A Guide to Celebrating the 20th Wedding Anniversary

The 20th year wedding anniversary is one of the largest milestone anniversaries, and one that is well worth celebrating not only with your spouse and loved ones, but also with anyone in your life who wants to celebrate with you. As you celebrate this truly momentous occasion, you should be taking the time to reflect on the serious commitment that has been made to a lifetime of marriage between you and your spouse. Here is a guide to the ideas and symbols that are normally associated with the twentieth wedding anniversary. Planning a 20th year wedding anniversary is an event that should be taken seriously, and it has a lot more planning involved than simply throwing a celebratory party.

20th Anniversary Traditional Gifts: China is the traditional gift for the 20th wedding anniversary, as it is meant to symbolize the beauty, elegance and delicate nature of your love for one another over a period of the past twenty years.

20th Anniversary Modern or Contemporary Gifts: Platinum is the modern or contemporary choice for a 20th year wedding anniversary gift because it is strong and enduring in many of the same ways as your twenty year old marriage.

20th Anniversary Gemstone: The emerald is the traditional gemstone for celebrating the 20th year wedding anniversary, though yellow or golden diamonds are another available option.

20th Anniversary Color: The colors traditionally associated with the 20th year wedding anniversary are both emerald green and white.

20th Anniversary Flower: The flower normally associated with the 20th year wedding anniversary is the day lily. The meaning normally associated with the day lily is that of coquetry, including playful behavior toward your spouse and flirting.

Another opportunity available to you is to give a rose that is symbolic of this momentous occasion, the twentieth year anniversary. A few of the roses that you should consider include the China Doll rose, the Chinatown rose, the Weeping China Doll rose and the Precious Platinum rose.

There are a number of different ways that you can celebrate your twentieth year wedding anniversary. For example, you may want to consider planning an anniversary party that has a Chinese theme, possibly even making use of Chinese paper lanterns as part of the decorations. If you want to continue the China theme, you may consider planning a picnic using China glasses and plates rather than paper or Styrofoam. Take things to the next level by purchasing tickets to a concert, movie, sporting event or the theater and attend with your loved one. If you want to celebrate in style, which is recommended for this truly phenomenal wedding anniversary, you may even consider vacationing with your spouse to China or Hong Kong, where traditional China gifts can be purchased.

There are a variety of different gift ideas that you can consider when treating your spouse to a gift on your twentieth year wedding anniversary. Consider giving the gift of a Wedgwood china vase containing fresh day lilies or other flowers. You may also consider giving the gift of China plates, china baskets or China cake plates that match the style and décor of your home. If China kitchenware is not your style, China figurines or Chinese style figurines may make an excellent gift for your loved one. If China is not your style, there is always the option to choose platinum jewelry, as platinum is a contemporary gift choice for this particular wedding anniversary.

If you want to create a gift for your spouse rather than purchasing one, you may consider putting a piece of platinum and emerald jewelry, a single day lily, new paper money, love coupons and a love note in a China cup or China bowl, or otherwise combining small, beautiful gifts together in a simple way to show your most special loved one how much you care about them.

The twentieth year wedding anniversary is a large one, and traditionally is the anniversary where couples finally begin to include their friends and family in their celebrations. This does not mean that you cannot celebrate with one another privately, but to have reached twenty happy years with your husband or wife is certainly cause for a grand celebration.