Vintage 1930s & 1940s Valentines

Do you remember the last time you exchanged Valentines with your classmates? 

Bull dog Valentine Made in USA
(cover) Bull-ieve me Valentine
(inside) I'm not tied down
Let's Go Places!

I never considered my father much of a romantic, but for some reason, he held on to a few boxes full of old Valentines. He was so excited to find the box they were in and was quick to share stories about all the individuals that had given them to him. A few of the folks were still around today, so he re-gifted their Valentine this year.

It's been hard to dig up details on the origin of most of these - but there are a few useful websites out there that helped us understand which one's might be of value. With all the information on the Internet, I was pretty surprised to only find a few websites dedicated to vintage Valentines. Where's the love?

• The Vintage Valentine Museum
• Guide to Vintage & Antique Valentines (a post on ebay)
• Remembering Romance with Vintage Valentines (a post on About.com)

Types of Valentines: flat, dimensional, honeycomb, mechanical, stand-up/pop-up and anthromorphic.

Also - I strongly recommend running a search on ebay before you list an item and set your price. Filter by items SOLD then Sort by Price: Highest First. That will give you an idea of what items (based on your search terms) hold the highest value to buyers. Then run a search on ebay with the Sold filter unchecked, and that will give you an idea how many like items are sitting out there.  

A Few From My Dad's Collection

1930s or 1940s Vintage Valentine - Boy Rider on Horse

Made in USA. Used (signed). Mechanical - rider rocks

Valentine. Mechanical. Made in USA
In love's race, just you pin
All your faith on me to win
My Valentine

1930s or 1940s Valentine Cute Maid
Mechanical - her apron string moves to raise her hand and reveal message in dish
Made in USA. Used (signed on back) SOLD

1930s Vintage Valentine Made in USA Mechanical Cute Maid
(Front) Valentine Greetings
You see, I'm
"Giving Notice"
In Serving up this "line" -
That I'm just "Maid to Order"
To be your Valentine!
(inside dish) You're Just to My Taste

1930s or 1940s Valentine Cute Rollerskater
Flat. Made in USA. Used (signed on back)

1930s Valentine.
Be Mine. Love. Valentine. I'm skating to you.

1930s or 1940s Valentine Surly Pirate
Flat. Made in USA. Used (signed on back)

Vintage Valentine Pirate
To My Valentine.
I'm a pirate
Bold and bad
Love me or you'll
Wish you had.

1930s or 1940s Valentine Girls Reading Newspaper
Flat. Made in USA. Used (signed on back)

Valentine Edition
Valentine Greetings

1930s or 1940s Valentine George Washington
Dimensional. Made in Germany. Used (signed - though very faint in pencil on base)

Vintage George Washington Valentine
Fold up reads: To My Valentine
Never! Oh never! Another can be, for gentle, so kind;
and so smiling as thee.