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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Columbia Barnard chapter.

February is a bit of a gross time of the year, but Valentine’s Day always brings me so much joy and excitement. I get to spend time with the people I love and show them how much I appreciate them, all while eating sweets! This year, most of my friends are taken, so the few single girls left have been feeling it a bit more than usual. I decided to put together a super cute Galentine’s day basket for one of them that I’m giving to her when we celebrate Valentine’s day over brunch. The basket was so fun to put together! I’m going to walk you through my process of putting a Galentine’s day basket together and hopefully inspire you to make your own!

First, I picked up a super cute set of chubby sticks (a lip balm / lipstick blend — they’re the best). My friend loves makeup, and I wanted to cater to her interests and hobbies when I was making the basket. If your friends really like sports, you could include a new piece of gear instead of makeup. The key point is making your friends feel known and appreciated. 

Next, I grabbed a few different snacks. She loves milk chocolate, so I made sure to include some of that. Of course a couple pieces of Valentine’s themed candy also had to be included. I picked out smaller containers of these since I didn’t know if she would like them, but I still made sure they were colorful and fun. I also threw in a few savory snacks so she’d be fully ready for a movie night or Netflix binge. You can’t have sweets without any salt!

The third category of items I threw in were related to self-care. Winter air makes my skin so dry, especially in the frigid Midwest, so I threw in a couple facemasks. I also picked up a nice hand lotion for her — constantly washing your hands in a pandemic plus using hand sanitizer can dry out your hands super quickly. 

Lastly, I picked out a super cute basket and some bright tissue paper. I fluffed up the red and pink tissue paper and neatly arranged the contents in the basket. I also wrote her a sweet little card letting her know how much I appreciate her and value our friendship. I hope she loves it!!

Katie Ryan

Columbia Barnard '24

Katie is an incoming first year at Columbia College. She's a coxswain for the men's heavyweight crew team and spends her free time working out, volunteering, and reading. Katie is planning to double major in English & Comparative Literature and Human Rights, specializing in Economics.