Valentine roses fall into two categories – a heartfelt, romantic gift or a quicky, no-thought gift from the local gas station. I find it interesting that such as stately, history-imbued flower can sometimes seem tacky and thoughtless. Much has to do with the presentation, as well as the intention behind it.

A basic rule when giving flowers is to cause as little inconvenience as possible to the receiver. While a box of 12 long stem roses from an expensive florist looks impressive, your date will be delayed as she struggles to find a large enough vase and get them in the water properly. For this reason alone, I prefer to give arrangements that are already vased. These may feature nothing more than red roses, the color of love, or you can request an arrangement combined with other beautiful flowers or perhaps featuring her favorite flower varieties.

Another pet peeve is the cellophane wrapped roses from supermarkets. These usually have tacky plastic wrapped around the stems and often feature more frilly queen Anne's lace than roses. If you pick one of these up at the last minute, take some time to stop by the store floral department and request a vase. If they went overboard on the filler, don't hesitate to request removal of some.

Finally, keep in mind that roses have a language all their own. Here's a quick cheat-sheet:

Red: Love and romance

Pink: Appreciation, new love,

Yellow: Joy and friendship

White: Honor and respect

Orange: Desire and passion