Happy Valentine's Day from The Candle Tree. If you enjoy celebrating this occasion Valentine's is big event is many countries around the world. About 1 billion Valentine’s Day cards are exchanged each year. This makes it the second largest seasonal card sending time of the year, Christmas being the first!

There are lots of different theories as to how Valentine's Day originated:

• During the Middle Ages in both England and France it was commonly accepted that February 14 was the beginning of the bird’s mating season and as a result the date became associated with one of love and coupling.

• Credit is given to the Romans for the birth of Valentine’s Day. According to one theory, the Romans celebrated the Feast of Lupercalia from February 13 to 15. This was a time in which fertility was celebrated.

• The oldest known Valentine in existence was written by the revered poet; Charles, The Duke of New Orleans way back in 1415. The Duke is credited with coined the phrase ‘My Valentine’.

• Leading on from this, literature giants Geoffrey Chaucer and William Shakespeare contributed significantly to the growth in popularity of February 14 as a day for the lovers during the Middle Ages.

• In 1537, England's King Henry VII officially declared February 14th the holiday of St. Valentine's Day.

So, once Valentine's Day was an established celebrated holiday, how did we come to associated flowers and chocolates with the celebration? The history of giving your loved one Valentine’s Day flowers comes from the old-fashioned custom of sending floral bouquets to pass on non-verbal messages. Introduced in the 18th century by Charles II of Sweden, each flower had a specific meaning attached to it, making it possible to have an entire conversation using only flowers. Chocolate came later, gradually increasing in popularity from the Victorian era onwards. These days, people are quite likely to give more varied gifts that are symbolic of love and romance; such as candles, perfume and jewellery.

• 73% of people who buy flowers on this day are men, while only 27% are women. In fact, it has been recorded that 15% of U.S. women send themselves flowers on Valentine's Day.

• The red rose was the favourite flower of Venus, the Roman goddess of love. Red roses are considered the flower of love because the color red stands for strong romantic feelings.

• Interestingly, physicians of the 1800s commonly advised their patients to eat chocolate to calm their pining for lost love.

• The Victorians increased the popularity of giving chocolate as a love gift. Etiquette books and chocolate advertisers alike encouraged the view that an exchange of chocolates between a man and a woman was tantamount to a declaration of love.

• Richard Cadbury produced the first box of chocolates for this holiday in the late 1800s. Today, more than 35 million heart-shaped boxes of chocolate will be sold!

• Every Valentine's Day, the Italian city of Verona, where Shakespeare's lovers Romeo and Juliet lived, receives about 1,000 letters addressed to Juliet.

• 220,000 is the average number of wedding proposals on Valentine's Day each year!

Wishing you all a lovely Valentine's Day and remember it's not too late to treat yourself or a loved one! We have large range of candles, hand crafted french soaps, home fragrances, bath & body products, jewellery, creative lighting and accessories. Pop along to our treasure trove of gifts based in the heart of Gloucester, or take a look online at The Candle Tree.