Anniversary Gift Guide: Jewelry for Every Milestone Year

Each anniversary year has a traditional material. Reading them as jewelry gives you a genuinely meaningful gift rather than a generic one.

The early years

• 1st — Paper: a piece with an engraved message or a custom letter pendant
• 2nd — Cotton: a delicate chain or a lightweight everyday piece
• 3rd — Leather: a jewelry roll or travel case
• 5th — Wood: a wood-grain engraved band, or a wooden jewelry box

The middle years

• 10th — Tin/Aluminium: often read as silver in jewelry terms
• 15th — Crystal: a clear stone — zircon or white sapphire
• 20th — China: porcelain-white; pearls or a white-gold piece

The milestones

• 25th — Silver: a substantial 925 silver piece, or white gold
• 30th — Pearl: classic pearl studs or a strand
• 40th — Ruby: the obvious and best choice
• 50th — Gold: a 14K or 18K gold piece, often engraved with the date
• 60th — Diamond: and this is where lab-grown makes a grand gesture affordable

If you want one rule

Match the year's material to the stone or metal, and put the specificity into the engraving — the date, the place or a private line beats any stone choice.

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