine’s gifts

To save money and reduce waste, you could opt for a no-gift option and choose to spend some extra quality time with your partner instead. For instance, you could make a special homemade meal together, play games, and/or watch a movie as an at-home Valentine’s date instead of buying each other gifts.

3) Plants or knitted flowers as a gift

If you are looking to be really eco-friendly, flowers are always a classic option for Valentine’s Day; however, you could also buy a durable houseplant that could last a long time and add some fresh air to your partner’s living space. To upgrade this choice, consider buying a nice pot, or you could get gardening supplies if the plants work better outdoors. Knitted and Lego flowers are also becoming quite popular for those who love flowers or plants but have a hard time keeping them alive, and these are a great option because they last forever, so they won’t go to waste!

4) Homemade, memory-oriented gifts

Because they are cherished forever and typically not thrown out, handmade gifts that encompass memories in your relationship are inherently eco-friendly. Photo albums or scrapbooks are a classic option, and there are also artists on Instagram and Etsy who do custom paintings for an affordable price. Therefore, you could gift your partner a painting of your home together or where you first met, which would be a lovely keepsake.

5) Seed paper and recyclable cards 

If you are buying a card, consider purchasing one that is recyclable or made from recycled paper. If you are making a card or are using paper within your gift, you can use seed paper (handmade paper that is embedded with various seeds) that can be planted later on.

6) Fair trade chocolate

Chocolate is obviously a Valentine’s Day staple, so when you’re making a chocolate purchase over the next few days, check the label to see if it has been ethically made. For instance, if it has a Fairtrade label, that means that the farmers harvesting the cocoa beans are being paid fairly.

7) Gift an experience 

Instead of buying your partner a physical gift, you could buy them an experience–like concert tickets, a massage, a cooking class, etc.–instead!

8) Gifts from small businesses

Consider purchasing your gifts from local markets or small/family-owned businesses, which tend to use more organic and locally-sourced materials.

9) Buy a reusable, versatile gift instead of a single-use item

Instead of buying your partner something that can only be used one time or comes with a lot of packaging that will be immediately thrown away, consider buying something that is versatile and long-lasting. To elevate this, consider buying your partner something that they would definitely use in their everyday life but maybe would not purchase for themselves. Therefore, your gift would be both practical and thoughtful.

10) Sustainable wrapping

If you are purchasing a gift that you’d like to wrap, you can buy recyclable wrapping paper, or you make a handmade gift that requires a basket (specifically one that can be used for other things later) and fill it up with gifts that do not need a lot of packaging.

11) E-gift cards

When purchasing a gift card for your loved one, opt for an electronic one rather than a physical one in order to reduce plastic waste.

12) Borrow or rent your date-night outfit – or buy secondhand

If you need a new outfit for a Valentine’s date or special Valentine’s Day event, ask to borrow a friend’s or look on websites like Rent the Runway to see if you can rent it first. This can help you have fancy attire for an event without the risk of never wearing it again. If you still want to buy some new clothing, consider buying secondhand.