Between the beginning of chocolate, why red roses stand for love and who actually receives the most Valentine's Day gifts... These facts are a fun reminder of this holiday that we celebrate. Whether you have a lover, are in love with someone or single, this list of random facts are fun to read. Enjoy!!


1. Based on retail statistics, about 3 per cent of pet owners will give Valentine’s Day gifts to their pets.

2. About 1 billion Valentine’s Day cards are exchanged each year. This makes it the second largest seasonal card sending time of the year

3. Or you could pop over to Finland where Valentine’s Day is called Ystävänpäivä, which translates into “Friend’s day”. It's more about remembering your buddies than your loved ones.  (One of my personal favs)!!!

4. In the Middle Ages, young men and women drew names from a bowl to see who would be their Valentine. They would wear this name pinned onto their sleeves for one week for everyone to see. This was the origin of the expression "to wear your heart on your sleeve."

5. Physicians of the 1800s commonly advised their patients to eat chocolate to calm their pining for lost love.

6. Richard Cadbury produced the first box of chocolates for Valentine's Day in the late 1800s. (Cadbury is the only chocolate that should exist.... just sayin).

7. More than 35 million heart-shaped boxes of chocolate will be sold for Valentine's Day.

8. 73 percent of people who buy flowers for Valentine's Day are men, while only 27 percent are women.

9. 15 percent of U.S. women send themselves flowers on Valentine's Day.

10. Over $1 billion worth of chocolate is purchased for Valentine's Day in the U.S.

11. Over 50 percent of all Valentine's Day cards are purchased in the six days prior to the holiday, making Valentine's Day a procrastinator's delight.

12. The red rose was the favorite flower of Venus, the Roman goddess of love. (This alllll makes sense now).

13. 189 million stems of roses are sold in the U.S. on Valentine's Day.

14. Women purchase approximately 85 percent of all valentines day gifts. (Interesting... )

15. Teachers will receive the most Valentine's Day cards, followed by children, mothers, wives, sweethearts and pets.

16. 220,000 is the average number of wedding proposals on Valentine's Day each year.

17. Every Valentine's Day, the Italian city of Verona, where Shakespeare's lovers Romeo and Juliet lived, receives about 1,000 letters addressed to Juliet. (And are actually answered by the 'Secretaries of Juliet'.)

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