Lavalife Presents a Survival Guide for Valentine's Day

TORONTO, Jan. 31, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Most of us have a love-hate relationship with Valentine's Day. The hopes for Hollywood-style romantic gestures often leave women disappointed and men in a white-knuckle panic. With this in mind, Lavalife, the leading expert in online dating, is changing the face of Valentine's Day by offering a survival guide for couples and singles: universal options of what to do on Valentine's Day and a Valentine's Day Spending Guide, how much to spend and what to buy at any stage of the relationship wheel.

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"Guys hoping to impress a special woman this year don't need to spend more," explains Lavalife's Singles and Dating Expert, Kim Hughes. "They need to think more…as in, execute a fun, offbeat, one-of-a-kind date. As for singles, there is simply no reason to sit home alone. Valentine's Day is an ideal day to mingle with single friends and don't forget to treat yourself: just because you are single, doesn't mean you shouldn't get a gift."

With Lavalife's survival guide, women and men will undoubtedly fall back into the arms of Valentine's Day, reaping the rewards from the ones they love.

Lavalife's Valentine's Day Survival Guide

If You Are Single…

#1 Sign up for Lavalife.

It's for free for new members for the month of February (think of it as our gift to you).  Make February a dating bonanza. Meet as many new people as you can from February 1st to the 13th. Come Valentine's Day, you may have already found the love of your life, or you may need a night off to watch a good chick flick and pamper yourself. Still single on February 15? Start the dating whirlwind all over again. You still have two more weeks of free Lavalife!

#2 Throw an anti-Valentine's Day Party.

Last year, the movie Valentine's Day showed a bunch of single women taking out their dating rage on a heart-shaped pinata. Why not throw a sexy cocktail party for your single friends? Make a great play list, a killer punch, chips and dips and dress to the nines. Or, throw an anti-love movie fest. Load up on slasher flicks, M&Ms and popcorn and camp out on the sofa.

#3 Be a Doll and Babysit.

Finding a babysitter on Valentine's Day is about as complicated as determining the molecular formula of SPAM. Take the pressure off somebody who really needs a little romance in their lives by offering to babysit while they head out for a night on the town. It's not glamorous, but the good karma will follow you around for the rest of the year.

If You Are Taken…

#1 - Bon Appetit, Baby

Skip the expensive, impersonal and overcrowded restaurant scene altogether. Instead, select a dinner either from a cookbook you have never tried or from a perennial fave. Shop for the ingredients and prepare dinner together. Up the ambience quotient by choosing a national cuisine - say Spanish, French or Portuguese - then pair with wine, music, even clothing style from that country.

#2 - See the Sights

Be tourists in your own city for a day. Visit a museum or art gallery, go shopping, canoodle on public transit and enjoy lunch or brunch at a local hotspot. Take along a camera and photograph each other at sites you both enjoy or better, at places that remind you of good times you have had together in the past.

#3 - Double (or Triple) Your Pleasure

Since when was Valentine's Day declared a proverbial bicycle built for two? If you are a couple - especially a long-term couple - chances are there are other couples in your orbit. Grab one or two others, and either have a dinner party or head to a fun, laidback restaurant. Widening the circle will help dispel the romantic pressure.

Valentine's Day Gift Guide

If you're single and loving it... 

Ladies, take the day off and book yourself a day at the spa. Revel in spending a solitary, giddy afternoon pampering yourself. 

If you're a single guy with no attachments, send your mom a card. If you're a really nice guy, consider sending some non-red roses to a female buddy. Honestly, that good-guy karma will pay dividends for years as she tells all of her single friends what a good catch you are.

If you've only had a few dates... 

Spend $50 or less.

Guys, this may come as a shock: Even if a woman has had only one or two dates with you in the month of February, she's hoping you'll send her flowers for Valentine's Day. 

For most women, watching the parade of flower-delivery drivers at work on Valentine's Day is a lot like waiting to be picked for the dodgeball team in sixth-grade gym class: Nobody wants to be the one left over at the end.

If you chose to forgo flowers, candy is by far the next best thing unless she is a wine drinker, in which case a terrific bottle from her favorite region (or of her favorite varietals) is a guaranteed winner.

If you've been dating six months or longer... 

Spend $200 or less.

Guys, we hate to be the bearer of bad news, but six months or longer generally means jewelry. If you need help picking something she'll like, ask her best friend or sister to go shopping with you. 

If jewelry is a no-go consider getting her an e-Reader such as a Kobo or nook. Personalize the device with a selection of titles adhering to a theme such as her favorite titles, books you've read that you think she'll love, the most romantic stories ever told, travel adventures set in places you hope to visit together, titles you hope to discuss/debate over future candlelit dinners…

For more information visit www.lavalife.com

SOURCE Lavalife