Last Minute Romantic Gift Ideas

For all you out there who have been procrastinating on finding a gift for your loved one, we’ve got you covered. Valentine’s Day is swift upon us, so even if you are out of time for this holiday there are plenty of pretty pieces to keep in mind for her birthday, Christmas, anniversary, graduation, or other special upcoming events.

Apples of Gold offers free FedEx shipping for all purchases and ships many of our items in 24-48 hours, enabling you to rest easy after picking the perfect present – despite your procrastinating ways.

Romantic Red

Valentine’s Day isn’t the only occasion suitable for red gemstone jewelry. Women with January birthdays as well as feisty, take-on-the-world ladies born under fire signs (Aries, Leo and Sagittarius) will love the rich red of garnets.

We love the emerald cut garnet and diamond white gold ring (picture at top) for romantic gifting. The three garnets are set prominently on the ring flanked by four small diamonds to give the ring a pretty sparkle. This ring is just beautiful and looks quite substantial, yet comes with a surprisingly bargain price tag.

Another great romantic red choice is the garnet heart clover pendant. Four heart-shaped garnets merge in the center of the 14k white gold setting. If you feel lucky in love with your honey, this necklace pendant can express exactly how you feel.

Wrapped Up In Love

The love knot is a stylish symbol of love that isn’t as obvious as the heart, but is just as meaningful. One of our favorite classic pieces is the 14k yellow gold love knot earrings. The design is beautiful and timeless, and the under-$100 price point is undeniably alluring for the gift giver.

Personalized Last-Minute Love

For the ultimate last-minute jewelry gift that looks lovingly planned in advance, give our personalized gold heart pendant. Though each pendant is personalized and individually finished, we ship it out within 48 hours – perfect for last-minute gift slackers. The gold pendant can be engraved with her name and personalized with one of twelve different gemstones. Choose a gemstone that corresponds with her birthday or her favorite color. You can even upgrade your gift by picking a diamond as the pendant’s stone. It’s a gift so pretty and personalized, she’ll never in a million years believe it was a last-minute pick.

Valentine’s Day: The Roman Festival of Lupercalia?

No matter what critics say about the rampant commercialism of the occasion, Valentine’s sales from greeting cards, flowers, jewelry, and chocolates go up every year. In 2004 alone, about one billion cards are sent  all over the world; a third of the seven billion pounds of candy/chocolates consumed that year was sold on Valentine’s day; 110 million roses were sold and more or less $2.4 billion worth of jewelry were bought and given away as gifts.

But how did the whole thing start? Although there are many versions of this particular history, there are only two likely relevant and reliable stories to be  attributed to this ancient celebration.

According to the Catholic church, we celebrate the occasion to honor the martyred Saint Valentinus, a third-century priest who defied the orders of Emperor Claudius II not to perform marriage rites to members of his Army. The emperor believed that his troops should only be composed of single and unattached men. Emeperor Claudius ordered the priest beheaded on Feb 14 270AD for disobeying orders.  But delving deeper into its origin, another interesting explanation emerges dating back to the ancient Roman fertility & purification festival then popularly known as Lupercalia.

The feast ran from February 13-15 and parts of the celebration included the anointing of young naked males who would go around and strike young women with a strip of goatskin (goats then being a symbol of sexual vigor). It was believed that this would bestow fertility to those struck (reminscient of Cupid striking with the amorous arrow).

On February 14th, names of unmarried maidens and young men were drawn and paired off to be lovers for a year. In essence, this ancient tradition was Christianized by adopting it into the catholic church official calendar. The feast was officially incorporated in 496 AD but was later dropped only to be reinstated in 1969, to continue into the present-day celebration of the Feast of St. Valentine.

Among the most popular gifts for Valentine’s Day includes jewelry which arguably is the most meaningful and enduring of all.

Apples of Gold offers quality and unique heart jewelry, diamond heart necklaces, and heart rings, including the unique 0.92 carat blue diamond heart pendant (shown above), the Heart Wedding Band in 14K Two-Tone Gold (shown middle)  and the 0.25 Carat Heart Journey Necklace (shown left).

Visit Apples of Gold to secure that perfect Valentine’s Day Gift with fine gold jewelry, diamonds, and gemstones.

This Valentine’s Day, Have a Heart

One of the most famous symbols of Valentine’s Day love is the heart. The universally-revered shape is practically synonymous with the holiday, so much so that nearly every Valentine’s Day gift is heart-shaped. From red heart-shaped candy boxes and helium heart balloons to heart-printed flower vases and jewelry, it’s all been done in the name of love.

Heart-shaped jewelry in particular has been a hugely popular Valentine’s Day gift; especially the omnipresent heart-shaped pendant. Though this traditional style is loved by many, Apples of Gold carries many fresh and novel heart-shaped jewelry designs to choose from. We’ve highlighted some of our favorite finds below to make Valentine’s Day shopping easier this year. From tri-color gold heart rings to a chic twist on the heart shaped pendant, the stunning selection is sure to warm your Valentine’s heart.

Heart-Shaped Jewelry, Served With a Twist

Tri-Color Gold and Diamond Heart Ring

Rings are a great jewelry choice for Valentine’s Day, and this stunner is no exception. The 14k white gold ring features three staggered hearts in white, yellow and rose gold. As mentioned last week, a touch of rose gold is the perfect way to bring pink into your Valentine’s Day gift.

