Valentine's Day Savings

Love can make you do plenty of wacky things…including overspending on the object of your affection. Kelli Grant, Senior Consumer Reporter for SmartMoney.com, gives advice on how to keep your spending in check this Valentine's Day.

Discuss expectations with your valentine. The National Retail Federation expects Valentine's Day spending to jump 11% this year, with people spending about $116. But it's worth having a discussion with your significant other about what each of you expects. A heartfelt gesture isn't always an expensive one.

Get a discount on flowers. Hunt around on group-buying sites like Groupon.com or LivingSocial.com, where local florists are offering some last-minute vouchers for 50% off. If you can't find a coupon, consider going for regular roses instead of long-stemmed ones. That extra three inches or so of stem length adds about 15% to your bill.

If diamonds are on the agenda this Valentine's Day, consider that prices jump substantially at the carat mark. You can go up to a tenth of a carat smaller before the difference becomes visible to the naked eye. Depending on the quality of the stone, that change can yield thousands of dollars in savings.

Choose restaurants carefully. Dining out on the holiday itself can be a bad deal, with some restaurants forcing you into special menus that add to the bill and offer just so-so food. Call ahead to ask if the regular menu is still in play, and see about bringing your own bottle of wine to avoid high markups.

Normally, the longer you wait to make Valentine's Day purchases, the more you'll pay. But high-end chocolates have fewer preservatives and so expire quickly, which leads many chocolatiers to offer last-minute deals. Keep your eyes peeled this week for online coupon codes for free expedited shipping and up to 30% discounts.

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Kelli Grant & Erika Wortham