Wedding Anniversary Gift Traditions
This is the definitive list of Wedding Anniversary Gift Traditions – both modern and traditional, and even the flowers associated with each year.
Year |
Traditional |
Modern |
Flower |
1st | Paper | Clock | Orange Blossom |
2nd | Cotton | China | Daisy |
3rd | Leather | Glass/Crystal | Carnation |
4th | Fruit/Flowers | Appliance | Violet |
5th | Woodenware | Silverware | Pansies |
6th | Candy/Iron | Woodenware | Tulip |
7th | Wool/Copper | Desk Set | Camellia |
8th | Bronze/Pottery | Linen/Lace | Cat’s Tail |
9th | Pottery/Willow | Leather Item | Hollyhock |
10th | Tin/Aluminum | Diamond Jewelry | Sweet Pea |
11th | Steel | Fashion Jewelry | Lilac |
12th | Silk/Linens | Pearls | Lily |
13th | Lace | Textiles/Furs | Hydrangea |
14th | Ivory | Gold Jewelry | Daffodil |
15th | Crystal | Watch | Calla Lily |
20th | China | Platinum | Iris |
25th | Silver | Silver | Yellow Rose |
30th | Pearls | Diamond Jewelry | Poppy |
35th | Coral | Jade | Peony |
40th | Ruby | Ruby | Mum |
50th | Gold | Gold | Red Rose |
55th | Emeralds | Emeralds | Jasmine |
60th | Diamonds | Diamonds | White Rose |
The wedding anniversary gift traditions include modern and traditional gift themes, as well as traditional flowers, and even colours!
These wedding gift traditions have been around since medieval times and were all seen as items of good luck to help the marriage to stay prosperous throughout the years. The gift traditions became very popular in Victorian times when ‘hidden’ meanings in everything from flowers to days of the week were taken very seriously. Since then, the modern gift traditions have expanded to be less gender specific (as they always leaned towards ‘rewards’ for wives previously!), although even this dates back to a publication (by jewellers of course) in 1937!
So how do you use this list of gift themes? Well, we recommend that rather than taking it as a ‘rule book’ for what you should give your partner on their anniversary, why not use it as a quirky list of inspirational ideas? Even the ‘modern’ list was written 77 years before any form of LGBTQ+ marriage was allowed in the UK! It doesn’t have to mean anything, but it is a cute way to show your partner that you thought and researched for their present rather than grabbing a box of chocolates on your way home.