Color Symbolism

Traditional Wedding Anniversary Colors By Year (1st to 80th)

Happy wedding anniversary text in bright colors on dark background

The start of a new life together is celebrated with an unforgettable day cementing your commitment in love. Each wedding anniversary brings warm memories of that time but also a shared sense of building something unique, precious, and totally your own.

Sit down and talk with your grandparents about this, and it will quickly become apparent that counting the milestones of life while nurturing a relationship, bettering your communication and understanding, and valuing each other more year after year is an accomplishment that gets sweeter with time.

In fact, faithfully honoring your commitment and loving one person truly shows your strong character.

List of Traditional Wedding Anniversary Colors

As you approach the renewal of your union year by year, celebrate it in a fun and fresh way by looking into the traditional wedding anniversary colors on this list.

One-year anniversary: yellow

Making us think of morning sunshine and new beginnings, yellow is an apt color to embody making it through a first year of marriage that might be equal parts delirious happiness and frustration. Yellow is associated with positivity and optimism as well as intellect, and on its negative side may also describe cowardice and impatience. Use of this color at a one-year anniversary is perhaps a good reminder that we won’t always be perfect at applying patient understanding in our relationships, but a cheerful, hopeful outlook can shine a light on the wisdom we’ll need to value the union, forgive, and do better in the future.

Two-year anniversary: linen white

The color white symbolizes innocence and purity, and also cleanliness and perfection. The latter two adjectives might feel as if they arrive a bit early to describe a marriage so young and could be better ascribed to a time-tested, polished relationship. However, getting through the first two tumultuous years can be enough of a fire to burn off many impurities.

Three-year anniversary: jade green

The mineral jade comprises ornamental adornments across many cultures and represents harmony and friendship. After all, couples will find it very difficult to continue a journey of lifelong partnership without these attributes. Jade also stands for the more spiritual qualities of serenity and peace, which is easily imagined while looking into its blue-green hue. May partners who celebrate the three-year mark with this color find the tranquility it is said to bring.

Four-year anniversary: blue

Blue makes us think of loyalty and trust, the emblem of a valued companion whose character remains the same whether they are alone or in front of a crowd. Across the board, couples agree that faith and trust in your spouse stand as some of the most sought-after qualities in a partner, and necessary to build a lasting relationship. On the other hand, it can also embody elements of frigidity and unwillingness, which of course need to be kept in balance for a productive relationship.

Five-year anniversary: pink

At five years, pink brings a return to the playful, a welcome look back on the giddiness you felt when you met and the sparkling courtship that ensued. Pink also means compassion, love, and nurturing, finding its strength in a feminine base, although male partners will want to emulate these characteristics even as they revere them in a female.

Six-year anniversary: turquoise

Decorate any celebration of this milestone with turquoise, the color of communication and clarity. What indispensable tenets to keep in mind when sustaining a solid partnership from day to day! Some find it easy, some find it more challenging, but if we have chosen someone we trust, with whom we can bare our souls, thoughtful and constructive communication should always be possible.

Color personality quiz animation

Seven-year anniversary: onyx

A mysterious and luxurious hue, onyx suggests elegance and sophistication. We know significantly more about our spouse and ourselves after seven years of marriage, and life together has taught us we can face problems and come away wiser and more perceptive than before. At this point we have invested commendable time and toil into preserving the relationship, and colors in the black family stand for protection, teaching us to lovingly guard our union from negative influence and make it a place in which each partner feels safe.

Eight-year anniversary: bronze

Bronze means stability, support, and strength. When we really learn how to give and receive these, we can truly relax and feel comfortable in the knowledge that our partner in life not only inspires us and ignites our passion but has our back too.

Nine-year anniversary: purple

Purple has long been deemed the color of royalty, used to dye the robes of kings according to stories from ancient civilizations. It also symbolizes spirituality and imagination, without which we may find it difficult to reach a compassionate understanding of another person by putting ourselves in their shoes.

Ten-year anniversary: silver

In nature, silver makes us think of mysterious yet reliable elements: the phases of the moon, the patterns in the stars, the ebb and flow of tides. Some cultures identify the sun as masculine and the moon as feminine, a bewitching goddess etched in silver, immovable and cyclic yet imbued with mystical, ethereal beauty. Although silver does radiate a more feminine energy, all lovers would do well to remember their good fortune in finding a partner who enchants them now, ten years into a marriage, and forever.

