Signed, sealed, delivered: Canadians want love letters for Valentine’s Day

This February 14th, you can forget the flowers and chuck the chocolates – our new survey has revealed what people really want for Valentine’s Day: handwritten love letters. What’s more, far from being a dying art, 83% say they’ve written heartfelt love letters in the past, and Canadians are still far more likely to treasure a handwritten letter than a love text.¹

Sealed with a kiss: Canadians are smitten with love letters

It’s official: even in this technological age, love letters are still one of Canada’s most-loved romantic gestures. In fact, in our recent survey of 400 Canadians, love letters were revealed as the gift-most-wanted for Valentine’s Day 2017. More than half of those surveyed – 56% – said that their dream present would be a heartfelt love letter or poem; which means that love letters are a more desired gift than being taken to a fine restaurant (chosen by 26%) or getting flowers and chocolates (picked by 12%).

• Want further ideas for February 14th? Try our best Valentine’s Day ideas here!

What’s more, Canadians don’t just want to get love letters, they’re giving them too: 83% of those in the survey said that they believe love letters to be a vital part of a happy relationship, with 80% of men and a whopping 90% of women stating that they’ve written some form of love letter in the past.

The greatest love letters in history

So what makes a love letter so special? Perhaps history can tell us. We asked those in the survey to vote on their favourite love letters of all time, and we’ve collected the best below. They’re the perfect addition to any Valentine’s Day celebrations.

• Need more romance this Valentine’s Day? Try our playlist of the world’s 25 most romantic love songs

Not only are these letters beautiful, they’re the perfect inspiration if you’re thinking of writing something heartfelt of your own. Flick though our slideshow and feel the romance!

• Desire a really dreamy Valentine’s Day at home? Try our romantic dinner ideas!

How to write a love letter

Feeling inspired after those beautiful words? It might be time to join the busy ranks of Canadian letter writers. Before you do, however, it’s important to remember a few of the factors that go into crafting the perfect love letter:

1. Write from the heart

Don’t fret about finding endlessly creative ways to say I love you – a great love letter doesn’t have to be all polished prose. In fact, 73% of survey respondents said that they actually preferred raw passion to poetic writing, indicating that a letter written straight from the heart is more special than one that focuses on evocative imagery.

2. Honesty really is the best policy

Similarly, only 5% of Canadians think that beautiful writing is the most important part of a romantic letter. Honesty is far more valued: more than four in five people (81%) say that honesty is the most important thing to try for; followed by 10% who think it’s vulnerability.

3. Use pen and paper

The medium matters when writing to your beloved: 61% of Canadians say that handwritten, paper letters are the most romantic. That said, love texts are on the rise, especially with younger Canadians; 7% of respondents under the age of 35 said text messages were the most romantic, compared to just 3% of over 35s.

Want inspiration? We’ve found the ultimate list of cute names to call your boyfriend and cute names to call your girlfriend

4. Send your love letter only once you’re already dating

It’s also important to pay attention to when in the relationship you send your love letters. 86% of Canadian men and 90% of women indicated that they’d prefer to only get letters from someone they were already dating – meaning that the 14% of men and 10% of women who admitted that they would use a love letter to express interest in someone before dating them would be best to err on the side of patience!

5. Know that the recipient might just treasure it forever

One final tip: if you do write your sweetie a love note, know that it might stick around. Indeed, Canadians are likely to treasure their love letters, sometimes forever: 70% of men and 86% of women think that it’s perfectly acceptable to keep love letters from an old flame. What’s more, 43% of men and 54% of women think it’s fine to keep old letters even when you’re with someone new.

Looking for more romance? We followed the love stories of 13 romantic couples from history

EliteSingles editorial, January 2017

Do you have tips for writing the perfect love letter? Or know of a famous romantic letter that didn’t make our shortlist? Let us know! You can tell us in the comments below, say hi on Facebook or Twitter, or drop us a line at [email protected]

About the author: Sophie Watson

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