Valentine humor also took advantage of the fashion for decorated or collaged cards. Below are two cards in a series using fire-related puns. "Let's strike a match" includes a real match and sandpaper for striking it. Another card in a similar design, pictured on the left, features a small booklet with the verse,

Will you do me an occasional favor?
A friend in need is a friend in deed.

When opened, the booklet reveals a button, needle, and thread. The flower seeds enclosed in the "Forget-me-not" Valentine show a more sentimental use of realia in Victorian Valentines.

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