40th anniversary gifts: 30 ruby anniversary ideas for him, her and your parents
Thirty ways to mark a ruby anniversary, from ruby port and red gladioli to a book with "our 40th year" on the cover.
30 ideas ·
Forty years is most of a lifetime. A couple at their ruby anniversary has usually raised a family, moved house more than once and seen each other through things neither could have pictured on their wedding day. A 40th anniversary gift should say that it all counted.
The traditional 40th anniversary gift is ruby, and the modern one is ruby too, which is why it's called the ruby anniversary. The flower is the gladiolus, and the color is a deep red. These 30 ideas cover ruby gifts, gifts made of words, ideas for your wife, ideas for your husband, gifts from the children for your parents, and ways to celebrate.
Writing the card? Our guide to what to write in an anniversary card has messages for the big milestones, and deep reasons why I love you has lines worth borrowing.
Make it a book: Years of Reasons holds fifty reasons, one per page, written from your memories and illustrated to look like your people. Start yours
Ruby anniversary gifts
Ruby is one of the hardest stones there is, and a deep red that doesn't fade. These keep the tradition and make it about the two of you.
- A book of reasons with "our 40th year" on the cover: fifty reasons from forty years, one per page, with the two of you illustrated on the front.
- A ruby pendant or a pair of ruby earrings, engraved on the back with your wedding date.
- A ruby band to wear beside her wedding ring, for the next forty years.
- A bottle of ruby port from the year you married, or as close as you can find, to open together.
- A pair of ruby-red glasses, engraved with your names and the year you married.
- Ruby cufflinks or a tie pin for the man who still dresses up for dinner.
Forty years in words
A ruby is lovely. The words are what they'll keep.
- A note for each year of your marriage, forty of them tied with a red ribbon.
- Your wedding vows framed beside new ones written for the years still to come.
- A list of the forty moments you'd live again, read aloud over dinner.
- A photo album of the forty years, a page for each, captioned by hand.
- A letter to your younger selves on your wedding day, telling them what was coming.
- A recording of the two of you telling the story of how you met, for the grandchildren.
40th anniversary gifts for your wife
After forty years she knows you remember the big days. Show her you remember the small ones.
- A book of what you love about her, from your wedding day to the woman beside you now.
- Red gladioli, the 40th anniversary flower, delivered in the morning with a card in your handwriting.
- A ruby necklace, or her mother's old necklace reset with a ruby.
- A trip to the place she's talked about since you were first married.
- A day where you handle everything, from breakfast in bed to dinner at the place you had your first date.
40th anniversary gifts for your husband
He'll probably say he doesn't need anything. Give him something only you could.
- A book of fifty reasons you love him, from the day you married to the man he is now.
- His old watch restored and engraved with your wedding date.
- A bottle of ruby port and the glasses to drink it from, kept for the evening.
- Tickets to see his team or his favorite band, with dinner booked beforehand.
- His favorite meal, cooked the way his mother made it, with the family around the table.
From the children, for your parents' 40th
A lot of ruby anniversary gifts come from the children, and the best ones have everyone in them. Our group book is made for this: send one link, and each of you adds reasons, signed with your names, to a single book of fifty.
- A book of reasons from all the children, and the grandchildren who can write, each signed with their name.
- Their wedding photos restored, reprinted and framed beside one from this year.
- A video of family and friends, each sharing one memory of the two of them.
- Dinner at the place they had their wedding reception, with the family there to surprise them.
- A family photo shoot with every child and grandchild in it.
Ways to celebrate a ruby anniversary
- A party with as many people from the wedding as you can find.
- A vow renewal in the church, garden or town hall where you married.
- A trip back to where you honeymooned, forty years on.
What the 40th anniversary stands for
Rubies are hard, rare and a red that lasts, which is the idea behind the ruby anniversary: forty years of passion that has worn well. The gladiolus, the year's flower, stands for strength of character and remembrance.
None of it needs to be literal. A ruby is lovely, but a note about the year you nearly gave up and didn't is the gift.
Whatever you choose, give it with words. Forty years is a lot of stories, and a short note telling one will outlast almost anything you can buy. If you want the words to be the gift, Years of Reasons puts fifty reasons in a book with "our 40th year" on the cover, the two of you illustrated in the style you choose.
If the gift is from the children, make it a group book: one link, reasons from everyone, each signed, from $25. Marking a different year? See 25th anniversary gifts for a silver anniversary, 50th anniversary gifts for a golden one, and every year from paper to diamond in our anniversary gifts by year.
Questions people ask
What is the traditional 40th anniversary gift?+
Ruby, which is why the 40th is called the ruby anniversary. The modern gift is ruby too, the flower is the gladiolus, and the color is deep red.
What do you buy your parents for their 40th anniversary?+
Something with the whole family in it: a group book of reasons from each of the children, their wedding photos restored and reprinted, or dinner at the place they had their wedding reception.
What should I get my wife for our 40th anniversary?+
Something about your forty years: a ruby pendant engraved with your wedding date, red gladioli delivered in the morning, or a book of fifty reasons you love her with "our 40th year" on the cover.
What should I get my husband for our 40th anniversary?+
His old watch restored and engraved, a bottle of ruby port to open together, or fifty reasons you love him in a book, written from forty years together.