Eleven-year anniversary: turquoise

Besides concise and compassionate communication, turquoise represents the ability to stay calm and centered in the face of trials. Couples know on their eleventh anniversary that they are into their second decade of marriage, when they feel secure enough to keep a calm spirit.

Twelve-year anniversary: opal

Opal stones are marked by their ability to give off varying and brilliant shades. Partners should aspire to take on different roles as needed as they grow and change together.

Thirteen-year anniversary: citrine

From the yellow color family, citrine denotes energizing qualities: vitality, healing, abundance, and joy. Known for adding a sparkling quality to its lemon hue, couples can use a citrine-themed thirteenth anniversary to remember the importance of nourishing and revitalizing their strong union, their partners, and their unique selves.

Fourteen-year anniversary: ivory

Gentle and pleasant to the eye, ivory combines soft warm tones of brown and beige into the purity of white, making for a serene and comforting feeling. Though marriage takes work, it should serve as a boon to loving partners, a soft place to land.

Fifteen-year anniversary: ruby red

The color red already lends a celebratory spirit to any occasion, gracing brilliant flowers at Christmastime and Valentine’s Day and turning heads when worn in clothing. It marks special occasions whenever we need them, spicing up a weekly date night or unexpected bouquets of flowers bought simply to make someone smile. Celebrate a fifteenth anniversary with the promise of making special occasions whenever you want or need them, getting out the good china without scheduled cause and making everyday occurrences memorable.

Sixteen-year anniversary: emerald green

The emerald shade of green, being a deep color, signifies richness, luxury, and prosperity. You are approaching two successful decades together as a couple – reflect with gratitude on how much you have! A partner you can depend on, who has proven they are in this for the long haul and has given you their whole heart, is a prize highly sought after.

Seventeen-year anniversary: yellow

A seventeen-year celebration in yellow rekindles a simple idea that defined your beginning together: happiness, pure and true. Yellow embodies positivity and hope; stay optimistic about having many more years together.

Eighteen-year anniversary: blue

The color blue bears intellectual qualities such as enlightenment and ingenuity, and is the color of solitude. As your eighteenth anniversary approaches, think about your partner as an individual. Take a step back and admire them for their innovative ideas and for how they have helped you grow. A good marriage celebrates each partner as individuals as well as your shared communion.

Nineteen-year anniversary: bronze

Bronze means loyalty and strength. Keeping a marriage alive for nearly two decades means you have learned together what it takes to be the person someone else truly relies upon. Let the metallic shimmer in the shade remind you that there is beauty in real strength.

Twenty-year anniversary: white

White offers simplicity, comfort, cleanliness, and blamelessness. Go into the start of your third decade together with a clean slate and a commitment to accepting each other, knowing each other ever more deeply, and creating a home life that’s simple, easy, and sweet.

Twenty-one-year anniversary: orange

Bright and cheery, orange is an emotional color that speaks of enthusiasm and an outgoing spirit. Stay hungry and eager for new experiences – it’s a great way to get closer to someone even if you already know them well.

Twenty-two-year anniversary: green

Green represents growth, renewal, and balance, important ideas to remember when nurturing a union over a long period of time. Plants and flowers, especially those that live on for years or even decades, often reveal signs of their treatment and care from early on as they grow larger and larger. Treat your significant other with respect, courtesy, and friendship early on; it will likely still be on their mind in later years and hold a place of high value in their heart.

Twenty-three-year anniversary: silver

Beautiful, shining silver evokes thoughts of fluid metal, representing traits of strength and femininity like sensitivity and emotional depth. Emotionally supporting each other may require partners to grow and change with the relationship, taking each day and each development as it comes. Bring silver into your twenty-third celebration of marriage to encourage yourselves to keep a tender and vulnerable heart open toward each other.

