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The Good Life For Less: Love These Valentine's Deals

Don't get caught up in the hype that you have to 'Spend! Spend! Spend!' on Valentine's Day. I know many people think it's a made-up holiday to sell greeting cards, but there's a lot of love behind the day. When giving a gift, my vote is to always go with something homemade or from the heart. Here was a blog post I did last year on inexpensive gift ideas -- (I'm telling you the personalized coupon book still works wonders!)

This year, I'm also going to give you some ways to save if you are looking to give a more traditional gift (flowers, lingerie, etc.). Check out some of the featured deals below and remember, if you can get/give flowers before or after 'V' Day -- do it! It will save you more money than any coupon code can.

Flowers

ProFlowers - Order by Feb. 10 and you can get many deals on ranging from $19.99 for a growers choice bouquet to an all-in-one deal with a dozen roses, red vase, chocolate and a teddy bear for $59.97. Many of these deals include shipping, so just check ahead.

1-800-Flowers - Use the coupon code DEALPRO and get $10 off orders of $49.99 or more. Use code VDAY15 and get 15 percent off any order. Use MCVDAY24 and get 20 percent off an order when you use MasterCard to make your purchase. (Test them all to see which give you the better deal.) Delivery fees depend on where you live and what you buy.

FTD - Get 25 percent off through Valentine's Day (Price already reflects discount)

Teleflora - 15 percent off purchases with coupon code AFPX15 (Exp 2/14).

Gifts/Dining

Perfumania - Use the coupon LOVE and you can get 20 percent off your purchase, free shipping and a free gift bag if you spend $50 or more. They carry nearly all brands of perfume/cologne here.

Victoria's Secret - Use code SPRING11 to get $15 off $100, $30 off $150 or $75 off $250. The code FREE2DAY will give you free 2 day shipping (Exp. 2/10) when you spend $125 or more.

FatWallet.com - They have a whole list of some of the best online Valentine's Day deals (flowers, jewelry, candy, travel).

Restaurant.com - You can get 80 percent off their dining certificates with the coupon code LOVE (Exp. 2/14). That means a $25 gift card is only $2-$3. (Note that order minimums may apply in order to use the certificates.)

And don't forget to look at Open Table for some dining options. This site has lots of options for dining and at many different price points. Since Valentine's Day falls on a Monday, many of the featured restaurants have deals that run from 2/11-2/14. You can get deals on 3- and 4- course meals, free champagne, etc. Plus, you skip the crowds if you plan on celebrating on a different day.

I'll give you some inexpensive date ideas around the Twin Cities later this week. There will be no need for reservations -- just a little planning ahead!

- Alison Lorge is a web producer and consumer blogger at WCCO. Text WCCODEALS to 84816 for deals of the week

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