Spotlight on Vintage Valentines

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

This German Valentine is wonderfully illustrated with dancing die-cut children on top of a large honeycomb.

Valentine's Day is a special day set aside to shower a beloved with gifts and proclamations of love. Greeting cards are the most common way for a secret or open admirer to express affection on February 14, the date assigned to Valentine's Day. Mass production of intricate greeting cards started in earnest in the 1840s when an artistic woman named Esther A. Howland crafted cards from scraps of ribbon, lace and images (History.com). Valentine’s Day cards from earlier times are popular collectibles. Like other ephemera, Valentines reflect the social sensibilities and design aesthetic of their respective age. Take a closer look at what makes Valentines from yesteryear especially desirable.

Die cuts and paper lace

Simple and complex die cuts add interest to Valentine cards.  Common figural cards showcase die-cut cupids, hearts and cherubic faced children. To imitate the earliest handmade Valentines that used real lace, inventive printers created intricate die-cuts. Printed images of lace offered a less expensive alternative.

Raised embossed flowers, paper lace and a die-cut window add to the beauty of this circa 1920s Valentine.

The intricacy of the die cut lace and embossing is even more noticeable inside the cover.

Embossed

Raised lettering and design elements add dimension and desirability to Valentine's cards. Embossed elements may also be enhanced with touches of gold.

Mechanical and honeycomb

Mechanical cards feature pull-out and/or pull-down mechanisms that allow the card to expand. They also may include levers that enable motion to enhance the message. Stiff re-positionable strips of cardboard help the card stand independently for display. Tissue-paper honeycombs add dimension in a very desirable albeit delicate way.

This Valentine card is embossed and die cut.

Vintage mechanical cards typically have card stock levers (push or pull mechanisms) for motion or that allow the card to stand on its own.

Valentine verse

Old Valentine’s Day cards include all manner of expressions of love, admiration and desire—from sweet to fierce, exuberant to melancholic, innocent to perverse. If you have a slightly twisted sense of humor, you might enjoy BuzzFeed’s collection of Weird And Creepy Vintage Valentine’s Day Cards.

Vintage Valentines deliver timeless messages of love.

Flowery language, illustrations and lettering can be found in many vintage Valentine cards.

 Why not give your loved one a vintage Valentine this year? In 2017, the holiday falls on Tuesday, February 14.

Find vintage Valentine’s Day cards in our Cool Vintage Finds Store on eBay.