The world may obtain a rosy hue as love fills the air, but us singletons can still experience the warm, fuzzy glow from friends and family. See our top tips for staying sane on the most romantic day of the year.

Valentine’s. That time of year when everything seems to be pink or red and covered with hearts. If you’re in a relationship, it’s the perfect excuse to celebrate your love and enjoy all the romance of the occasion. But for those of us living the single life, the onslaught of happy couples and romantic tat can serve as a stark reminder of how single we really are (as if we need reminding!).

Shops are filled with cuddly toys holding hearts, boxes of heart-shaped chocolates and enormous bouquets of roses (you guessed it, if you’re lucky they can come in heart-shaped arrangements too). TV adverts promote his and hers fragrances, jewellery for that special someone or romantic getaways.

That’s all before the big day arrives and your Instagram feed is flooded by adoring couples declaring their love and #Valentines trends on every social media channel.

Now, if you’re not feeling all mushy at the sight of these things, people may automatically assume it’s jealously. Absolutely, you are allowed to feel this way. It’s not wrong to want someone to show affection towards you and all that comes with the meaning of Valentine’s.

However, some of us (call us cynical if you want) do not appreciate the commercialisation of romance, as this frank definition from the Urban Dictionary highlights:

1. A holiday maliciously created to make lonely people extremely depressed.

2. A corporate conspiracy conceived by candy makers, rose growers, lingerie stores, and jewellers to get people to spend money on junk.

More particularly, why is there a need for one day to be designated as showing someone you care about them over the other 364 days of the year?  

In 2018, 31.2% of people were predicted to not celebrate Valentine’s Day in the UK, with those in Yorkshire least likely to participate (37.3%), followed by the West Midlands (35.5%) and East Midlands (33.3%), in contrast to those in London being most likely (73.5%). Interestingly, of those participating, everyone from millennials to baby boomers were equally celebrating.

However, let’s not forget that Valentine’s coincides with Singles Awareness Day. Yay! Just because many spend the day celebrating romantic love, doesn’t mean that we can’t shower a little love on our friends, family and pets instead.

In recent years, the trend towards Galentine’s Day (technically a fake holiday on February 13th, originating from the American TV comedy Parks and Recreation) has encouraged the celebration of all your single girl friends.

Just because you don’t have a special someone to spend Valentine’s with, doesn’t mean the day itself can’t be special. So for those single ladies out there who don’t want to spend Valentine’s alone, here are a few ideas to ensure you can have just as good a time:

1. Do Secret Santa-style gifting with your girl friends. Nothing too extravagant (unless you want to, of course), but small tokens to show how much you appreciate each other.

2. Send heartfelt messages to all the loved ones in your life and make sure they know how much you care.

3. Treat yourself to some pampering at home or a spa, enjoy some ‘me time’ or invite your friends over for a ‘slumber party’ (you’re never too old).

4. Surprise your friends with deliveries of cards and bouquets of flowers – they’ll appreciate you thinking of them, especially if they’re a fellow single lady.

5. Take advantage of the Valentine’s sales with a shopping spree. You could even enjoy couples deals but take your male/female friends along instead.

6. Babysit to enable others a romantic night out.

7. Visit a comedy club or watch comedy movies - laughter releases endorphins, which improves your mood.

8. Go on holiday by yourself or with friends. You might not have a special someone, but you can still have special experiences!

9. Binge-watch your favourite Netflix shows and eat all the unhealthy treats you want.

10. Cook a romantic dinner for your parents. Make up for all those Valentine’s they might have missed when you were little!

Whatever you do on Valentine’s Day and whoever you spend it with, spread love and know that you are loved.

Written by Hannah Bird, who can be found as @thehbird on Instagram.