Valentine's Day in lockdown: How to make the day feel special

Valentine's Day in lockdown is going to be very different from usual: no romantic dinners at restaurants, or trips away. If you're lucky, you may still get some cards in the post.

But how can you make the 14th February with your loved one still feel special, even though it'll just be another night indoors?

Dating and relationship expert Lara Asprey believes "there are some things that we can try which will make the mundane routine of lockdown feel a little bit more spicy".

Here are Lara's four tips:

Make it a date

"I know that we often get deliveries, but cook something really nice together or make something for your partner and dress up, make it into a date."

Switch off Netflix

"I think the thing is that we're all very much creatures of habit. A lot of us have actually become quite used to just watching Netflix, ordering something off Deliveroo and then not communicating, but make an effort to switch off any tech.

"Break those habits, and it will feel a bit more different. So if you normally watch something on TV or Netflix, switch it off and put on some music and talk and sit across from each other."

Try a theme

"A lot of people are even going so far as to theme their dining room. There has been talk of doing bar themes, cocktail things. You can try a cocktail course, set up all of the trimmings and make you favourite drinks."

Understand each other's 'love language'

"You know what your partner appreciates sometimes it's quality of time as well as acts of service - make breakfast in bed for your partner or do something for them. A lot of the time it's time spent together.

"So if you're busy working on zoom calls and it don't really make that much effort to make time during the day set aside a couple of hours for each other to really communicate, but understand each other's love language and know what they would respond well to."

Those are some ideas - but Lara says not to be too hard on yourself if you can't make Valentine's Day feel that much different from the usual:

"It's one of those days, it's a nice thing to do something romantic to remind yourself. You're loved you with someone, but equally, if you're not, it's a wonderful day to remember those who love you around you and family and friends.

"We've had a really rough year and we've got a lot to be thankful for. So stop putting pressure on herself because it's Valentine's Day and think about the good, that's what I'd say."