Greeting Card History...Valentines Day!

I really felt the need to share a bit of my craft's or industry history with you today.
Valentine's Day is coming soon, Saturday, February 14, 2009.

Tradition holds that the first Valentine was sent in 270 A.D. by St. Valentine on the eve of his execution for refusing to renounce Christianity. He sent a note to his jailers blind daughter for bringing him food and delivering messages during his incarceration, which he always signed "from your Valentine."

The Romans celebrated St Valentine's Day as the Feast of Lupercalia, dedicated to the pastoral god Lupercus and to the Goddess of LOVE, Juno.

The Christian Church denounced these 'love lotteries' as pagan rituals. During the Middle Ages love lotteries persisted in France as "chance boxes" that allotted couples one year to get married or part ways. In England, men wore the name of the woman/girl they drew on their sleeves encircled with a heart... Now we know where that tattoo came from...

Written Valentines appeared in the year 1400, often giving anonymously. By the 1700's the verse "roses are red, violets are blue..." became very popular and by the 1850's the French began to design their Valentines cards with glitter paper, ribbons, lace and other intricate embellishments... Handcrafted Cards... *hint* hint*

The first Valentines in America were exchanged during the Revolutionary days and were mostly handmade. In 1840, Miss Esther Howland, an imaginative artist and entrepreneur, became the first regular publisher of valentines in the United States, eventually heading her own publishing company that specialized in Valentine's Day Cards.

See how far back greeting cards go?
See why card makers like me love to make handcrafted/handmade cards?

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as Holidays and special events/dates come up this year...