The pen is mightier than the sword, and when it comes to melting hearts, a handwritten love letter is our weapon of choice. This Valentine’s Day, we’re examining the love letter, the most earnest romantic gesture that sits at the intersection between pen, paper, and your heart’s desire.

We’re diving into its origin and taking a look at some of the most iconic (and swoon-worthy) love letters in history. Giving you a few tips and tricks to create your very own heart-stealing, kiss-blowing love letter for the object of your affection. It’s time to ditch digital communication and show your special someone an expression of love they get to tuck under their pillow at night. Lucky them!

The history of love letters

What defines a “love letter?” Is it only lengthy, handwritten descriptions of undying devotion, or do “Good morning, beautiful” texts count? Well, we don’t make the rules but there may be some clues in the origins of love letter writing traditions.

One of the earliest mentions of a love letter appears over 5 thousand years ago in Indian mythology, mentioned in the Bhagavatha Purana, book 10, chapter 52. The declaration of love in question is addressed to King Krishna by Princess Rukmini and describes a passionate and enduring love, followed by a proposal.

In Ancient Egypt and Imperial, early love letters were equally pragmatic and purpose-driven, usually a preamble to a marriage betrothal. Love letters informed much of the dramatic narratives of the great playwrights of Ancient Rome, being central in the work of Ovid, most notably in his magnum opus, “Ars Amatoria” or “Art of Love.”

The Middle Ages saw the transition of the love letter from a declaration of romantic intention into an art form of considered expression, being taught as a literary device in its own right until the Victorian era. People were getting pretty good at hand-written romance!

The advent of the 20th century heralded no slowing momentum for the tradition of written love letters. Such literary greats as F Scott Fitzgerald and Virginia Woolf were famed for their expertly crafted expressions of infatuation. And many of the letters between artists and their loved ones during this period have made it into collections of memorable love letters to inspire generations of young lovebirds to come.

At the time, written letters were one of the only accessible forms of long-distance communication. With so many large-scale wars happening, relationships under the strain of distance and stress received brief, joyful respite in the form of sweetly stamped love notes, couriered to the front to remind the boys of the girls they left back home. Some of the most notable love letter writers of this period are anthropologists Margaret Mead and Ruth Benedict, painters Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, poets Allen Ginsberg and Peter Orlovsky, and first lady Eleanor Roosevelt and journalist Lorena Hickok.

When digital communication – an arguably more convenient and immediate way of keeping in touch – became readily available to the general public, the art of writing love letters was not abandoned. Love letters have taken many forms over the years, from sonnets to skywriting, and nothing says you can’t get those same feelings across in a WhatsApp message! We must say, though, we’re a sucker for a love letter we can hold…

Historical love declarations that get our hearts racing

The art of writing a memorable love letter is in taking that roiling, effervescent, incredible feeling you’re holding in your chest through your brain, forcing it into word shapes, and getting those shapes artfully arranged into a composition that balances eloquence with expression. (Now that alone was a declaration and a half!)

It’s not as easy as one would imagine committing love to a page, given the overwhelming magnitude of those feelings. We’ve picked out a few of the most breathtaking historical love letter passages to inspire you and kickstart your creative process:

1. “I love you more than anybody in the world… I love you for millions and millions of things, clocks and vampires and dirty nails and squiggly paintings and lovely hair and being dizzy and falling dreams.” – Dylan Thomas
2. “I don’t ask you to love me always like this, but I ask you to remember. Somewhere inside of me, there will always be the person I am tonight.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald
3. “I cannot get that beautiful afternoon out of my head, above me where I lay the grass was silhouetted against the blue of the heavens, and small clouds were rushing past as the wind drove them on an endless journey. Then close to me was the most lovely of all, your soft hair against my cheek, your kisses so cool and unearthly and my happiness so great.” – Julia Lee-Booker
4. “Your word travels the entirety of space and reaches my cells which are my stars then goes to yours which are my light.” – Frida Kahlo
5. “I answer one of your letters, then lie in bed in apparent calm, but my heart beats through my entire body and is conscious only of you. I belong to you; there is really no other way of expressing it, and that is not strong enough.” – Franz Kafka
6. “Happiness is within you… so unlock the chains from your heart and let yourself grow— like the sweet flower you are. I know the answer— just spread your wings and set yourself free” – Jimi Hendrix
7. “As always, a million heartfelt thanks for bringing such joy into this chick’s life.” – Princess Diana 
8. “I don’t want to live – I want to love first, and live incidentally.” – Zelda Fitzgerald
9. “I have a thousand images of you in an hour; all different and all coming back to the same. I think of you once against a skyline: and on the hill that Sunday morning. The light and the shadow and quietness and the rain and the wood. And you. Your arms and lips and hair and shoulders and voice – you.” – Rupert Brooke
10. “You might drop your heart into me and you’d never hear it touch bottom.” – Katherine Mansfield

Tips for writing the perfect love letter 

Though we can’t tell you what you should be putting in your love letter – that’s between you and your boo – we’re certainly qualified to give you some fun stationery suggestions so that the physical component of your letter is just as pretty as its literary contents might be!

• Try writing your letter in calligraphy, using fountain pens and decorative handwriting. Make sure you practice this style of writing first, though – mastering a tapered ink pen can take some time, and you’re going for artsy not blotchy and illegible.
• Put your love letter on special paper. Though there’s something nostalgic about ballpoint pens on an exam pad, a sophisticated love letter can find its home on textured parchment, decorated cardboard, delicate drawing paper, or even something unique and interesting like black paper with silver pens!
• Add decorative elements like stickers to keep it cute and flirty! You can choose more quirky stickers like flame emojis and animals, or keep it sweet with hearts and flowers, depending on what the intended recipient may find delightful. You can also fold up your letter with glitter for a little added sparkle, or use a shaped hole punch to create confetti that spills out the first time the letter is opened.
• Package it up beautifully for maximum impact when you hand it over! You can go traditional and elegant with a neat envelope, lovingly scrawled with their name (or pet name, if you prefer.) You could roll it up like a scroll and tie it up with a ribbon, perhaps adding a cardboard tag. You could even add it to a glass jar or bottle with a few small trinkets, inviting them to be the ones you’d want to be stranded on a desert island with!
• Add a signature scent. Your words don’t have to be the only element of this gift that leaves a lasting impression. Spritz a little bit of perfume or body spray onto your letter (not too much, don’t risk a smudging incident here!) so that a lingering pleasant aroma accompanies your sentiment every time the letter is read.

You can get all of these dreamy love letter accessories (and more!) when you visit a PNA Store to get your Valentine’s Day preparation started! We know there’s no feeling quite like being in love, but a pretty close second is executing the perfect craft with supplies you got at affordable prices.

PNA is here to lay the foundation for everlasting creativity. With our help, we think you should take the leap and send that love letter this February. Who knows? This little gesture could be the start of something beautiful!