With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, who’s isn’t looking to become a “Smooth Operator?” We’ll let Sade get you in the mood for romance (just hit play below) while you read on to see how.
Since you’ve already picked up the perfect gift and written a card full of heart-felt sweet-nothings (you have, haven’t you?), we’re here to help you set yourself up for being a total smooth operator on February 14th, or any date night you want to woo-the-heck outta someone. Think you can’t become Rico Suave-esque over night? Wrong. All you need to do is reach for your smartphone and make a couple quick taps (seriously, what can’t these things do?).
Read on to see the must-have apps and moves you need for a night that any Romeo (or Juliet) would envy.
Any rideshare app will do, really, but can you imagine the brownie points you’ll get if you send a ride to pick up your loved one and then take them home (especially if you plan on playing the mixologist)? Really want to be a big shot? Ensure a Beemer shows up at your date’s door.
Cost:
- App: Free
- For the evening: Depends on distance and how crazy you want to get with your ride
Food Delivery Service
While we’re usually totally on board with reaching out to Dom over on the Dominos app for a meal– this is neither the time nor place for an extra-large with cheese. Try ordering something a little fancier (code for vegetables, or at least a side salad) with an app like GrubHub or Seamless that will deliver food from various restaurants close to your location.
Bonus tip – get the food delivered before your date shows up, put it onto plates and ditch the takeout boxes. We won’t spill the secret you didn’t spend all day in the kitchen and not burning the main course always starts the evening off right.
Cost:
- App: Free
- For the evening: Depends on delivery distance and if you splurge for the filet.
Set the mood with a flick of a finger and the Free Candle app. Nothing beats dinner by candlelight and when you’re ready for a little privacy you can blow out the candle – literally – blow on your phone and the candle will extinguish. Obviously, having this technology has you totally in control of the evening.
Cost:
- App: Free (unless you want to pay $0.99 for additional candle options!)
- For the evening: Free!
Since we’re talking about setting the mood, we can’t forget about having the right music on hand. The ability to make a playlist of all the semi-significant songs in your relationship, to playing some romantic jams, is all possible with a few drag-and-drop motions within your HEOS app. Think how good “your song” will sound coming out of your HEOS speaker!
Cost:
- App: Free
- For the evening: Free - you’ve already got the speakers – so put ‘em to good use!
With a recent update to its app, Google Translate is basically your new wingman to express your love in all languages. Type – or speak – some of your best lines into this app, pick the most romantic language you can think of, and boom – you’re a world-class Casanova.
Disclaimer: There’s no guarantee you’ll pronounce any foreign words correctly and the app’s “voice” isn’t the most soothing – so we can’t promise you’ll get any of the extra points that usually come along with the whole “sexy accent” phenomenon. Sorry.
Cost:
- App: Free
- For the evening: Free – unless something is translated wrong and your date takes offense. *oops*
Whether you’re cuddling up close on your couch to watch on your tablet, or you’ve synched your Netflix account to your 60-inch internet enabled TV - a romantic movie is a total must on Valentine’s Day (even if you end up laughing at the corniness together).
Cost:
- App: Free
- For the evening: If you don’t have Netflix already, you may be able to get your first month free. After that, there are tiers of pricing levels.
Tweet these tips out so you have them on hand and tell us on Twitter what your go-to smooth operator move is.
