Romantic yuletide songs are playing everywhere you go already and it feels like wherever you look there are loved-up couples buying heart-shaped gingerbread in their matching knitwear.

Meanwhile, you’re left feeling like you’re just stuck in one long queue of bad dates with nothing special to buy except a lavender talc gift set for your nan. Just like last year.

Where do you keep going wrong? Maybe you just need a bit of friendly dating advice to have yourself that merry little Christmas with a bit of extra magic…

Make mine a mocktail of cringe (with a big red face on top)

Of course, you don’t have to get the drinks in to have a good time, but going out for a flirty Christmas cocktail or two can be fun.

So, imagine the avalanche of embarrassment when you rock up to the bar asking for “two snowballs please”, the bartender asks for proof of age and… you don’t have any. Why not get yourself a photo ID card to keep in your wallet?

My ID Card is an official proof of age card, accredited by PASS, the UK’s national proof of age accreditation scheme. As well as your photo, it has the official PASS logo and hologram and it’s fully endorsed by official organisations such as the Home Office and The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO). It’s easy to apply for and it only costs £15, so you’ll still have some cash left over for the talc.

Heading to a gig with your date, or hitting the dancefloor? You’ll get asked for ID on the door at most venues and clubs, too.

Apply for My ID Card today and you’ll have yours in as little as 5-10 days. That’s plenty of time before Christmas and means you’ll avoid a face that matches the colour of your Santa hat.

But get rid of that Santa hat…

Reindeer horns, Christmas jumpers, elf shoes, cracker-shaped earrings. Are you in a panto or on a date? You might think wearing some novelty garb is an icebreaker. Our advice is to wear whatever you’d normally wear on a date (with an added dash of Christmas glamour), or risk ending up looking like a children’s TV presenter (so not hot).

Leave the socks over the fireplace

You want to impress your crush so you decide you’d better show up with a gift. But you don’t want to look too keen, so you choose something non-personal; candles, socks, box of chocolates.

Um…hold on. Is this a gift for the object of your affections or a neighbour? If you want to make an impression while maintaining your mystique, think about something they love – football, cats, bands – and get a small token gift on that theme.

Even if you’re so keen you’re feeling like you might accidentally propose, don’t go charging in with an entire grotto of gifts. It’s overwhelming and if they haven’t got you anything then the atmosphere will be super awkward.

It’s a bit too soon to meet Aunty Sue

Perhaps you’ve been on one or two dates already, so you’re thinking how nice it would be to ask your date if they want to come and spend some time with your family over the Christmas period…

Aunt and uncles bickering over the remote, Mum & Dad sweating over the dishwasher, Grandad snoring off all those sprouts. It’s most likely too much pressure at this stage to ask your new squeeze if they want to join you all at once. Play it cool and hopefully you can ask them next year.

Last Christmas, you gave them your heart and the very next day they gave it away? Not this time. Take our advice and apply for a My ID Card today.