Not in the market for a "conflict-free" Canadian diamond?  The following suggestions are free, or at least very affordable ways of making Valentine's special this year.

1) Rev up your love engine with a coconut-berry bliss morning makeout smoothie

Add 1-2 cups your favorite frozen (or seasonal) berries and a ripe banana to your blender.

Cover half way with coconut water and chocolate hemp milk

Blend it.  Pour it.  Top with coconut flakes and a few of those berries or garnish with fresh fruit.  Sip in silence.

This luscious breakfast is complete with all your amino acids and rich in omegas.

It will open your heart.

For an even more intimate time of it, have a fresh young coconut on hand and hack into it together.  Use all of the water and a some of the meat.  Either way you make it, it will be hard to part ways after sharing sips of this blissful beginning.

2) Spread the love with DIY Sweethearts

Nothing says Valentines like "You & Me", "URA STAR" and "Let's Kiss". Instead of turning to Necco to provide those sweet sentiments, get jump start on your loving with DIY Sweethearts.

1) Collect scrap paper: junk mail and cardboard waiting to be recycled should be reclaimed.
2)Cut out hearts: If you're into symmetry, fold the material in half and snip it that way.

3) Spread these out on any surface: Cover the surface with more scrap paper first... painting can be messy.

4) Paint your hearts: Red or pink, vermilion, purple or in your friends' favorite color schemes. Use biodegradable paints if you can and, instead of a brush, give your fingers some playful exercise. A quick rub of the hands under hot water immediately after your done applying the paint should be enough to clean them off.

5) Let one side dry and return to paint the other (in an hour or so).

6) When your hearts are dry'n'ready hand write phrases on them. You can make these intimate or craft them for the commoner.

The theme is love and the more you make, the more love you can spread. Hand them out to passers-by and coworkers as well as friends, acquaintances and your true sweetheart.

3) Skip the heart-shaped boxes, fresh-cut flowers and chocolates. A better way to get those sweet nothings hummed against your ear is by prompting them with a

HUG, SQUEEZE, Hug and SQUEEeeeEEEze

No need to reserve these hugs for a significant other, either--hug yourself!  Hug a friend and hug a tree.  Hugs are happiness and hugs are free.

If you are planning on paying out for cliché gifts, buy Fair Trade where possible and keep it local.  Etsy is a beloved site for the sale of handmade goods, but you could be buying as far away as Germany--making the carbon footprint on that re-purposed jewelry come off a little less than pure of heart.

Image Credits: Coconut Half: Wikimedia Commons, all others: author's own

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