Gamertell

Handmade items always make a fantastic gift, no matter what the occasion, but they’re especially suitable for Valentine’s Day gifts. It’s a good way to make someone feel special, since you’re getting them what could be a one-of-a-kind item that’s exactly his or her taste.

Sadly, not all people are crafty enough to create their own gifts. A good alternative is to check out the various shops at Etsy.com. Many of the artists selling their wares there have a wide variety of items and gadgets appropriate for your video game valentine.

To make shopping easier, Gamertell has gone through some of the Etsy shops to put together a list of some of the best, homemade video game gifts. If you buy something now, you should be able to get it in time for February 14, 2010.

Affordable

• Resident Evil S.T.A.R.S. cell phone charm: For $3 you can get your loved one a Raccoon City Police Department emblem for your cell phone.
• Half-Life patch: You could pick up a $3 Half-Life insignia patch that your special someone could put on clothes or a bag.
• Portal Companion Cube pin set: A set of two Portal pins that have the companion cubes and cute designs on them. The shop also has a large selection of other, video game pins. This set, and many others at the store, is $3.50, and many of their single pins are sold for $1.50.

Jewelry

• Clearly Tetris Bangle Bracelet: A Tetris bangle bracelet would make a cool, retro gift for $25.
• Left 4 Dead Scrabble Tile Pendant: You can pick up a $5 necklace where the pendant is an old Scrabble tile with a decorative image on one side. The Left 4 Dead design is just one of many video game themed pendants available in this shop.
• ASCII Heart Emote Rose Quartz Necklace: For $34.99 you can give a necklace that shows someone is loved all the time. The necklace chain is sterling silver, and the pendant is a heart-shaped piece of rose quartz with “<3" engraved into it.

Decorative

• Kirby Inhaling Laptop Decal: For $10 you can get a neat little Kirby decal your beloved can put on his or her laptop. The seller suggests using it on Apple laptops but it looks like it’d be cute on any laptop or even a video game console.
• “They Found Love at the Video Game Casting Call” wood plaque: Get some neat artwork as a gift for $20. It’s a 5x5 in. plaque of video game monster blobs who’ve fallen in love and is pretty cute.
• “You’re my Guitar Hero” decal: You could pay your loved one a complement that can adorn his or her wall with this $25 decal.

Apparel

• Warhammer hair clips: Get some hair clips with the Warhammer logo on them for $7.99. The shop also has other video game hairclips to choose from for the same price.
• Pac-Man black tie: Ties are a common gift, yes, but Pac Man ties aren’t! It’s $14.
• Legend of Zelda Link Hat: orgXIII’s Etsy shop has multiple styles of Link hats, each priced at $25.
• NES Cartridge Cufflinks: A neat option for any gamer. They’re small, so unless you look close you won’t even notice they’re NES cartridges. They’re $27 and you can choose what game you want. They’re custom made though, so they may not arrive in time.

Miscellaneous Cool Stuff

• Magnetic Katamari: Does the one you adore love Katamari Damacy? Then check out this $26 magnetic, handmade Katamari. It’ll roll up metal objects.
• Flask with Legend of Zelda crest: A stainless steel flask with the Zelda crest on it is $32.
• Vinyl Activision Tennis Cartridge: If you have a spare $375, get a 2-foot tall, signed, one-of-a-kind, vinyl Activision Tennis cartridge replica that appeared at the 2009 Game Over/Continue? show. There’s also a Skiing version available.