If you can afford an expensive gift, a dinner at your favourite restaurant (perhaps the place where you proposed or got married or had some other significant occasion) would be special. Or you could take her to a romantic destination for a few days or on a short cruise or to see a play or concert that everyone is raving about.

If your desire is to buy her something personal that she will enjoy, in addition to the always-appreciated jewellery or flowers or candy or beauty products or perfume, you can either buy her a negligee or lingerie or give her a gift card to pick the gift out herself. You can take her there to try the items on for you to see and approve, too. You could also treat her to a visit at the spa or beauty parlour.

If she has a special collection, that makes it easy if all you need to do is look for an unusual angel or whatever item she most enjoys. Perhaps she has a favourite colour, and that creates a wide variety of ideas since you can go into a store and look around for that colour in all the different departments.

If she has a hobby, that, too, makes it easy whether she’s a golfer, plays tennis, bowls, dances, does handicrafts, works puzzles, or has mentioned wanting a new book by a favourite author. You could present her with a book of poems and read them to her.

Does she like to cook and bake? That opens the gift buying up tremendously as there are so many presents for all prices that you can find in a store devoted to that type of item or in the housewares section of her favourite department store.

If she works, go to an office supplies store and look around. You will get ideas for gifts in all price ranges depending on what you know she’s been needing whether it is a computer accessory, a new briefcase, a picture frame for her desk in which she can put the new family picture, etc.

The main way to find out what your sweetie wants is to listen ahead of time to what she has to say or what she mentions needing as she works in the kitchen, living room, bedroom, office, or is out with you window shopping in stores. Your buying her something that she has talked about wanting will make her know that you pay attention to her desires and will make you dear to her heart.

A text message in the middle of the day lets your wife know you’re thinking of her even when you’re working. It tells your boyfriend that he’s important to you. It makes your girlfriend feel like a million bucks because you remembered her interview at 10 o’clock. It helps your husband get through another work day.

If you’re a romantic and you want to express your love for someone through a text message, it’s really quite simple. Intend to be honest as you write and think of ways to express powerfully but concisely. Anything you could say in person or in a handwritten letter, you can say through a text message. You only have a small amount of space, though, so no need for any filler. Get right to the point.

“I love you” (or if you want to be a true texter, “i luv u”) goes a long way in any relationship. Receiving a text like that can touch some more than you ever thought possible with three words.

Try some of these romantic text ideas:

“To the world, you may be one person. But to me, you are the world!”

“I love you because….. fill in the blank.”

“ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTVWXYZ…what is missing? Im missing U!!!”

You can also get incredibly creative with romantic text messages. Some ideas might be creating a scavenger hunt and sending text messages at scheduled intervals throughout the day to send your beloved on a hunt for little gifts or notes. You could text a meeting place and time for a romantic dinner, a couple of lines of mushy poetry, or something that made you think of him or her.

Text messages are certainly the in-thing for expressing love and building romantic relationships, but there still is nothing compared to a handwritten letter with an actual stamp or a candlelight dinner for two where you can quote some rehearsed lines or express your sincere love. Go right ahead and send those text messages, but don’t hesitate to take some extra time and energy to do something romantically old-fashioned as well. You might just win your beloved’s heart for the rest of time.

The Midsummer’s Eve site has been online since 1999 and promotes friendship, dating, and romance.  What’s more, this is another totally free dating website.  The homepage leaves you in no doubt that the site offers free messaging and free access to the events that they organise.  There’s a long list of success stories, some of which have photos showing the happy couples.  Although it is a free dating site there is a Platinum membership option for those looking for a personalised service to help them find a partner or in finding new friends.    There are personal assistants dotted around the UK and if you opt for this service they will set up a meeting with one of them.  You’ll then be given all the support you need to compose a professional looking profile. You will have access to  an unlimited number of introductions with the assurance that all members on the scheme are interviewed and vetted.  In this way Midsummer’s Eve is both a free dating site and a professional introduction agency.

Click here to start your search for love

MakeFriendsOnline.com has a clear, fresh and modern interface that evokes friendliness and ease of use.  The site has been in bringing people together since 2001 and there’s a section of testimonials describing some of their many success stories.  The site includes two exclusive features; Mutual Match, which is a mechanism reveals your attraction to another profile only if that person has confirmed an interest in yours, and Meets Manager, whereby members organise their own gatherings and social events.  Free registration allows you to trial Quickmail and Mutual Match, so you can not only browse and search for free, but also interact a little too.  The site is refreshingly light on gimmicky features and does not include webcam or video chat.  Their research has found that although this might be a feature that men would like, most women on the other hand reported that it would be a turn-off.  Perhaps this is due to the less savoury reputation of webam chat on other sites. MakeFriendsOnline.com should certainly be on your short list.

Click here to make new friends online

Loveandfriends.com has been online since 1999 and describes itself as providing  “internet dating for thinking people“.   Visitors to the site can browse profiles by age group and view the full profiles of any that catch their eye.  This process enables the visitor to see that there are several interesting features for registered members; a profile to profile compatibility check, additional photos, list of friends, psychometrics, and voice recordings.  The profiles are clear and easy to read and contain some thought provoking questions and answers.  Communication methods include messaging, instant messaging, icebreaker, e-card, and phone calls.  There are eight pages of testimonials, feedback, and success stories from members past and present, including stories about engagements and weddings.  The FAQ and Help sections are extensive and should answer all but the most obscure problems, so all in all Loveandfriends.com is an attractive website containing all the features you’ll need for your next online dating adventures.

Click here for love and friendship