Time to reconnect with romance?

Have you been neglecting that special someone? That might not have been your intention, but there was Euro 2008. Then, along came Queens. You had to witness Murray's demise at Wimbledon. And, now it's the 137th Open – erm, unmissable TV!

Hmm, it's probably time to reconnect romantically. She may be feeling like a poor third place to Sport on your list of the all-time greatest loves of your life. Don't you think it's about time she was back on the top spot, where she belongs?

But, after all those weeks of waning attention, how can you possibly get back in her good books? How can you make it up to her? With romance, of course. Alright, so you knew that was going to be the answer, but it's true: Our visitor survey in 2006 found that nearly twice as many women want romance than those who prefer flash gifts or passion.

OK, so a quick recap on romance. When it comes to romance, surprise is your greatest ally. Shock her with a grand gesture - like dinner for two at a great restaurant - or delight her with a trickle unexpected events like these:

• Send flowers to her at work
• Give her a special warm welcome home after work with a ready-run romantic bath and ready-made romantic dinner for two
• Leave little token gifts all over the place to be discovered with squeals of delight
• Offer some extra, no-strings attached, personal attention like a massage
• Be especially helpful with the household chores or wash her car as a surprise
• Splash the cash on some expensive jewellery when it's not even her birthday

But whatever else you do, switch the TV off for 5 minutes and stay out of the pub for a while!

You can get more romantic ideas and inspiration like this by subscribing to our email newsletter called Fish's Bicycle. Fish's Bicycle is a once-a-fortnight bulletin containing a romantic suggestions and special offers at here at pressies4princesses.

Do you find people's wedding lists uninspiring? Doesn't it always seem that  the good stuff's already gone. Only hand-towels and saucers left. And, who's going to remember who bought them those in six months time? Besides, sundry homewares hardly describe your delight on such a momentous occasion.

Wedding lists are supposed to ensure the bride and groom get what they want. Understandably, they don't want to spend the first 3 months of married life together getting refunds on unwanted gifts. But, aren't they just a little too efficient? Surely many couples yearn for one or two interesting departures from their sterile list; a modicum of surprise.

If you want your wedding present to be representative and remembered, sometimes you need to dare to deviate. Be brave, but for goodness sake, do your homework. You're aiming for pleasant surprise, not utter bemusement! Here's a few interesting ideas from our range...

1. Heart Bowl and Serving Spoons. Al-fresco eating for lovers.
2. Personality Placecard Holders. Perfect for their first dinner party.
   
3. Personalised Wedding Memory Box. Personalised with their names and wedding date.
4. Fair Trade Wedding Album. Beautifully handmade and capable of holding 256 photographs!
   
5. Original Poem Plus Photos Framed. Beautifully presented alongside their framed wedding photos.
6. Bride and Groom Flutes. For toasting their big day and many an anniversary!
7. Handmade Wedding Scrapbook. For recording those out-takes and irreverent wedding day moments.
   
8. Fantastically Childish Table Mats. Ideal for a young couple starting out.
9. His and Her Coat Hooks. Just add wedding day snaps of her and him.
   
10. Spaceform Butterflies Photo Frame. Reminds her of the butterflies she had on her big day.

Felicity Gail - winners of the Hand-making Heroes New Gift Competition - have received their £500 prize money and a £1500 samples order.

The cheque was handed over by me at a buying meeting held at the end of June. There Becca, our chief gift buyer, selected eight pieces of jewellery from Felicity Gail's range for the our store. We hope to have this exciting new UK handmade jewellery range in by the end of July.

Felicity Gail are Debbie Brenner and Jackie Durrans. They make contemporary jewellery inspired by modern design. Working mainly with semi-precious stones and sterling silver, their jewellery contains rich contrasts in colour and texture. Currently, they are busy working on commissions for the Klimt exhibition at Tate Liverpool.

Hand-making Heroes was open to all UK hand-makers for entries from October 2007 to February 2008. Eight Finalists were shortlisted by our judges in March and an online public vote ran from mid March to the end of April to decide the winner.