Naturally Cultured South Sea Pearl Heart Shaped Ring

This gorgeous white gold ring (pictured at top) features a humongous South Sea pearl surrounded by an abstract heart of diamonds. The huge 9 mm size of this lustrous pearl makes a statement like only a cocktail ring can, and the halo of diamonds add a finishing sparkle to the style. This ring is the ideal gift for a stylish Valentine who sticks with traditional looks – think Jackio O., or J. Crew’s effortless East Coast chic.

Diamond, White and Rose Gold Heart Pendant

The typical diamond-encrusted heart pendant gets a sassy makeover with a tiny rose gold heart mounted on the side. The off-kilter heart gives the pendant a modern, fun vibe that will look beautifully delicate hanging from your Valentine’s neck. This pendant is also an adorable Valentine’s  gift choice for moms-to-be and moms with a young child; the large heart can represent mom while the mini rose gold heart is symbolic of the baby.

For more unique Valentine’s Day jewelry gift inspirations, make sure to check out our tips on how to Think Pink for Vday as well as an article on the ultimate Valentine’s Day chocolates – Chocolate Pearls.

Think Pink for Valentine’s Day

Ah, pink; the color of warmth, love, friendship and flirtation. Cheeks turn pink at the sight of a crush, and lips color ruby after a heady kiss. With so many pleasant love-related connotations, it’s no wonder pink is such a popular color for Valentine’s Day. If red has been your go-to Vday gift color in years past, consider a change to red’s flirtier, hip little sister, pink. Even jewelry comes in alluring shades of pink that range from soft pink pearls to super stylish, rock star rose gold. Play up the flirt factor this year by thinking pink – gift your Valentine with a gorgeous piece of jewelry that takes her breath away and brings out the pink in her cheeks.

A Rose By Any Other Name

Rose gold, forgotten for a while, is making a big comeback on the fashion and jewelry scene. The gorgeous pink tone of rose gold comes from the addition of copper, and can range from light pink to a fiery orange-red. White and yellow gold makes great gifts for other occasions, but Valentine’s Day calls for something special and seasonal, something…pink. Even the name is ideal for Valentine’s Day – instead of giving her a dozen roses that are marked up on February 14th, give her a piece of rose gold jewelry that will grow in value – and never wilt.

Two Pieces of Rose Gold jewelry We Love for Valentine’s Day:

1.  Personalized Handwritten Rose Gold Ring (at top)

This ring makes the ultimate personalized Valentine’s Day gift. The solid 14k rose gold ring can be inscribed with your own personal message in your own handwriting. It’s like giving her a permanent love note that she will always carry around with her; the ring is such a unique, romantic gesture.

2. Rose Gold and Diamond Butterfly Ring

The abstract butterfly covered in tiny diamonds will let her know that she makes your heart flutter (hey, you can even write this in a card – we won’t hold the cheese factor against you). The soft pink hue on this gorgeous ring will look beautiful on any skin tone, and the feminine shape makes it a great girly gift. Besides, what girl can resist pink and diamonds?

The Pearl of Your Heart

Traditional ladies will love receiving pearls for Valentine’s Day. Pearls are the oldest precious gem and have been worn throughout the centuries by everyone from Cleopatra to Queen Elizabeth. A beautiful set of pink pearls makes an ideal gift for the queen in your life. They’re classic enough to be worn forever, but have just enough pop to set them apart from white pearls.

Two Pink Pearl Gifts We Love for Valentine’s Day:

1. Natural Freshwater Pink Pearl Stud Earrings

Even the most sensible woman will love a pair of pearl stud earrings. They are unfussy enough to be worn daily, go with everything from jeans to a ball gown, and match everything in a wardrobe. Plus, they are practically a steal at under $100. Gifting doesn’t get easier than these beauties.

2. Diamond, Natural Freshwater Pink Pearl and White Gold Dangle Earrings

Make no mistake – these earrings are serious jewelry. Two large pale pink pearl earrings dangle from 14k white gold fishhook posts for an elegant twist on the pearl earring. The pink pearls are placed in a white gold setting covered in tiny diamonds that sparkle as the earrings move. Simply gorgeous.

If your Valentine hates pink, relax! Apples of Gold has a plethora of beautiful Valentine’s Day options, including rare chocolate pearls (ladies love chocolate;  even the inedible kind)  and pretty gemstone earrings. Whatever you buy her she will love, just because it’s something special that came from you. And if she doesn’t, well, there’s plenty of other fish in the sea… we kid, we kid!

Blue Diamond Heart Pendant Collection

This is one of those must-have pieces that we couldn’t wait to feature on our site! New from Apples of Gold: a stunningly beautiful 0.92 carat blue diamond heart pendant in 14k white gold.

37 Prong-set blue diamonds diffuse light into this deliciously shaped white gold heart necklace that hangs from a 14k white gold chain.

Even the bale/hoop is enamored with translucent blue diamonds that teem with life.

This piece is also available with white diamonds or black diamonds (by request).

Another beautiful, more classicly-shaped heart pendant and fashionable piece is the 1 Carat Blue and White Heart Diamond Pendant from Apples of Gold.

This heart pendant features a 1/2 Carat of blue diamonds and a 1/2 carat of white diamonds for a total of a full carat of diamonds.

The pendant is set in fine 14k white gold and hangs from a Singapore chain in 18″ (available in various lengths by request), also in 14k white gold.

Also available in yellow gold.

Visit Apples of Gold Jewelry to view their  Diamond Heart Pendant Collection for more unique and fashionable high-end heart pendants.