Guest Blogger: Valentine's Day spread from Planning with Emily

Happy Valentine's Day WashiGang Crew!!  We're sending all of the stationery love your way! We hope your day is filled with flower stickers and heart patterned washi tape. (And a few chocolates too). Make sure you tune into our social media today for a very special surprise. We have lots of stationery love to give this week. 

Read on for a beautiful guest blog Valentine's Day spread from Planning with Emily, with a few tips on finding your love language and self care.

Hi WashiGang fam!

It’s Emily here from @planningwith_emily and I am so excited to be back this month and talking about one of my favourite subjects – LOVE! Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and I can’t wait to share with you some of the reasons why I love this month so much and of course share some cute Valentine’s spreads!

Getting to do a spread in all pinks and reds is so exciting for me! This is actually my first Valentine’s Day using my Happy Planner so I went all out with the love vibes and couldn’t be happier with the way this spread turned out. I used Valentine stickers from Live Love Posh – Winter Wonderland, fun Valentines icons from The Happy Planner – Seasons, pink washi and noughts and crosses washi by WashiGang and some Mambi Sticks for the large pink letters, all available at the WashiGang shop! I really love using large letters and quotes and find as a planner newbie, they can really help fill some space if you feel overwhelmed at where to start! They can also help set the theme of the spread too! These pink letters really helped convey the message I wanted to share with this spread – spread love everywhere you go!
My one little word for the year is LOVE (surprised?!) and one of my goals is to show love to others in as many ways as I can. So this Valentines Day I’m focusing more on what I can do to show love for my husband rather than the other way around! Queue, the 5 love languages! 

Have you ever heard of them before? They were made famous by a man named Gary Chapman in his book The Five Love Languages. These love languages describe the five ways in which people give and receive love in a relationship. Did you know that we each give and receive love in different ways? Knowing your partners love language and letting them know yours can be so beneficial to a relationship and can really help you both to feel loved and cared for! There are many free tests on the internet you can take to help discover yours but here is a general overview I included in my currently page!

Words of Affirmation display love through any spoken or written words that confirm, support and uplift your partner in a positive manner. 

Quality time is showing love and affection by spending dedicated, uninterrupted time together.

Acts of Service is doing something for your partner you know they would like and appreciate.

Gifts demonstrates love through giving presents ranging from small gestures to surprise deliveries. (Note, these gifts are more about sentimental value rather than monetary value.)

Physical touch is showing love through affirmative touching such as kissing, cuddling and hand holding.

Which love language stood out to you the most? We all have a primary love language but also a secondary one too! My primary love language is quality time and my secondary is physical touch! This Valentine’s Day, why not discover your partners love language and surprise them with a gift based on their answer! This is what my husband and I do each year and it is honestly so much fun and really helps our relationship thrive!

Now I realise not everyone is in a relationship but it doesn’t mean singles can’t get in on the love languages fun too! After all, one of the most significant relationships you have in life, is the one you have with yourself! Your relationship with yourself is so important as it sets the tone for all your other relationships. Why not invest in a little self love this Valentines Day by discovering your own love language and treat yourself based on your answer! 
I included this fun self care checklist in my love languages spread to remind myself to relax and unwind from time to time. Self care is important in order to feel recharged and at your best. Taking some time for yourself is always a great idea because you can’t love on others very well when you have nothing in your own tank! Here are some fun self pampering ideas I included in my check list to try this Valentines Day because everybody needs a little self love, whether you are in a relationship or single!

• Buy yourself flowers
• Watch a movie/binge your favourite tv show
• Get a mani/pedi
• Give yourself a facial
• Go for a walk in your favourite place
• Read a book
• Order food in
• See a friend
• Light a candle
• Have a bubble bath

This special spread was so much fun to make! I collaged the flowers with stickers from Live Love Posh – Posh Winter and used the scraps from the same stickers around the borders of the love languages boxes. I also decorated the background with some more Valentines icons from The Happy Planner – Seasons. And you know I can’t go past my Mambi sticks so I had to include some on this cute acetate dutch door I made! 
Thanks so much for joining me this month, I just LOVED your company (pun intended)! I hope you all have the most fabulous Valentine’s Day and remember to spread love everywhere you go! I’m going to leave you now with one of my favourite definitions of love ever written! Much love and can’t wait to be back with you all soon! 

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 NIV

Thank you for for the beautiful guest blog post, Emily! We're filled with warm fuzzy feelings and all of the love! 

We hope our WashiGang community are all taking care and having a lovely day today! Remember that love and care for yourself is just as important as love and care for others! Sending lots of love your way and looking forward to sharing our love for stationery together again soon! Until then - please enjoy some chocolate for us and we'll also enjoy some chocolate here at the WashiGang warehouse...