Valentine’s Day Gift Idea for the Travel Lover

A few years ago I was in need of a thoughtful Valentine’s Day gift for my husband. We obviously travel a lot together, so I thought it would be really fun to focus on a travel theme. Chris is the man who is super hard to buy for. I tend to gravitate towards more thoughtful gifts for him. I decided to gift him a giant map that we could mark all of the places we’ve been together – a visual travel diary if you will.

I purchased a vintage style world map from Amazon and then went to JoAnn Fabrics to make my project. I had the intent of mod podging this poster to a cork board and then using pins to mark where we’ve been. I asked an associate to help me pull all the materials I needed. She said, “I actually think you could make this project A LOT simpler. What if you frame it in a nice poster frame and then use a paint pen to mark dots on where you’ve traveled?” I can’t believe I didn’t think of this first.

I went to the framing aisle and found a really nice frame (similar here) that coordinated with our home and then purchased a paint pen made specifically to paint on glass.  I chose a red paint pen to stand out a little more on our map.

I love the way it turned out. Chris and I obviously know the intent of our map, but unless you look up close, it just looks like a nice framed old world map! I kinda love that it has hidden meaning and our dots are small. It’s fun when our guests stare at our map searching to find all the places we’ve been!

It’s also the gift that keeps on giving. Chris and I get excited to add dots to the map. We never add a dot until after we come home from each trip. We often find ourselves staring at the map and daydreaming out loud of where we want to go next.

I think this was my best Valentine’s Day gift to date. What’s the best gift you’ve ever given to your significant other?

XO, Lauren