Paper: 1st Wedding Anniversary Gifts
When it comes to gifts for those important occasions such as weddings, engagements, and milestone anniversaries, we have helped many of you choose the perfect map artwork over the years. We love helping to commemorate those BIG moments. Capturing memories is, after all, what we do.
But there is one event that a Bombus gift is more perfect for than any other, if we do say so ourselves. The 1st Wedding Anniversary. Why? Well, traditionally the gift for a 1st wedding anniversary is PAPER. And what is a map, if not paper?
What are traditional wedding anniversary gifts?
Marking the years after a wedding has been something cultures across the globe have celebrated for centuries. It is well documented that countries throughout Europe have been celebrating 25 years and 50 years of marriage with gifts since all the way back in the 1500s. Most countries in fact have traditions that celebrate every five years of marriage.
The traditional gifts for those anniversaries are quite consistent across the different nations:
5th Wood, 10th Tin, 15th Crystal, 20th China, 25th Silver, 30th Pearl, 35th Jade, 40th Ruby, 45th Sapphire, 50th Gold, 60th Diamond, and 70th Platinum.
It wasn’t until the 1930’s, however, that an expanded list of gifts was released by The American Jewellers Association to fill in the gaps between the five year intervals. A blessing to husbands and wives, who now had guidance on what to give their spouse for their big day. And the first year of marriage was marked by a gift of paper.
Traditional Wedding Anniversary Gifts by Year
1st – Paper
2nd – Cotton
3rd – Leather
4th – Linen
5th – Wooden
6th – Iron
7th – Copper
8th – Bronze
9th – Pottery
10th – Tin
11th – Steel
12th – Silk & Fine Linen
13th – Lace
14th – Ivory
15th – Crystal
20th – China
25th – Silver
30th – Pearl
35th – Coral
40th – Ruby
50th – Gold
60th – Diamond
65th – Blue Sapphire
70th – Platinum
80th – Oak
85th – Wine
90th – Stone
Why Paper?
The allocation of gifts to each wedding anniversary wasn’t done purely for capital or commercial gains. There was an element of sentimentality and celebration about each year’s symbolism. For example, the 60th wedding anniversary is Diamond, showing that the marriage is as indestructible as one of the hardest substances on earth.
The paper wedding anniversary was chosen because paper is made from trees. And from a seed, a tree grows and becomes stronger every day. Much like new love.
What are good gift ideas for the 1st wedding anniversary?
Personalised Map Location Prints
The first year of marriage is an exciting time. Newly weds are building memories as husband and wife will appreciate reminders of their big day.
Our map location prints are the ultimate in sentimental and commemorative gifts. Each map is chosen specifically for every individual order. This Map Wedding Venue Print can be made with a map of any wedding location in the world. Mounted and framed in one of our sustainably sourced wooden box frames, and printed with the name of the wedding venue location and the date of their wedding underneath.
Paper Cut Artwork
If you’re a husband looking for the perfect wedding anniversary gift for your new wife, our Paper Cut Artwork is a subtle and memorable way to mark the occasion. Made from high quality paper, these butterflies are hand painted by our talented studio artists and mounted to create a 3D floating effect in our solid wood frame.
Nothing is more paper than a book!
If you’re looking for something even more personal, do you know their favourite book? There are a number of websites and shops that specialise in rare editions of classic, modern, and unusual books. If they are a lover of Dickens, Lawrence, Eliot, or Austen…a shop such as The Old Book Shop might have a unique copy of their most loved story. You can’t get much more ’paper’ than that!
Did you know…?
That as well as traditional wedding anniversary gifts, there are also flowers attributed to each year of marriage?
1st Carnation
2nd Cosmos
3rd Sunflower
4th Geranium
5th Daisy
10th Daffodil
15th Rose
20th Aster
25th Iris
30th Lily
40th Gladiolus
50th Yellow rose with violets
If you’re looking to purchase the ultimate personalised and unique wedding anniversary gift, and you need a little bit of help…get in touch! We love to chat and can talk you through how we choose our maps, make our artwork, and prepare your gift.
01227 751 615