Twenty-four-year anniversary: lavender

The color lavender symbolizes friendship and new birth. Associated with spring and seen frequently in flowers, this brilliant shade of pale purple lends itself perfectly to anniversary celebrations and is often seen as a theme color at weddings. One can envision light purple blooms in the freshness of spring and baby animals safely shepherded by new mothers. Think of the importance of renewal and revitalization, growing together in friendship, as you look back on more than twenty years as a couple.

Twenty-five-year anniversary: silver

Along with sensitivity and mystery, silver denotes illumination, gaining the kind of knowledge that goes beyond mere intellectualism with a wider view that includes a spiritual side as well. Twenty-five years is a significant journey together, and you have both grown enough to see the bigger picture.

Thirty-year anniversary: green

The color green also speaks of intuition, self-reliance, and safety. Though you’ve already proven your union is strong, keep taking tender care of it even after thirty years. Look ahead to how you can better face tribulations and keep things fresh as you go about day-to-day responsibilities together. Celebrate your own personal achievements too. Your independence will surely be admired and respected by your partner after many years just as much as it was when you met.

Thirty-five-year anniversary: coral

Coral is associated with warmth and paints vivid portraits of sunsets, seashells, and summer vacations in the sand, getaways that make lasting memories. Other meanings of the color include acceptance and individuality, encouraging us to value the unique things about our spouses and realize that even flaws help make up a complex and expansive picture of an imperfect person who perfectly connects with us.

Forty-year anniversary: ruby red

Red conveys energy and passion, a candle still burning bright after forty years together. Love needs vitality to nourish it and passion to keep it warm. Couples now likely have adult children to help them celebrate this milestone and can do it in a big way, inviting friends for a gathering and retelling how-we-met stories.

Forty-five-year anniversary: sapphire red

In the past, the color associated with this anniversary was sapphire blue. But today, it’s sapphire red, a somewhat unusual color because sapphires don’t actually come in red. This color is difficult to separate from ruby red in hue because red gemstones fall under the ruby heading in terms of jewelry. Sapphire red possesses a slight orange cast in comparison to true rubies, so celebrations can combine the passion of red with the bright optimism of orange. Look back on the fire of your incomparable love and let it stoke your optimism about your future together.

Fifty-year anniversary: gold

The mineral gold comes with many stories of accidental discovery and unexpected wealth, and this is likely exactly how we feel when we encounter that person that stands out among all the rest, and discover that they see us in that same way. Fifty years together is a standout accomplishment as well, and has undoubtedly given you a wealth of knowledge about how to value yourself and your partner and weather storms with cooperation and consideration.

Fifty-five-year anniversary: emerald green

Emeralds symbolize harmony and youth. Your anniversary festooned with a striking dark green theme will bring to mind the fact that the best partnerships approach life with a relaxed and accepting inner peace and a spirit of eagerness and fun.

Sixty-year anniversary: diamond white

The famously hard diamond brings to mind not only rarity but impenetrability. Your marriage is precious like diamonds but also proven by trials and by time. Of course it has come out stronger and more beautiful – you built it together!

Sixty-five-year anniversary: sky blue

The attributes of the lighter shade of blue include good luck, health, and a connection to nature. It’s a back-to-basics color that makes us think of getting outside under a cloudless sky and perhaps taking on new hobbies, ventures, and goals together, reinvigorating our partnership.

Seventy-year anniversary: platinum

Platinum as a metal provides the substance for highly desirable jewelry and settings. Beautiful and immovably strong, platinum stands apart and above, which echoes the idea that seventy years together is no small achievement. Its metallic silver-white hue evokes an ethereal mood and speaks of that intangible ingredient within your chemistry together that makes yours a partnership built to last.

Seventy-five-year anniversary: diamond white

In scientific terms, white results from the combination of all colors of the rainbow melded together, and its use at the celebration of a strong union which has lasted this long perfectly reflects the depth of unity a couple can reach.

Eighty-year anniversary: ruby red

Eighty years together. Eight cherished decades of precious moments. The milestone every couple hopes to hit. You two hold the keys to knowing how to truly treasure another person and bask in the love they lavish on you, and you are probably the ones friends and relatives go to for guidance, a coveted role that should make you shine from the inside out. Bring out the ruby red and have any kind of celebration you want, because red also stands for ambition, action, achievement, and strength. The future is yours – enjoy it together!

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