MANI

FEBRUARY - MONTH OF LOVE AND CARDS

February has long been celebrated as a month of love and romance. St. Valentine's Day, as we now it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition, and the Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saint named Valentine or Valentinus.

One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men. Valentine defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's action were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death. 

Pink Bally shoes made for Ohlssons Malmö, early handmade gloves, off white leather clutch, embroidered brooch, brooch with painted flowers, 60s wedding tiara and various pearl necklaces.

During the Middle ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of bird's mating season, which added to the idea that Valentine's Day should be a day for romance.

Valentine greeting were popular as far back as the Middle Ages, though written Valentines didn't begin to appear until after the 1400. The oldest known Valentine still existence today was a poem written in 1415 by Charles, the Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London. Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a Valentine note to Catherine of Valois.

By the middle of the 18th century, it was common for friends and lovers of all social classes to exchange small tokens of affection or handwritten notes, and by 1900 printed cards began to replace written letters due to the improvements in printing technology. Ready-made cards were an easy way for people to express their emotions in a time when direct expression of one's feelings was discouraged. 

Cheaper postage rates also contributed to an increase in the popularity of sending Valentine's Day greetings. Paper Valentines became so popular in England in the early 19th century that the were assembled in factories. Fancy Valentines were made with real lace and ribbons.

Since the 19th century, handwritten notes have given way to mass-produced greeting cards and in the second half of the 20th century, the practice of exchanging cards was extended to all manner of gifts. In the 1980s, the diamond industry began to promote Valentine's Day as an occasion for giving jewelry.

Various pop-ups Valentine's Day cards, 20 SEK each

Today an estimated one billion Valentine's Day cards are sent each year, making Valentine's Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year (Christmas is of course number one, with around 2.6 billion cards). 

Do you want to send a special greeting to someone you hold dear? MANI store has various handmade pop-ups Valentine's Day cards with inspiration from the early 1900s.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY TO YOU ALL!