9 Ways To Celebrate Valentine's Day While Single

As the month of February appears on our calendars, we single people often get that dread in the back of our minds knowing what's to come. You cannot escape it wherever you go. Target has been prepared since January: the holiday section now vomited pink, red, and white. Chocolate hearts and chocolate candy flooding the aisles. The countless displays of confetti and cards and stuffed bears. Valentine's Day is here, and once again, or maybe for the first time ever, you're alone. 

It's time to stop running away from Valentine's Day section. Let's embrace the holiday even while being single! Find tips below to celebrate and practice self-love by treating yourself (and others, if you're feeling generous). 

Here are 9 ideas for celebrating Valentine's Day while being single or with your friends.

1. Dine In or Dine Out

Cooking can be a fun activity as a way to pass the time and get a delicious meal. Why make a meal for someone else when it's easier to cook for one? You already know what you like and how much you'll eat. Meal kit services often offer a Valentine's Day special for two. I say, make the meal for you and save the rest for leftovers. It's a holiday, and we're single, we deserve to be eating well. If you need help, ask your roommate or a close friend, and I'm sure they wouldn't pass up the opportunity for a home-cooked meal. Check out places like HelloFresh to order an easy way to make a three-course meal. If you and your friends want to skip the work, book those reservations now because restaurants tend to fill up fast. Nothing sounds like a day of love more than a table full of best friends and endless bottles of wine. 

2. Don't Be Alone- Have a Movie Night with Friends

Don't even start thinking about watching the Notebook and crying to yourself on the couch. Call your girlfriends and have them do it with you. Cozy up and watch these Gal-entine's day must-sees: How To Be Single, He's Just Not That Into You, Someone Great, Cruel Intentions, Promising Young Woman. 

3. Watch Infamous Valentine's Day Episodes

Skip the long movies and make a list of Valentine's Day episodes from your favorite shows including The Office, Friends, Parks and Rec, New Girl, and Fresh Prince of Bel Air. 

Make sure you have plenty of snacks, drinks, or a pizza delivery app on hand. 

4. Distract Yourself with Games

Too restless for a night of television? Don't want to go out and see all the loved-up couples? Have a game night with these up-to-date, trendy, and hilarious games for you and your friends or family: Psych! the app, Listology, Monikers, Codenames, and Blank Slate. 

5. Treat Yourself to a Night of Self Care

The one thing you need might be the opposite of a friend night, but instead indulging in a night alone. This is a perfect time for a 'me-day'. During the day to give yourself the treatment, you would want someone to give you. Go to the salon for nails, hair, or a massage. If your kind of therapy is the gym, do extra long work out. Book a one-night stay in a nearby hotel for a holiday staycation. Whatever it is, spend an extra moment doing what you love today. 

Run a warm bath, bring a book, a beverage, and unwind in whatever ways you please. Put away your phone and put on a facemask, light a candle, and get ready for a date with yourself. 

6. Finally Make the Move

This is that push you needed to finally make a move on that special someone you've been eyeing. There's no better day to express to someone how you truly feel, love is in the air! Whether it's someone you've known for years or someone who met only once but can't get out of your head- this is your sign, this is your moment. Depending on how things go, your Valentine's Day could look a lot different next year.

7. Get a Little Sexy

We've all been living through this pandemic, and it's got us all feeling some sort of way. Dive into your guilty pleasures as this holiday is all about celebrating romance. Have some fun being single. Dress up in lingerie. Snap some photos if you're feeling seductive to have for yourself and to admire your own body. Being single doesn't mean you cannot make the most of the typical sexual activities that take place on the 14th. Draw inspiration from your favorite "Sex in the City" character and go out to find all the other thousands of people who are also single on this day. You might just find what you weren't even looking for. 

You don't always need someone else to please you. Thanks to 2021 and sex not being as taboo of a topic, women have been more open with how to give themselves pleasure. Toys like the LELO are a high-end option that has many styles and a variety of prices. Amazon also has more affordable options that are sure to hit the spot. Pun intended. 

8. Embrace The Fun of It 

Remember in elementary school when we didn't even have romantic partners and Valentine's Day was still so fun? No boyfriend or a girlfriend to give a gift to, instead, we just wrote cards to the whole entire class. Visit your local drug store or convenience store and buy the little candies with the cards attached like we used to and fill them out to friends and family. It's nostalgic, fun, and will leave them all smiling. Plus you can eat whatever you don't use. Also, buy yourself a beer, because, why not? 

9. Decorate Your Place

Decorate your place with heart garlands, confetti, and balloons. Making your home visually appealing can bring positive emotions to the holiday spirit when associating them together like how we decorate for Christmas or Halloween. You could even put the decorations to use and have a V-Day party! Invite just the gals, just the bros, or all the other single people who don't have plans. Making memories, especially good ones, will leave you looking forward to this time next year.

You don't need to be in a relationship to feel all the love that's around you. Make this Valentine's Day show yourself you are loved by many and by yourself as well. Show that love to your friends, your family, and to the world.