Anniversary gift ideas: for your partner, your parents, and every year in between

Anniversary gifts come in two very different kinds. One is for your own partner: personal, and usually a little nerve-racking. The other is for a couple you love, such as your parents, your in-laws or close friends, and it is about celebrating the two of them together.

We cover both here, starting with the question most people look up first.

Traditional anniversary gifts by year

The idea of a material for each year of marriage goes back a long way, and the list has been added to and rearranged many times. It differs between countries and between sources, so treat it as a source of ideas, not a rule. Here is the traditional North American version for the years people mark most often.

Year	Traditional gift
1st	Paper
2nd	Cotton
3rd	Leather
4th	Fruit and flowers
5th	Wood
6th	Iron (sugar in the UK)
7th	Wool or copper
10th	Tin or aluminium
15th	Crystal
20th	China
25th	Silver
30th	Pearl
40th	Ruby
50th	Gold
60th	Diamond

A few of these pair naturally with a gift basket. A paper first anniversary can be a handwritten letter tucked in with a treat. The fourth-year fruit and flowers is the most literal fit of all. And the British sixth-year sugar is the best excuse there is for a box of chocolate.

For the big milestones, the 25th, 40th and 50th, the traditional gift is usually given by the couple to each other or by the family together. Friends and relatives often send something to mark the day alongside it, and that is where a basket fits.

A gift for a couple: parents, in-laws, friends

When you are celebrating two people, the gift should be for both of them. That rules out most personal items and points towards something they can enjoy together.

An evening in is the easy choice. A basket of gourmet snacks and chocolate turns an ordinary night into a small celebration, with nothing to cook. For the morning after, a coffee and tea basket suits a couple who have had their routine down for decades. And if the family is hosting a 25th or 50th celebration, a large shareable basket delivered the day before becomes part of the table.

Can't be there yourself? A basket at the door on the day is the next best thing to arriving in person, especially paired with a phone call. Browse our gifts for couples for baskets built to be shared by two.

A note on parents' milestone anniversaries

For a 25th or 50th, siblings often club together. One generous basket from all the children, with every name on the card, says more than several small gifts arriving separately. Settle who is ordering early, and agree on the wording before the card is printed.

A gift for your own partner

Your partner already knows you, which is both the advantage and the pressure. A few things help.

• Remember a moment, not just a date. The best anniversary gifts point back to something you shared: the coffee you had on your first date, the trip you keep talking about, the dessert you always split.
• Have a gift delivered to their work or home during the day, before you see each other in the evening. One moment becomes two.
• If they have had a demanding year, a spa and wellness basket and a promise to take care of dinner is a very good gift.
• A basket with two of everything (two mugs, two treats) makes the point without a word.

Work anniversaries

Many companies mark service milestones: one year, five, ten, twenty-five. A gift on the actual anniversary date, with a personal note from a manager, tends to mean more than a line in a newsletter. Our employee gift baskets suit these, and HR teams sending on a schedule can request a corporate quote. The corporate gifting guide explains how the CRA treats gifts for long-service awards.

Timing the delivery

• On the day, early. If the couple has dinner plans, a morning or early afternoon delivery means the gift is opened before they go out.
• The day before, for a party. If the basket is meant for a celebration, have it arrive the day before so the host can plan around it.
• Remembered late? Across much of Mississauga and the GTA, same-day and next-day delivery can still get there on the day. Checkout shows the options for a postal code before you pay.
• Further away. For an address outside our local delivery area, choose a basket marked as shippable and order a few days ahead.

What to write on an anniversary card

Every Velvéa gift includes a printed message card.

• "Happy anniversary to two people who make it look easy."
• "Happy 25th! Thank you for showing us what a marriage can be. With love from all of us."
• "Fifty years. We are so proud of you both. Happy golden anniversary."
• To your partner: "Another year of you. Happy anniversary, I love you."
• For a work anniversary: "Congratulations on five years with the team, and thank you for everything you bring to it."

For more help with wording, see what to write in a gift message.

The table is there for ideas, not as a test anyone has to pass. Our anniversary gift baskets are the natural place to start, and if none of them fits the couple, browse all gift baskets.