that shape up as good valentines

It comes in stained glass, Mylar, chocolate, wicker and wax, and it has long been the favorite target of Cupid’s bow. Over the years, the shape of the heart has become the symbol of romantic love, and on Valentine’s Day it comes into its own, showing up in shop windows all over the country.

Why the heart? According to UCLA folklorist Wayland Hand, “In ancient physiology, different parts of the body were assigned specific feelings and emotions, and very early on the heart came to be associated with love.”

Hand adds that this early symbolism probably accounts for the heart becoming the “iconographical representation” of St. Valentine’s Day, a holiday that celebrates love.

Shopping for unusual Valentine gifts can be a challenge, but finding just the right thing for sweethearts, children, parents--and even the family pet--is its own reward.

To make the search a little easier, here is a list of ten places that offer an unusual selection of heart-shaped gifts.

Sunshine Glass, 21227 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu, (213) 456-5220. (Other location: 132 South La Brea Ave., Los Angeles, (213) 935-0024.) Owner Sherman Hopkins has designed a series of stained-glass Valentines, done in a flashed Art Deco style. “Flashed,” in the language of glass, is a technique in which two colors of glass are layered to create a design--in this case red glass is washed over clear glass, then the message is sandblasted through. Inscriptions on the eight-inch hearts include “Be My Valentine,” “Happy February 14th” and that old standby, “Love.” Prices range from $10 to $22.

Williams-Sonoma, 146 S. Lake Ave., Pasadena, (818) 795-5045. (Other locations: Woodland Hills, (818) 887-4355; Beverly Center, Los Angeles, (213) 652-9117; Costa Mesa, (714) 751-1166.) Gourmet cooks and all-around kitchen buffs can make good use of the Valentine gifts here, creating foods in the shape of the heart with a cast-iron Teflon-lined muffin pan, $17.50; a chrome, puff-pastry cutter, $6; French porcelain coeur a la creme molds at $6 and $15, and glass cookie stamps at $1.25. To display the results, there’s a set of three nested wicker baskets at $15.

Edelweiss Candy Kitchens, 18456 Clark St., Tarzana (818) 881-7003. (Other location: 444 N. Canon Drive, Beverly Hills, (213) 275-0341.) Chocoholics discussing their favorite food usually get around to the candy kitchens of Sam and Shirley Rosen, where eight years of experimenting with the luscious stuff has led to what many consider to be an ultimate chocolate experience. This year the Rosens feature one of the biggest hearts in Los Angeles, an eight-pounder filled with a sampling chosen from the 80 varieties of custom chocolate that they’ve developed, $150. Also available at Edelweiss: one-, one-and-a-half-, two-, three- and five-pound heart boxes of chocolate from $15 to $89.50; solid chocolate hand-decorated hearts in small ($5.50), medium ($8.50) and large ($11.50) ($1 extra with a name), and what Shirley Rosen calls “an absolutely smashing gift,” a white-chocolate basket filled with three-dimensional white-chocolate hearts decorated with red rosebuds, $32.50.

Abigail’s Flowers/Aardvark Balloons, 9095 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood, (213) 274-5145. A handful of buoyant balloons can make anyone feel like a kid again, and Aardvark has them for Valentine’s Day in shiny bright Mylar, in combinations of silver, red, white and pink. Sizes are 12 inches for $2.50 or a whopping three-footer for $15. You can visit the shop and choose from messages that include, “I Love You This Much” (on the mammoth balloon), “For You Mom,” “Be My Valentine,” “Happy Valentine’s Day” and the simple but not eloquent “I Love You.” Aardvark delivers with a minimum order of $25.

Pier One Imports, 4710 Los Coyotes Diagonal, Long Beach, (213) 597-5920. (Other locations: Whittier, (213) 943-4217; Anaheim, (714) 772-2472.) Wax eloquent and tell your love how he/she melts your heart with a string of flame-red heart candles at 99 cents each. The candles are strung together by the wick, so you can buy one to a dozen, depending on how much you want to spend. If price is no object, a spectacular gift is Pier One’s “Gatsby” chair, a white wicker beauty with a heart-shaped back that sells for $139.88. A cache of less-expensive treasures is also available, including lacquer boxes from Japan at $1.19 to $4.99; tiny satin pillboxes with or without embroidery at $1.19, and assorted ceramic items, such as picture frames, ashtrays and vases, averaging about $4.99 each.

Oh La La, 6670 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, (213) 461-2347. A gift to please the little girl in every woman is available here in designer sunglasses made of frameless lenses shaped like hearts. These oversize glasses have beveled edges, are color-blended from muted pink at the top to clear glass at the bottom, and sell for $5.99. Such glasses should be considered fashion accessories that give little or no sun protection. Other heart shapes at Oh La La include two sizes of earrings at $3.99 and $4.99 and a necklace at $25.

Henshey’s, 402 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica, (213) 394-6751. (Other location: Ladera Center, (213) 670-6000.) Heart-shaped throw pillows to toss on a chair, sofa or bed are featured at this venerable Santa Monica store. Priced at $5, they’re covered in bone or white cotton edged with ruffled eyelets and they measure 12 inches long. And, for comfort and relaxation in the bath, there’s a crimson inflatable heart that attaches to the back of the tub with suction cups, $5.99.

Aahs!, 14548 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks, (818) 907-0300. (Other locations: Hollywood, (213) 657-4221; Westwood Village, (213) 824-1688.) This high-tech emporium has gathered an abundance of trendy Valentine gifts ranging from a bouquet of heart-shaped satin rosebuds to a red ceramic heart clock that beats. The long-stemmed hearts are $2.49 and $2.99 each and the clock is $30. Other gifts at Aahs!: plastic love mugs, which are individually boxed in clear plastic, come in a rainbow of colors for $5 each; felt-tip pens with a fat red heart at the top, $1.25; a package of strips of heart stickers, $1.50; and a varied selection of contemporary Valentine cards, starting at 85 cents and ranging to $4.50 for the musical ones.

Pet Department, 8905 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood, (213) 274-7862. (Other location: Los Angeles, (213) 475-0303.) For the dog or cat in your life, the Pet Department has a selection of Valentine gifts wrapped in cellophanes and secured with red ribbon. A jumbo dog cookie is $3.49; a package of smaller cookie hearts is $3.99, and a basket of assorted items for the family cat is $4.99. Also offered are more lasting gifts in the shape of the heart, such as Jiffy dog tags, $2.99, and safety reflectors that glow in the dark, $3.49. Plastic glow collars with matching reflectors and IDs for dogs or cats are $4.99.

Viktor Benes Bakery, 8718 West 3rd St., Los Angeles, (213) 276-4884. (Other locations: Westlake Village, (818) 991-5878; Encino, (818) 783-4844, Century City, (213) 277-7670.) You and your loved ones can eat your hearts out and enjoy every minute of it with confections from this bakery chain, which offers two delectable nine-inch layer cakes, one a yellow cake with lemon-raspberry filling, iced in white and pink, and the other a devil’s food filled and frosted with Parisian chocolate whipped cream. Both cakes are decorated in Valentine colors and sell for $13.50 each. Special orders are taken on Valentine-decorated English trifle puddings and Saint Honore puff pastry, at $1.75 a portion. Also available are Scotch shortbread cookies, 50 cents, and almond paste petits fours , glazed with red or white fondant, at 65 cents each.