Part of living frugally includes not wasting extra funds on “splurg” holidays, which for us includes Valentine’s Day. However, my husband likes celebrating all of the holidays, and I really do try to accommodate that (most of the time :P)

One of my favourite frugal gifts to give him, not just for Valentine’s Day, is a homemade coupon booklet. I love this idea for a few reasons:

1. It is super easy to throw together – no need to run to the store at the last minute

2. Valentine’s Day lasts much longer than just an evening out – we usually get at least 3-4 events out of using the coupons.

3. The cost to make and redeem the coupons is far less than an expensive dinner at a reservation-packed restaurant.

Making the actual booklet is fairly easy – sometimes, I simply take a piece of 8×11 letter-sized paper and cut it into 8 evenly-sized squares and handwrite the coupon details on 7 of the pages, and decorate the 8th into a cover, and staple all the sheets together, with the decorated sheet on the top. However, there are MANY different templates available now online which are printable, and look much fancier.

Here is one of my favourite templates, designed by blogger Ashley from Mommy by Day, Crafter by Night:

Simply print out this page (or two copies if you are feeling extremely generous), and fill in the coupons.

I find the hardest part of this activity is thinking of different coupon ideas, so I have put together a starting list of ideas for you!

Coupon Ideas for Your Lover

– Movie Night of His Choice

– Free Car Wash

– 30 Minutes of Cuddling

– Favourite Dinner

– One Free Morning To Sleep In

– “Jail Free” Card – Gets Out Of Any (Trivial) Fight

– One Free Sunday of Football (uninterrupted)

– One Free Child-Free Morning/Afternoon

– Free Night Out With The Guys/Girls

– Dessert For Two

– Day Of Control

– Romantic Candlelit Bath for Two

– Shower for Two

If you were on the receiving end of a coupon booklet, what would you want to see inside? Please let me know in the comments!