Gift Giving: Valentine's Day Do's and Don'ts
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork)-- It's not like Valentine's Day comes as a surprise, it happens every year.
But buying a gift? Oh boy...
"It's not easy, it's not easy. They should find uh, I don't know what they should do, but they should find some way of making it easier," Scott Allen, of Trenton, New Jersey, told CBS2's Dick Brennan.
It would seem simple: flowers, chocolates... but didn't you give that last year? Some women say guys just don't get it.
"Anyone would appreciate roses or flowers, not hard, what's the problem? No problem," Lillian Krepper, of the Upper West Side, said.
Women often say they don't want a Valentine's Day gift; they don't want flowers, they don't want chocolate. Well don't believe it! If they say that: get the flowers, get the chocolate. Heed the words of that great American philosopher George Costanza: "Whatever they say, do the opposite."
"Seventy five percent of people said they do not want anything for Valentine's Day, but when asked again in the same survey, 25 percent of them admitted they lied," Tony Case, executive editor of Adweek, said.
Some say the key is listening.
"Just listen when a woman says, 'Oh isn't that the cutest thing?' Note-taking is key to this," Danielle Pagano, of the Upper West Side, told CBS2.
Others are opting for a sexier approach to the holiday of love.
Ryan Gurney is buying his fiancée lingerie for the first time, a task that might make any man nervous.
"Very traditional, very elegant, I'm thinking probably something red for Valentine's Day," Gurney told CBS2's Tracee Carrasco.
And women might be buying the lingerie themselves as a "gift" for their partners.
"I promised my husband that I would buy some lingerie if he took me out to dinner," another shopper told CBS2.
That's where Rebecca Apsan's expertise comes in, owner of Le Petite Coquette in Greenwich Village. She's been helping men and women for 37 years.
"Lingerie is the curtain that separates the audience from the performance, it's like the gift wrap on a present," Apsan said.
Apsan said whether it's the man or woman doing the buying, feeling comfortable and confident in lingerie is key.
"I think that you have to really take into consideration the woman because if she doesn't feel comfortable she's never gonna wear it," Apsan explained.
Knowing the right size and focusing on the right parts is also important. The biggest no-no? No flannel pajamas on Valentine's Day!
Carrasco said the best way to go about lingerie shopping is to shop with your partner.
