Event Planning

What better way to celebrate the precious years together than an anniversary party with friends and family! It's so much fun, and makes for magical memories. Here are our simple steps to hosting an amazing celebration

So, you're having a party for your wedding anniversary (congratulations!), and you don't know how to ask for gifts? We are here to help! Luckily for you, there are so many different ways that you can ask for gifts that are both super fun and polite. Here are a few of our favourite examples that you may wish to use

As we often get asked what wording you should include in anniversary invitations, we thought it would be useful to create an easy guide for you to follow.

Whenever you start to plan a celebration, one of the first things you are advised to do is set a budget. We all know that setting a budget is one thing – sticking to it is another thing all together! But, you can do it. Here are just a few ways you can make sure you keep control of the pennies, without compromising on quality. 1. Prioritise what you HAVE to have at the party. Write a list of the must haves – this will include: venue, food, drink, invitations and may include entertainment, decor, new clothes. Then write a list of would like to haves, such as a photographer, fireworks etc. Focus on prices for the must-haves. Once you have finalised a price for the necessities, you can see whether you have any money left for the rest. 2. The date – think about when you are going to have the celebration. For an occasion that is not time specific eg wedding or christening, you will get much better value for money in the winter. For a birthday or anniversary, obviously time-specific, some venues may be cheaper if you book midweek or in the afternoon. 3. Venue – village and community halls are very cheap to hire and many venues, such as sports clubs are free if you use their bar. If you want to go to a hotel, have a look at their all inclusive packages. 4. Food – many venues are quite happy for you to self cater for parties. In my own family we do this frequently and we always end up with a complete excess of gorgeous food – everyone likes to show off their speciality dish. You may also have someone who loves icing cakes – perhaps they could do that as a present for the event. 5. Drink – If you are buying a sparkling wine for the event, see if you can buy it on a return basis if you don’t use it all. Make up some cocktails (and mocktails) using soda water as part of the mixture. Guests do not necessarily expect free drink for the whole event, just let them know there will be a cash bar. 6. Other supplies – for other suppliers it really is worth shopping around. Many suppliers will have a tiered price structure, ranging from “bargain” to “premium” service and occasional sales and offers to make your pound go further. Here at The Card Gallery we have a permanent selection of affordable stationery collections plus frequent sales If you have got a budget for a specific service, tell the potential supplier up front. Ask them what they can do for £x amount – being up front with your budget means you are not wasting yours and their time. You can buy some fabulous party clothes on line, but a little tip from a dressmaker friend: buy at least one size too big, because it is always easier (and cheaper) to make the dress smaller than to expand it. When you are organising any celebration, remember that people want to enjoy themselves. Parties are a great way to catch up with family and friends and that is far more important than how much money you spend. You can have as much fun under a gazebo in the park as you can at a 4 star hotel.

August and September are the busiest months for weddings, so it goes without saying that it is the busiest time for wedding anniversaries too. For most couples the 25th anniversary, silver, is the first one they really celebrate with family and friends, followed by ruby (40th), gold (50th) and diamond (60th). According to Debrett’s, the silver and gold tradition arose in Medieval Germany when a husband gave his wife a present of a silver or gold wreath after 25 and 50 and years of marriage respectively – I suspect these were very rare back then. The diamond anniversary was first used to celebrate Queen Victoria’s reign and then became linked to 60th wedding anniversaries. It is not clear where these other “traditional” anniversaries come from – many seem to come from the USA in the earliest 20th century and are possibly attributed to commercial interests. The name for the anniversary gives a guide to the couple as to what to buy each other. So, if you need inspiration for an anniversary gift for your spouse, or you want to gain some points at the next pub quiz, here is the full list of “traditional” presents: 1st - Paper 2nd - Cotton 3rd - Leather 4th - Linen 5th - Wooden 6th - Iron 7th - Copper 8th - Bronze 9th - Pottery 10th - Tin 11th - Steel 12th - Silk & Fine Linen 13th - Lace 14th - Ivory 15th - Crystal 20th - China 25th - Silver 30th - Pearl 35th - Coral 40th - Ruby 50th - Gold 60th - Diamond 65th - Blue Sapphire 70th - Platinum 80th - Oak If you don’t like the idea of giving an iron gift, for instance, I have managed to locate some alternative anniversary lists, again probably developed for commercial purposes, but at least they can provide some alternative present or theme inspiration.

For many couples their wedding day is the fairytale, where you are the Prince and Princess for the day. But what happens after the honeymoon, when the memory of the day has faded? How do you live happily ever after? In any marriage the wedding is just the start of the story, there will be a lot of hard work ahead. The musical “Into The Woods”, due to be released as a film in December, gives a twisted view of what happens after the fairytale ending, but the reality can be so different. In February it was National Marriage Week, where individuals and organisations were challenged to focus on how the relationship can grow and flourish into a healthy marriage. Marriage is good for us – research in both the UK and Australia shows that married people are happier than singles, so it really is worth making the marriage work. All couples start out with good intentions and very few will imagine that their marriage will be one of the estimated 42% that end in divorce. There will be times, however, when the strongest marriage comes under stress. Typically it is when children arrive, when the children leave home or at retirement, but stress in the relationships can come from unemployment, change of job, caring for relatives, ill-health, financial concerns and a myriad of other issues. Before you know it that person who was your best friend and soul mate has become someone distant and unrecognisable. So here are some of the things you need to think about to make your marriage survive: • Tolerance and acceptance – nobody is perfect and you have to accept your partner for what they are. If you want things to change, change yourself and your partner may well follow. Say you are sorry if things go wrong. • Commitment – marriage should be approached as a life-long commitment. You owe that to your spouse, your family and yourself. • Good manners – don’t take each other for granted and appreciate your other half. Thank them for the things they do, tell them you love them and respect their feelings. • Care for each other by being attentive to each other, sharing hugs and holding hands. • Listen to what your partner is saying and pay attention to how they are saying it. Keep on communicating and don’t get defensive. Try to sit down with a cup of tea regularly to talk over issues before they get to breaking point. • Allow each other space to develop interests, but support your partner in those interests. Self-fulfilment allows you to love yourself and let other people love you. • Laugh together, make sure your life is fun where possible and have your own little jokes • Plan things together – make a list of what you would like to do together such as holidays, hobbies, walks, meals. Talk about what you can to do together when the children leave home or when you retire. Have things to look forward to. • Celebrate – your love for each other is a wonderful thing. Make sure you celebrate it by going out on dates regularly, writing love letters, making unexpected gestures. Build up the happy memories you have together, because these can help you through the harder times. As part of the celebration you should share your achievement with family and friends. Anniversaries, particularly Silver weddings (25 years), Ruby Weddings (40), Golden (50) and Diamond (60), are popular milestones. As people live longer new milestones are coming up: I know someone who has now celebrated two silver weddings and another couple approaching their 65th (blue sapphire) wedding anniversary. Surely a cause for celebration.