I’ve been selling a lot of unique wedding anniversary cards with my cartoon portraits on recently – I guess it’s that time of year 😍. I know about paper, silver, ruby and gold anniversaries but I started wondering, what are the traditional wedding anniversary gifts year by year in the UK? It turns out there are both traditional and modern anniversary milestone gifts.
Lists of traditional and modern wedding anniversary gifts (UK)
These are list of both traditional and modern anniversary gifts by year for the UK – it may vary in the US and around the rest of the world. Can you believe they have milestone gifts all the way up to a 90th wedding anniversary?!
Traditional wedding anniversary gifts by year
1st – Paper or cotton
2nd – Cotton or paper
3rd – Leather
4th – Linen, silk
5th – Wood
6th – Sugar
7th – Woollen
8th – Salt
9th – Copper
10th – Tin
12th – Silk and fine linens
15th – Crystal
20th – Porcelain
25th – Silver
30th – Pearl
35th – Coral
40th – Ruby
45th – Sapphire
50th – Gold
55th – Emerald
60th – Diamond
65th – Blue sapphire
70th – Platinum
75th – Diamond, gold
80th – Oak
85th – Wine
90th – Granite
Modern wedding anniversary gifts by year
1st – Clock
2nd – China
3rd – Crystal, glass
4th – Electrical appliance
5th – Silverware
6th – Wooden objects
7th – Desk sets, pen & pencil sets
8th – Linens, lace
9th – Leather goods
10th – Diamond jewellery
11th – Fashion jewellery, accessories
12th – Pearls, coloured gems
13th – Textiles, furs
14th – Gold jewellery
15th – Watches
16th – Silver hollowware
17th – Furniture
18th – Porcelain
19th – Bronze
20th – Platinum
21st – Brass, nickel
22nd – Copper
23rd – Silver plate
24th – Musical instrument
25th – Silver
30th – Diamond
35th – Jade
40th – Ruby
45th – Saphire
50th – Gold
55th – Emerald
60th – Diamond
80th – Diamond, pearl
85th – Wife’s birthstone
90th – Diamond, emerald
Of course there are no set rules when it comes to romance, so you can interpret them however you like, put your own original twist on them or ignore them altogether! Every couple will have their own original way of celebrating a milestone anniversary…
Special milestone anniversary messages
Did you know that in the UK you can get a message from the king or queen for 60th, 65th and 70th wedding anniversaries? You do need to apply to Buckingham Palace for this (other Commonwealth realms can also apply, via the Governor-general’s office).
In the US couples can receiver a wedding anniversary card from the President for their 50th anniversary and beyond. In Canada they can receive a message from the Governor-General for their 50th anniversary and every fifth anniversary following it.
And in Australia couples can also receive a letter of congratulations from the Governor-General for their 50th wedding anniversary and all subsequent anniversaries. They may even get messages from the Prime Minister, the federal Opposition leader, their local state and federal parliament members and state Governors for the same anniversaries.
Anniversary milestone cards
Would you like to give a wedding anniversary card for a milestone year that is extra special and more like a gift? My custom cartoon portrait anniversary cards are each hand drawn by me based on photos you supply so are completely unique. I can draw from the original wedding photos or as you and your other half look today. The text is also customisable so works for any milestone from the 1st anniversary to forever.They’re also great to give to other (very special) couples and you could even give a frame at the same time, making it easy to display and treasure forever. You’ll get extra credit if you match the frame material to the traditional anniversary gift by year!
Click on any of the images below to go straight to that item in my greeting card shop.
