Creative Ideas for Anniversary Parties
Wedding anniversaries mean something different to every couple and every person that celebrates with them. In general, they’re a reminder of the love and commitment shared between two people so planning an anniversary party is a wonderful honour. Still, it can also be overwhelming because of all the elements to consider.
Like planning any party, the starting point is usually the hardest - when you’re looking for anniversary ideas. A central theme is usually a good foundation - luckily, significant anniversaries traditionally have a motif so you can easily utilise them for your party. For many people, there are often additional meanings and memories attached to these special dates too, so do your research on the couple or create a journal if it is your own anniversary, and use some of these details in your party to make it more personal.
Whether it’s a 1 year anniversary or 50th, you’re planning a celebration - be it an intimate dinner or a grand party - for a reason, so it deserves particular care and attention. Here, we give some insight into the significance of anniversaries, help you with creative celebration ideas, anniversary gifts by year, and ways to make each milestone unforgettable.
Wedding Anniversary Years – Ideas for Every Number
Some wedding anniversaries are more well known than others and therefore may be easier to plan for. However, for a celebratory party, remember to account for the couples age, personality types and family dynamics as these details will feed into the style of anniversary party you plan.
1 Year Anniversary – Paper – Symbolises fragility and potential for growth
Whilst a 1 year anniversary might not seem that long since the wedding day, there are all types of circumstances in people's lives and for some, a 1 year anniversary may be an occasion worth a big celebration.
Decorations
Think all things paper – lanterns, mobiles, pom poms, garlands, stars and heart-shaped cutouts. Because you’re not tied into a colour theme, you could opt for a mixture of colours – perhaps soft pastels to help further emphasise the fragility element of the 1 year anniversary motif. Or keep it super chic, simple and pure with all white. For some amazing photos, you could even do a matching dress code for guests!
Food and Drink
Your paper motif can easily be carried through into plating and serving ideas for your food. Although paper plates are the obvious choice you can easily get more creative with lots of options such as paper boats or fiesta pots for side dishes like fries, wedges and salads or larger paper trays for loading up smaller items like canapés and dim sum. Hand your guests paper napkins and serve your drinks with paper straws and parasols which match your colour theme.
Anniversary Gift Ideas
A personalised photo book, printed wall art or handmade paper lantern are all aligned with the paper theme.
10 Year Anniversary – Tin – Symbolises resilience and flexibility
For many couples, 10 years of marriage will already include a wealth of memories and shared experiences. Growing together as a couple and sharing the excitement of a future is celebrated with this milestone anniversary.
Decorations
Metallic accents create a great party ambience. Use empty tins as vases along your tables for a boho vibe. Photos strung up with fairy lights and metallic clips are a great way to showcase the timeline of the couple's 10 years together. Metallic candle holders and a huge metallic number 10 will add a unique touch. If you want something tongue-in-cheek or camp, metallic foil curtains are a great way to add some fun to your room.
Food and Drink
Multicoloured foil cups will create some great photo opportunities and drinks could be served with metallic foil cocktail fireworks. Create some bling with glitter-covered cupcakes and dress your tables using foil-finished runners. Our tip is to make it colourful so it’s not too similar to a silver wedding anniversary.
Anniversary Gift Ideas
Aluminium that has been crafted into decorative or practical items, such as matching keyrings or a personalised ornament, is traditional for a 10 year anniversary gift.
25 Year Anniversary – Silver – Symbolises commitment and prosperity
This is a major milestone representing a quarter of a century together and is one of the most common anniversaries to mark with a party or even a vow renewal ceremony.
Decorations
The colour theme undoubtedly should be silver but there’s no reason you can’t be creative. Silver fabric tablecloths are a wonderful way to dress your tables and act as a great backdrop for simple white tableware. Silver and white balloons will complement this further and you could add some height to your decorations by using silver-sprayed faux trees or branches to display photos of memorable moments. Strategically placed mirrors will magically reflect ambient candles or fairy lights.
Food and Drink
A cake with silver icing makes for a great centrepiece and cocktails served in glasses with an edible silver glitter rim will wow. Strawberries and cherries dipped in silver icing and glitter can sit alongside your cake and cocktails as sparkly additions.
Anniversary Gift Ideas
Silver jewellery is a classic option. Get it engraved for a personal touch. Or for something more unusual, do your research and create a playlist of songs the couple have loved over their 25 years together.
40 Year Anniversary – Ruby – Symbolises lasting passion and romance
Reaching 40 years of marriage is an amazing achievement. In this time couples will have shared a tremendous number of experiences and challenges, resulting in growth and a deepening of their love.
Decorations
To avoid running into Christmas territory, we advise steering away from anything too glittery. Red hearts are a cute option, whether folded napkins or mobiles/garlands. Red flowers of any kind are a lovely choice and add richness to your decor. For a quirky touch, you could complement the red theme with a monochrome motif of black and white – a large 40 made up of black and white photos of the couple provides a stunning centrepiece and a keepsake too.
Food and Drink
Following on from the black and white idea – a cake with these colours adorned with large red flowers looks amazing. A red fruit platter and red doughnuts are eye-catching choices.
Anniversary Gift Ideas
Using the red theme, homewares such as a super soft throw or cushions are a cuddly choice. A red rose bush is a thoughtful way to create a permanent reminder of the milestone.
50 Year Anniversary – Gold – Symbolises strength and enduring love
By now, the couple will likely have children, grandchildren and perhaps even great-grandchildren. Include family and friends when gathering your 50 year anniversary ideas – it could be the celebration of the century!
Decorations
Adorn your room with gold balloons and gold paper star lanterns for a magical feel. Gold-toned fairy lights and glistening gold candle holders will create a cosy vibe. If you want to splash out, gold-toned cutlery is a lavish finishing touch for your tables.
Food and Drink
Champagne jelly shots with edible gold glitter tops and rows of gold macaroons give a VIP touch. A white cake with gold flashes looks classy surrounded by gold and white decorated cupcakes for everyone to indulge.
Anniversary Gift Ideas
Personalised wall art with facts about the year the couple were married will be enjoyed forever more – even better with gold touches throughout. For a group idea, pooling funds and paying for an amazing trip for the couple will create another cherished memory.
The Lawrence Hotel – The Perfect Venue for Your Anniversary Party
The Lawrence is a boutique hotel in Lancashire and our doors are open for your anniversary party! Whether you are planning a 1 year or 50 year anniversary, our function rooms are the perfect place to hold your party and can be dressed in any theme you have in mind. We have space to hold up to 130 people or a smaller room for more intimate gatherings. You don’t need to compromise on style at The Lawrence, even if affordability is a factor for you -we tick both boxes! Give us a call or email today to talk to our friendly team about hiring our fabulous venue for your anniversary party.
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