Charitable Gift Giving

Valentine’s Day 2010 is Sunday February 14, coming up quicker than you think! It’s not too early to order your Valentine’s Day flowers. Here are some great deals from the top online flower sellers that go to help a great cause.

This year, 1-800-Flowers has teamed up with 15 year-old Canadian pop phenom Justin Bieber to sell the Justin Bieber Bouquet. Justin gives one of these bouquets to one fan at each of his concerts.

They’re made up of rare “red intuition” roses, not your ordinary bouquet of roses with its unique deep red streaks, swirling pattern and unique texture. It even comes with a special Valentine’s Day card from Justin.

Some of the proceeds will be donated to Pencils of Promise, a non-profit organization that helps build early-education schools in developing nations.

Proflowers is still selling their bouquets that benefit Susan Komen for the Cure. This bouquet of Pink Gerbera Daisies is a nice choice this year if you want to try something other than the standard red roses.

Daisies signify innocence and purity. It’s a great way to show your affection for someone you love without the deep romantic message of red roses.  This bouquet comes with twelve Gerbera daisies, as well as three waxflowers and greenery and a vase.

The daisies are long lasting and come in various shades of pink. 10% of the purchase price will help find a cure for breast cancer, and the bouquet comes with valuable information on breast health.

Last but not least, these Action Against Hunger Haiti Relief Yellow Rosesare a set of yellow roses that go to help rebuild Haiti, with funds going to the reliable charity Action Against Hunger. These are beautiful yellow roses, perfect for a mom, aunt, sister, coworker or friend. These flowers are organically grown and VeriFlora certified organic.

A portion of proceeds will be donated to Action Against Hunger, on the ground in Haiti helping set up sanitary facilities, clean drinking water, and nutrition to those trying to recover in the most difficult of circumstances.

Here are some hints for how to shop for Valentine’s Day Flowers:

1) Place your order NOW to lock in prices. As Valentine’s Day approaches, the price of these flowers will invariably go higher. This isn’t the flower companies gouging their customers–it’s a simple law of supply and demand. There is a finite supply of flowers at flower growers (especially red flowers, whose supply has already been depleted from Christmas flowers), and so as demand gets higher, so will the prices.

2) Schedule your delivery for the week before Valentine’s Day. Why? There are two reasons. First, the flowers mentioned above come shipped in a box, and often they’re still in bud form. By getting them early, you can arrange them and put them in warm water, helping them to open and giving you something presentable. Secondly, getting them delivered early ensures that you’ll have the “pick of the crop”, the best flowers available. By the time Valentine’s Day comes around, the best flowers are all gone.

This year, let her know not just that you remembered, but also that you remember those who are less fortunate.