Milestone anniversary invitations, from the tenth to the fiftieth

An anniversary invitation is written under a different constraint from every other invitation on this site: quite often the hosts are not the couple. Children throw the party, and the invitation has to be about two people who are not writing it.

That changes the wording more than the number of years does.

When the children are hosting#

Name the hosts, then name the couple, and let the couple be the subject of the sentence.

Emily, Jack and Rosa invite you to celebrate fifty years of their parents, Anne and James Harper, on Saturday the twelfth of September.

The instinct is to write it as though the couple are inviting people. Resist that if it is not true, because guests will reply to the wrong person and the surprise, if there is one, becomes very hard to keep.

When it is a surprise#

Say so at the top, in a way that cannot be skimmed past, and say what to do about it.

This is a surprise. Please do not mention it to Anne or James, and please arrive before half past six.

Two practical points that matter more than the wording. Arrival time needs to be firm and early, and the reply must go to the host rather than the couple. A reply landing in the wrong inbox has ended more surprises than anything else.

When the couple are hosting themselves#

Simpler, and it can be as warm and informal as you like.

Twenty five years ago we got married in a room much smaller than this one. Come and celebrate with us on the twelfth of September.

What changes by decade#

• Tenth. Usually informal, often with young children present, frequently a party at home. Keep the invitation light
• Twenty fifth. The first one that tends to be a real event, hosted by the couple, with a proper guest list
• Fortieth. Increasingly hosted by children, and the guest list starts to include people from every stage of a long life
• Fiftieth and beyond. Nearly always hosted by family, often in the afternoon rather than the evening, and accessibility becomes a real planning question

Practical lines that matter more at a golden anniversary#

An older guest list changes what belongs on the invitation.

• Start and end time, both, because guests are planning a lift
• Whether it is seated, and whether there is a meal or just tea
• Parking, and how far the walk is from it
• Step free access, said plainly if it applies
• A phone number to reply to, as well as any other way

That last one is not optional. Some of the people you most want there will not reply to a link, and the answer is not to leave them out. Inviting the guests who are not online covers doing it properly.

Gifts#

A couple of fifty years does not need anything, and guests will ask. Answer it on the invitation.

No gifts please. Bring a photograph of them instead, if you have one, and we will put them all together.

That second half is the best idea in anniversary planning. It gives guests something to do, it costs nothing, and it produces the thing everybody ends up looking at.

Other ways to phrase the gift line are in how to ask for money instead of gifts.

Use two photographs#

One from the wedding, one from now. It is the only invitation where this works, and it works every single time.

Check the old one is a good scan rather than a photograph of a photograph. Should you put a photograph on your invitation covers the rest.

The wording itself#

Every version, including the ones for a quiet lunch rather than a party, is in anniversary party invitation wording.

If the couple are marking the occasion by saying their vows again rather than throwing a party, that is a different event with a different shape, covered in renewing your vows.