Ah, Valentine’s Day. It’s a delight if you’ve got a beau. 2016 marks the first year I personally have had someone special to share this slightly-overrated holiday with and I am pumped to partake in all of the traditional cheesiness. Specifically, gift-giving! I have been gearing up for the 14th for a couple weeks now, and while I’ve already made my gift selection, I’ve still got a ton of ideas rolling around my head that I wanted to share with you!

You don’t need to be a DIY pro to use this list. Not all of us are glue gun wizards. All of these are cost-sensitive and feasible options for broke college kids such as myself. To make sure I cover all of my bases, I’m going to base my list on the five love languages. For those of you unfamiliar with Gary Chapman’s 1995 book, "The Five Love Languages: How to Express Heartfelt Commitment to Your Mate," Chapman offers forth five different love languages to explain how we give and receive love. These include: words of affirmation; acts of service; receiving gifts; quality time; and physical touch.

Chapman offers a free online assessment for finding out your own love language.

Since some of these could go in a very interesting directions (i.e. physical touch), I’ve modified them slightly.

And remember, even if you don’t have a boo, any of these ideas can be used to show your appreciation for others in your life. (I’m going to use some of these in a Galentine’s Day celebration with my best friends.) So don’t feel limited if you don’t necessarily have a romantic love in your life.

Words of Affirmation

People who thrive off words of affirmation like being told they are loved. That sounds simple enough, but for V-Day, you can do better than that. For crafty people, a heartfelt homemade mug can say the what you want to say every single day. With some Sharpies or ceramic pens, a blank ceramic dollar store mug and an oven, you can create a sentimental, uplifting coffee cup in less than an hour. Find out how here.

If your loved one is not a fan of hot beverages, there’s another lovely option inspired by one of my friends. To celebrate six months with her boyfriend, she wrote a hundred notes for different occasions such as “When you’re stressed,” “When you’re lonely,” etc. It took her a few days to write all of them, as she decorated each card herself, but you could make a smaller number of simpler cards. Put them in a cute box or bag and they’re the perfect, inexpensive, heartfelt gift.

Acts of Service

Service can mean a lot of things, but I’ve decided to opt for two interpretations: serving others and serving your loved one.

If your beloved is infatuated with helping others, a service day might be just the thing to surprise them with. It doesn’t sound very romantic, but working an afternoon shift in a soup kitchen or playing with puppies at the Humane Society gets in the spirit of the holiday and will offer a unique opportunity for some quality time. Everyone, including your boo, deserves some love on Valentine’s Day, so sign yourself up! Besides, what’s hotter than generosity?

Volunteer opportunities can be difficult to find, but in this Internet age there are a lot of networking sites that help you find places to serve near you. NetworkforGood and VolunteerMatch both help users find local service projects that match their interests.

Gifts That Keep Giving

If this section was still titled “receiving gifts,” it wouldn’t really help you out with gifting your boo. For a person who loves to receive gifts, it’s particularly important to pick something meaningful, and even more important to give a gift that keeps on giving!

A photo collage of the two of you, friends, family, pets, experiences, etc. is a timeless gift that serves not only as a reminder of the good times, but also provides some wall art. Most of my fellow university students have painfully bare walls. Art and framed photos are a splurge people don’t always make for themselves.

I made this collage using PicStitch for my best friend's birthday last month. It includes pictures from our middle school talent night, high school speech and debate picnic, and just a few months ago, when we went to Silver Dollar City. You can make these from your phone and print them at your nearest photo shop. If photos aren’t really your loved one’s vibe, Etsy, Human Apparel and Amazon have a plethora of options.

If cooking is more your GF/BF’s style, try a personalized recipe collection. I’ve been meaning to make one of these for my mother with an old school recipe box and decorative note cards with some of our favorite treats and ideas for new ones.

For the minimalist in your life, choose the organic route. I love giving plants as gifts because they’re essential for making a room feel calm and can serve a decorative purpose. Plus, they just make a place feel homey. There are some very low-maintenance options out there for those without a green thumb. Some classics include spider plants, peace lilies and aloe vera.

I have a hawthoria that I bought at my local farmer’s market this summer. It’s a very hardy plant that only needs to be watered about once every two weeks.

Quality Time

Quality time is pretty self-explanatory. And sometimes it is easy to forget the value of simply spending a few hours with another person. So take some time out for the two of you. Plan a hike or a night in watching movies. Take them to the local museum. Make them an elaborate breakfast in bed. One of my favorite things to do with my SO is wander around parks we’ve never been to before. It doesn’t need to cost much or anything at all, especially if you make the quality time a surprise.

One piece of advice—make sure their schedule is clear! While it seems like scheduling in a surprise is counter-productive, your whole plan will be in ruins if it turns out they have work that night or schedule a doctor’s appointment over their usual lunch break.

Sensation

Is your loved one a foodie? Valentine’s Day is the holiday most associated with chocolate, but you don’t have to limit yourself. For the person in your life with physical touch as a love language, you could do the standard coupon book for hugs and kisses, but why not treat your sensation-sensitive person to home-cooked meal? Not sure what to make? Lately, DIY cooking videos have been overtaking Facebook and with easy instructions, even novice cooks can learn to make crepes or a roasted chicken or whatever strikes your fancy. While making a meal might seem simple, it can be a very endearing, memorable experience. Bring your loved one in on the action and cook together.

Up the romance factor even more and spring for a picnic-style dinner. It might be February, but with a blanket and pillows on the floor, dimmed lights and some candles for ambiance, even the most low-key living rooms can turn into a very intimate setting.

Not one for cooking? Take-out from a favorite local restaurant is also completely serviceable. Just maybe think about presenting it on a real plate and your date might not even notice it’s the sesame chicken from Mr. Yen’s down the street.

Romance can be tough on a budget, but with some creativity and thought it’s perfectly possible to make a very memorable Valentine’s Day. And sometimes, you don’t even need material items to express your love. However you want to spend your Valentine’s Day, hopefully some of these suggestions are useful. Go forth and celebrate!