Celebrating Valentine's Day
We're NINE days and counting until one of the most FAVORITE holidays of the year: (ST.) Valentine's Day!! Have you finished your party or "date night" plans for the BIG DAY?? Sifting through various vintage readings I came across an interesting article from the February 1928 issue of Needlecraft Magazine and I must say it was quite "precious" indeed...an article written by Anne Pierce during that time period, about celebrating the holiday with "old time doings"...Read on and tell me if these sound interesting enough to become part of your V-Day celebrations....
ST. VALENTINE is coming! What an old fashioned saint he is with his message of true love and romance, his symbols of doves and cupids, love knots of blue and bleeding hearts of red, all set about with paper lace like the nosegays of old. He really was a martyr and if he could hear some of the modern talk about "love", he might feel martyred again! It surely will do us no harm to turn back to the old legend and give the children a Valentine Party. It is a real loss to blot out our traditions.
In the middle of February the old Romans had a festival, and "old Roman" is a phrase meaning a pretty sturdy citizen, not a sentimental weakling. It was in honor of Pan the God of the Woods and Juno the Queen of Olympus. Each lad drew from an urn the name of the maiden who was to be his companion n the merrymaking and when the heathen gods gave way to Christianity, folks still loved the old festival so much they coulen't give it up. "What's in a name", said they, "the joy is the thing". And so they kept the festival and rechristened it after St. Valentine, whose birthday fell on the same date, and "the girl" was called the valentine of the young man who drew her name.
These old time doings give us a lead for appropriate valentine celebrations. The color scheme is fixed: rose pink and red, pale blue and white are "en regle" (in order), with white lace paper and gay ribbons, flowers and candle light to give the right setting. Why not a tall vase gaily bedecked, containing the names (or better still only a description) of the girls or half of the company, written on red heart cards, from which the others draw and so get their partner for the games and supper or dance if such there be?
Tell them the story of St. Valentine and conjure up a picture of the hundreds of years that millions of young folks have been joyously celebrating this festiva., whether Roman or Christian, or under whatever name.
For games, a postoffice and a postman, to distribute valentines -- or a younger child as a cupid in short white tights with his bow and arrows, strings of red hearts about his neck and a basket of candy heart mottoes to distribute to his favorites. Let each guest bring several valentines and "send" them through Cupid to his favorite friends or mail them in a post box appropriately decorated. The hostess should provide two or three valentines for each child, or have them in reserve, to be sure that the party is marred by no heartaches. Colored papers, papers of silver and gold and of lace, paste and scissors and a box or two of the "makings" that come already to be put together, and homemade valentines galore may be turned out in an hour.
A rhyming contest might bring applause. Two line jingles or four line stanzas that like an acrostic spell "LOVE" or "DOVE" or each line beginning with the initials of "Someone's" name, with a prize to the best poets. Jack Horner pies appear as big red hearts, with the "plums" within of appropriate favors; tiny old fashioned nosegays in their lace paper collars, for the girls, grouped in the center of the table, surrounded by unshaded pink candles. They may be set in, one in front of each plate, so as to make a circle of lights half way between the centerpiece and the small guests...
WHOA!! Lovely ideas during the simpler times...the Jack Horner pie sounds delightful!
Posted by Gale at 2/5/2012 3:59 PM 
Categories: Event Etiquette, Celebrations, Vintage Ads
Tags: Valentine Valentine's Day party love red hearts Jack Horner pie
Categories: Event Etiquette, Celebrations, Vintage Ads
Tags: Valentine Valentine's Day party love red hearts Jack Horner pie
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