3 Expert Tips To Collect Vintage Valentine’s Day Cards

Each one of these vintage Valentine’s Day cards is unique and delicate. The intricate die-cut shapes alone are one of the deciding factors that make these so special. In this post, I will show you a creative way to display them and give you three expert tips for collecting them.

Made from paper and cardboard, finding these cards in good condition after so many years can be a monumental task, since some cards date from before the 1920s. Because of this, these “will you be mine” cards are sought after if they are in good condition.

An easy way to display them is to cut a length of twine and use a heavy-duty paper clip to clip them on. Make sure they are red, of course!

My sister loves to collect all things old, rusted, collectible, and vintage. During one of her jaunts at a local antique shop, she found an old Valentine’s Day card that our grandmother had given her friend during her early childhood. We marveled at what a far-fetched discovery this was. How in the world would we come across Claudeen Hume’s handwriting at such a random location? We deduced someone must have given the cards up for sale, and serendipity played a role in reuniting my sister with a long lost card from our grandmother.

Many of the cards my sister has collected date from the early 1920s. A few already have the years recorded on them when she purchased them.

3 Tips For Collecting Vintage Valentine’s Day Cards

1. Start looking at antique shops and estate sales during January. Especially make time to shop by the end of January.
2. An excellent price to pay for each one is about $1. If it is especially cute or an intricate die-cut, more than a buck is worth it to invest in such an elaborate card.
3. If you are going to display them all hung together, I suggest you buy ones in similar sizes so that they look good lined up together on the string.

A card doesn’t get more “purr-sonal” than this. This one reminds me of a paper doll set I used to play with at my grandmother’s house. I carefully trimmed out each doll and several outfits. I was upset when the tabs holding on each outfit would tear. Thumbing through these cards makes me reminisce about those days sitting in her sunroom with a glass of chocolate milk. It was always a treat to get a tall glass filled with magic since my mom didn’t keep chocolate milk in the house. I am the 5th of 7 kids, and flavored milk or orange juice didn’t last long. She passed it over at the grocery store.

My sister was able to save some of our grandfather’s cards in which he signed his name to back in 1933. You can see the back if you look closely at the arrow above. Our grandparents have both passed away. Before their house sold, she plucked them from a trash bag. His penmanship was the same when he was so little to his adulthood. My grandparent’s story was one of intense love because they were married for 60 years. Their relationship of love was a phenomenon and an example of a strong bond they showed their grandchildren.

So if you play your cards correctly, you might be able to pick some vintage Valentine’s Day cards up for yourself at the local antique store.

If you like collecting vintage things, you’ll love this article on How To Collect Vintage Christmas Ornaments.

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