If you're a husband or wife about to celebrate your first wedding anniversary - congratulations! All wedding anniversaries are special but the first is a biggie. Traditionally, couples give one another gifts themed around paper to mark their first year of marriage. After that, there's a theme for every year, from silver for your 25th anniversary and gold for your 50th to the lesser-known willow (9 years) and wine (17).
First wedding anniversary gifts usually revolve around paper, so we've run with the theme - curating a selection of wedding anniversary gifts for him, her and for the two of you. For the traditionalists, there’s a few beautiful books dating back hundreds of years and notepads for scribbling love poetry into.
If you’re looking for more unusual first wedding anniversary gifts, we’ve also found a series of presents which expand on the theme: think paperclip jewellery, newspapers from the day you were married and a candle which smells just like a library filled with custom romantic classics.
If you’re willing to put in a little more effort, there’s also a ton of gorgeous personalised presents filled with special meaning. From a charming illustration of your first home through to a print themed around your first dance tune, some one-of-a-kind gifts are available to throwback to your biggest relationship milestones. And for those who can’t resist getting crafty, there’s also a stunning wedding journal you can pen your own love story in.
Read on for more first wedding anniversary gifts below...
First anniversary gifts for him
The Night Sky Custom Star Map Print 50 x 70CM
This utterly romantic gift allows you to customise a star chart of what the night sky looked like at a time and date of your choice. Be it your first meeting, your first date, your wedding day or the birth of your child, you’ll be able to see how the stars aligned at that very moment and hang it up on your wall.
£49 | The Night Sky | Buy it now
Lonely Planet’s Epic Drives of the World
Whether it's the Route 66 or a lush emerald expedition through Ireland, there's a ton of romantic stretches waiting for you to hop in a car and explore. Curated by the Lonely Planet team, this guide also makes a gorgeous coffee table book.
£19.30 | Amazon | Buy it now
Historic Newspapers Classic Gift Box
Remember what was going on on the day you were married? For a unique memento of your big day, you can buy a newspaper that came out on your big day. There are loads of different publications to choose from and it all comes beautifully packaged and with a certificate of authenticity.
£34.99 | Historic Newspapers | Buy it now
Bottega Veneta Black Intrecciato Card Holder
Keep your cards all in one place with this classic Bottega Veneta cardholder.
£200 | SSENSE | Buy it now
Montblanc Augmented Paper Writing Set
You'll never want to carry around a notebook again with this high tech piece of kit. When you write on the notebook in this beautiful leather writing set, the notebook syncs to an app on a device so that you have a digital copy of everything you've scribbled down.
£860 | Montblanc | Buy it now
Luckies Scratch Map XL Edition
Travelling with a loved one is a special experience, and this scratch off map keeps the fun going. It's covered in gold foil so you can scratch off the destinations you've hit as you go - here's hoping you can hit every continent.
£22.95 | John Lewis | Buy it now
Byredo Bibliothèque Candle
There's nothing quite as warm and welcoming as the smell of a vintage book, which Byredo has managed to capture in a candle. Who needs a Beauty and the Beast-style library?
£57 | Byredo | Buy it now
First anniversary gifts for her
Juniper Books Jane Austen Book Set
This beautifully designed set of Jane Austen classics comes from Juniper Books, Gwyneth Paltrow’s personal book curators. Inspired by vintage leather bindings, these pink love stories remain some of the most timeless and will look beautiful in your home in the years to come.
£121 | Juniper Books | Buy it now
Alighieri Il Maestro Necklace
Inspired by the literary masterpiece Dante’s Inferno, Alighieri’s creations hark back to the Italian epic which details Dante’s spiritual journey through the underworld in search of his lover Beatrice. This necklace, the Il Maestro, is inspired by the poet Virgil who guided Dante through the depths and according to Alighieri is based on their relationship of ‘protection and trust, in a quest that cannot be accomplished alone.’
£210 | Alighieri | Buy it now
When Strangers Meet Strapped Book Clutch
Olympia Le Tan has made a name for itself taking books and transforming them into handmade clutches, including this romantic comic. For the bold fashion-loving woman (or man) in your life.
£2,454 | Farfetch | Buy it now
First anniversary gifts for couples
ThisPaperbook 52 Date Night Cards
Sneaking out for a cheeky date night is always a great way to keep the romance alive, but sometimes coming up with a fresh idea can be a little difficult. This box of date night cards will inspire you for the year to come with a list of things to do.
£24.95 | Not On The High Street | Buy it now
PaperJackIllustrates Custom Hand Drawn House Illustration
Whether you’ve just bought your first house together or you want to remember the first home you shared, this personalised illustrated print is a sweet way to pay homage to the setting your love story unfolded in.
£40+ | Etsy | Buy it now
kikki.K Wedding Memories: Always and Forever Notebook
This one will require a little more work from you, but it’ll mean a lot. This gorgeous white and gold book has been designed to help you pen your own romance.
£18 | kikki.K | Buy it now
Adam JK Good Things Happen 18x24 Print
Illustrator Adam JK has made a name for himself with his typography prints, which aren’t your typical cheesy ‘home is where the heart is’ odes. This is one of his most popular and seems particularly apt at the moment, plus it’s available in pink, yellow, black, blue and purple in different sizes.
£33 | Adam JK | Buy it now
Modern Love: True Stories of Love, Loss, and Redemption
The New York Times’ Modern Love column is home to some of the most beautiful, baffling and hilarious real romances and this book compiles the best of them. On top of that, it also includes a few stories from the likes of Tina Fey, Dev Patel and Anne Hathaway.
£13.70 | New York Times | Buy it now
Selected Poems by E.E. Cummings
E.E. Cummings is one of the most romantic American poets of all time, writing at length about love and sensuality in a way that will have you falling for your partner all over again.
£11.99 | Waterstones | Buy it now
Sophia-Enjoy Bookend Hygeia in Purple
These unusual bookends, modelled after the ancient Greek figures, will keep all your books and papers standing upright.
£120 | Wolf & Badger | Buy it now
