Buying guide
Anniversary Gifts by Year (Traditional & Modern)
By the Naked Wood Works shop, Pryor, Oklahoma · September 2026
Each wedding anniversary has a traditional gift material, starting with paper for the first year and running to diamond for the sixtieth, and there is a separate modern list with more everyday items. Wood is the traditional 5th and the modern 6th, and those are the years we make the most sense for: we engrave maple and walnut boards, coasters, glasses and ornaments, made to order in Pryor, Oklahoma.
A note before the list
Anniversary lists vary by source. The traditional list goes back a long way and has been added to over time. The modern list is newer and differs from one publisher to the next, especially after year 15. Treat both as a menu of ideas, not a rule. If your spouse follows one list closely, go with that one.
The list by year
Year: traditional, then modern.
- 1st: paper; clocks
- 2nd: cotton; china
- 3rd: leather; crystal or glass
- 4th: fruit or flowers; appliances
- 5th: wood; silverware
- 6th: iron or sugar; wood
- 7th: wool or copper; desk sets
- 8th: bronze; linens or lace
- 9th: pottery or willow; leather
- 10th: tin or aluminum; diamond jewelry
- 11th: steel; fashion jewelry
- 12th: silk or linen; pearls
- 13th: lace; textiles or furs
- 14th: ivory; gold jewelry
- 15th: crystal; watches
- 20th: china; platinum
- 25th: silver; silver
- 30th: pearl; diamond
- 35th: coral or jade; jade
- 40th: ruby; ruby
- 45th: sapphire; sapphire
- 50th: gold; gold
- 55th: emerald; emerald
- 60th: diamond; diamond
From year 25 on, the two lists mostly agree. The early years are where they split.
The wood years: 5th and 6th
Wood is the only material that shows up on both lists in back-to-back years, traditional 5th and modern 6th. That makes an engraved wood piece a safe pick for either anniversary without having to know which list your spouse reads.
The Circle Monogram Anniversary Cutting Board is the board we would start with. It carries your names, last-name initial and wedding date inside a round monogram, on solid maple or walnut, from $29.70. The Established Family Name Anniversary Board is quieter: your family name and the year you married, set in one corner. If you want something smaller, Circle Monogram Anniversary Coasters come in sets of 2, 4, 8 or 16, from $16.50.
For more on this year in particular, read our 5th anniversary gift guide.
Other years where our pieces fit
We are a wood shop, so we will not pretend a cutting board is a pearl. A few other years do line up well:
- 3rd (modern crystal or glass) and 15th (traditional crystal): Couples Circle Monogram Wine Glasses are 21 oz stemless glasses engraved with your monogram; order the set of 2. They are glass, not crystal, so they suit the modern 3rd most directly, and they make an easy add-on to a crystal gift for the 15th.
- 1st anniversary: paper is the traditional gift, and a handwritten card is one of our board add-ons. Some couples also mark their first year with the Our First Christmas Together Ornament when the anniversary falls near the holidays.
- Any milestone year: a board engraved with your names, wedding date and a line such as “25 years” works for 10th, 25th and 50th anniversaries alike, because it is about the marriage rather than the material.
Choosing a gift when the material does not appeal
Some years are hard. Few people want a tin gift at ten years or a set of appliances at four. A few approaches that work:
- Follow the other list for that year.
- Take the material loosely. Iron for the 6th can be a cast iron pan; sugar can be a favorite dessert.
- Pair a small themed gift with something personal you would have chosen anyway.
Engraved gifts are good for that last approach, because the personal part is built in. Your names and date make it about the two of you, whatever year it is.
What to put on an anniversary gift
Keep the engraving to what will still be true in twenty years: names, the shared last name or an initial, and the wedding date. Add a year count only if you want the gift tied to this specific anniversary. Our guide on what to engrave on a cutting board walks through name order, date formats and how much text fits.
Every order is engraved exactly as you type it and made to order in 3-5 business days. Browse the full range on our anniversary gifts page.
