While flowers are a traditional Valentine gift, the college student in your life may not have room or - in the case of male students - interest in receiving a bouquet of roses to celebrate the holiday. Cookie bouquets are a great alternative because they often look as impressive as flowers but are edible as well. Many companies sell cookie bouquets in different flavors that can be delivered to a college student's dorm. At Valentine's Day, festively decorated heart-shaped cookies should brighten any hard-working college student's day. If you are on a budget and prices for pre-made cookie bouquet are too steep, consider making your own with your college student's favorite type of cookies. You can use cookie cutters to make fun shapes like hearts or flowers, and bake the cookies with oven-safe sticks from the craft store pressed into them to serve as stems. Use pink and red icing or sugar to decorate the cookies for a professional look. The bouquet can be arranged inside a keepsake mug, flower pot or small bucket with floral foam to hold the cookies in place.
Many couples choose to celebrate Valentine's Day with dinner at a favorite restaurant, but many college students find their options limited because money is tight. If your college student has a significant other or best friend, consider purchasing a gift card or certificate to treat them to dinner. Putting together a small assortment of gift cards for various restaurants is also a good idea because it will allow the college student in your life to not only enjoy a special meal on Valentine's Day but several other times over the semester as well.
For college students who are movie buffs, a gift box of some of their favorite DVDs can be a fun idea. You can go with the Valentine's Day theme and choose romantic comedies or dramas if they are a fan of those types of movies. For students who may not appreciate a hearts-and-flowers type movie, find some fun action or horror movies. Gifts cards to a local movie theater are another good option.
Another nice gift idea for college kids at Valentine's Day is a gift basket of their favorite bath and body products. Many stores sell pre-made baskets, but you can also buy items separately to customize it for the college student in your life. Girls may appreciate perfume, bubble bath, shampoo and hair styling products. Some cosmetics companies also put out Valentine-themed makeup collections, so you can throw in some fun lip glosses or nail polishes. For boys, consider putting together a basket with cologne, shower gel, lip balm, and shaving supplies.