Silver Anniversary
SilverAnniversary.com.au
The Silver Anniversary
Fine wine gets better over time, aged beef commands a premium and fine art can appreciate with age. Unfortunately, many marriages don't fair as well. When a marriage survives for 25 years; it's cause for celebration.
The Silver Anniversary is named after a precious metal because it denotes value. A marriage that has lasted 25 years holds great value to the couple, their family and the institution. With escalating divorce rates, the marriage that reaches its silver anniversary is precious and an odds-beater. Celebrating a 25th wedding anniversary is an occasion to recognize like few others.
The 25th Anniversary
In Australia, the percentage of couples who celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary in 2009 was higher than the U.S., but lower than Italy. The median length of marriages has gone up slightly in the last 30 years, but those who celebrate their 25th anniversary are certainly a special group. A quarter-century of marital bliss requires some significant attention.
Considering the significance of any wedding anniversary, the silver anniversary is one of two, along with the golden anniversary, that take prominence as most significant. A third special anniversary, the diamond anniversary, is rarer and even more significant. As a marriage survives more years, each anniversary is represented by an underlying object with increasing value.
Origin of silver as Representative of a 25th Anniversary
According to legend, in the middle-ages, the Germans believed a husband should give his wife a gift of a wreath of silver on their 25th wedding anniversary. The symbolism of silver survived the tradition and lives on today. The Victorian period included a reference to silver on the 25th anniversary also.
The writer Mark Twain once said, "Love seems the swiftest, but it is the slowest of all growths. No man or woman really knows what perfect love is until they have been married a quarter of a century."
25th Wedding Anniversary Gift Ideas
How do you recognize someone whose marriage has lasted 25 years? With great consideration. Gifts for a 25th wedding anniversary can be eclectic or traditional. The gift-giver can opt for something totally unique or something recommended by the professionals. Either way, the gift should be special and reflect the true importance of 25 years of marriage. It may be crafted by the gift giver for additional impact.
Traditional or contemporary silver products are the most recognized anniversary gifts for the 25th wedding anniversary. A custom certificate or poem framed in a silver frame is a great gift for the 25th anniversary couple. A silver-framed portrait of the couple is another wonderful 25th anniversary gift idea.
Anniversary Gifts
With silver as the material of choice for appropriate gifts, many items lend themselves to this one primary requirement. An inscribed paper weight will always be easy to display. His and hers silver jewelry is always a hit also. Silver key chains are a useful choice and will be a daily reminder of the occasion and gift-giver. Silver cuff-links for him and a silver necklace or bracelet for her are just more ideal anniversary gifts that will provide memories of the landmark occasion.
A Unique Anniversary Gift
Just as valuable as a precious metal is the gift that is custom or hand-made. An embroidered quilt cooperatively constructed by the loved-ones of the anniversary couple will be a precious keepsake while a personalized photo album full of special memories will be prized by the couple and a great anniversary present. If the couples' 25th anniversary is close to Christmas, a custom ornament would be a unique gift idea.
The 25th Wedding Anniversary Celebration
It's a once-in-a-lifetime event and deserves all the recognition and festivities that are due its participants. The 25th anniversary is an achievement that a diminishing number of couples experience and the occasion is worthy of special acknowledgment. There are many great approaches to celebrating a 25th wedding anniversary.
The special couple will have their own preference for the size and complexity of the event, venue and guests. Many will opt for a small, intimate family gathering. Others will prefer to share the day alone, while others will agree to a real party with family, friends and the original wedding participants. Some will prefer not to receive anniversary gifts while others will seize the day and all of its trappings.
The Silver Anniversary observed
The tone of the 25th wedding anniversary celebration will be decided by the couple also. Some will prefer a casual get-together while others will recognize the event with a formal affair. One can be as simple as a backyard barbeque while the other can mean renting a venue, dressing in formal wear and hiring entertainment. It could also mean a formal dinner at a high-end restaurant.
Any planning by a third-party needs to involve the anniversary couple early on. It's their day to enjoy just as it was 25 years before.
It becomes apparent why a good wedding photographer offers value for many years after a wedding when it's time for the 25th anniversary. The best pictures from the couple's wedding can be the centerpiece of a display at any event that celebrates a 25th wedding anniversary. A collage of wedding photos and photos from the intervening years, combined with several current images, will provide a walk through time for the couple and guests.
Organising a 25th Wedding Anniversary Celebration
The music, the party favors, the bubbly libations and anniversary gifts are all part of the supporting cast of a successful 25th anniversary celebration. A couple whose marriage has endured enough years to reach their silver wedding anniversary deserves the recognition and celebration of a party or special dinner.
From a cocktail party with hors d'oeuvres to a full dinner or organised party, the well-planned 25th wedding anniversary celebration will be a hit. With a guest list preapproved by the happy couple, invitations can go out weeks before with an RSVP date set early enough for venue notice. Send out invitations with 'then and now' pictures of the anniversary couple.
Silver Wedding Anniversary Creativity
Another invitation idea is to feature the couple at their favorite vacation destination or involved in a mutual hobby or favorite pastime. This can involve caricatures of the couple and this theme can be continued throughout the printed materials that are part of the celebration. Add to this the 25th wedding anniversary theme, with silver highlights wherever possible and the stage is set. Don't forget the silver balloons.
Weddings often feature a sign-in board or autograph frame and this idea can be incorporated into a 25th anniversary party as well. At the center can be a current portrait alongside an image from the couple's wedding with a '25 years' clipart in-between. Guests sign the board with non-smudge markers.
25th Wedding Anniversary Decorations
Other items of decor can include a life-size cutout of the couple, standing at the entrance to the event to welcome guests, 25th anniversary table centerpieces and silver balloon weights as well as custom seating cards. Small silver frames with the couples' picture can be take-homes gifts for guests.
A sheet or tiered cake is always s staple at any anniversary celebration and the 25th wedding celebration is no exception. The cake can be surrounded by silver table glitter, silver streamers, balloons and ribbon. A separate table to display anniversary gifts should be set up in a prominent place.
Top off the event with music from the original wedding or a video from the wedding, if one is available. Don't forget the champagne. The 25th wedding anniversary couple deserves a toast for their enduring marriage.