35th Wedding Anniversary Gifts: A Coral & Jade Buying Guide

The 35th wedding anniversary is the coral anniversary, with jade as the modern alternative. Coral suits a marriage that has built up slowly, layer on layer, and this guide pulls together gifts that mark it well, from personalised keepsakes to handmade pieces from our Cornwall workshop. Start with the shortlist below, then read on for what coral and jade actually mean.

35th anniversary gifts worth buying

These are all in our 35th anniversary gifts collection, and each one can be given to a husband, a wife or a couple. Prices were checked on the product pages when this guide was published.

Keepsakes for a couple to share

Thirty-five years is long enough to have a family, a home and a thousand stories. The gifts below suit that feeling. The engraved anniversary scrapbook lets you choose the year on the cover and fill the pages with photographs, tickets and notes, which makes it a good present if you want something to open together on the day. A personalised family wall plaque is a quieter option that stays on display, and works especially well if children or grandchildren are giving the gift.

Anniversary Scrapbook Engraved With Your Year£24.14Personalised Family Wall Plaque£22.99I Love You This Much Figure£77.04You Are My Rock Metal Paperweight£33.34

For something with more presence, the I Love You This Much figure is handmade in Cornwall to order, so allow for that when planning. The You Are My Rock paperweight is a solid metal gift that suits a husband who says he does not want anything.

Jewellery and a rose that lasts

Coral-pink and sea-green are easy colours to work with, but you do not need to buy real coral. Natural coral is slow-growing and a protected material in many places, so most buyers choose pieces that nod to the colour or the theme instead. A handmade Forever/Love heart necklace or the hammered I Love You To The Moon and Back necklace both make a personal gift for a wife. The rustic version has a more handmade look. A solid cast metal rose is the 35th-year answer to a bouquet, because it will not wilt.

Forever/Love Heart Necklace£29.89I Love You To The Moon and Back Wife Necklace£35.64I Love You To The Moon And Back Necklace, Rustic Pendant£44.84Metal Rose Gift, Everlasting Love£32.19

What is the traditional gift for the 35th anniversary?

Coral is the traditional gift for 35 years of marriage. Coral is often linked with the growth of a reef: many small things, built up patiently, make something strong and beautiful. That is a fair description of a long marriage. If you want the full background on the year, our guide to the milestone sits alongside the 35th anniversary gift ideas page, and you can see how it fits with the neighbouring milestones in our 30th anniversary guide and our 40th ruby anniversary buying guide.

Coral or jade: which should you choose?

Some lists call coral the traditional gift and jade the modern one, so the 35th anniversary gift in the traditional and modern sense can go either way. Our full list of wedding anniversary gifts by year shows coral / jade for the 35th. Coral is the better choice if you want something with a warm, pink-orange feel. Jade is the better choice if you prefer a calm green and a gift with a lucky, harmonious meaning in many cultures. If you cannot decide, pick one colour for the gift and the other for the wrapping or the card.

Ideas for a 35th anniversary celebration

Many couples keep a 35th anniversary low-key. A table for two at the restaurant where you had your first anniversary dinner, a walk on a coast you both love, or a family lunch with a toast usually goes down better than a big party. If you are planning something for parents, a few photographs from each decade, printed and framed, tend to start the best conversations. Our guide to marking a milestone anniversary and marriage bucket list have more ideas.

How to choose a 35th anniversary gift

After 35 years, most couples already own what they need, so the best presents are about meaning rather than usefulness. A few questions help narrow it down. Does the person like to wear something personal, or would they rather have something for the house? Is the gift from you alone, or from the whole family? And how much time is there before the date? Handmade pieces and anything personalised need a little notice, so order early. As a rough guide, our shortlist runs from around £23 for the family wall plaque to about £77 for the handmade figure, so there is something at most budgets.

If you are torn between two gifts, choose the one that connects to a shared memory. A scrapbook filled with photographs from different decades, or a pendant that matches something you said at your wedding, will usually land better than an expensive item with no story behind it. Add a handwritten card, and if you are stuck for words, our guide to the 30th anniversary shows how other milestones are usually marked.

Buying for parents or grandparents

If you are buying a 35th anniversary gift for your parents, shared gifts from the family are easy to organise. A single personalised plaque or scrapbook that every child contributes to often means more than three separate presents. For more general inspiration, see our anniversary gift ideas guide.

Shop the full 35th anniversary collection

Every gift in this guide comes from the 35th anniversary gifts collection, handmade or personalised in Cornwall. Browse it for more coral-inspired and personalised ideas, or see the anniversary gift ideas hub for every other year.

FAQs

What is the 35th wedding anniversary called?

The 35th wedding anniversary is the coral anniversary. Jade is the modern alternative, so either is a fair theme for a gift.

What is the traditional gift for a 35th anniversary?

Coral is the traditional gift. Because natural coral is a protected material in many places, most people give something coral-coloured or coral-themed instead.

What is the modern gift for a 35 year anniversary?

Jade is the modern gift for the 35th anniversary. Green jade-coloured pieces or jade-style jewellery are the usual route.

What should I buy my wife for our 35th anniversary?

A personal piece of jewellery, such as a hand-finished heart or pendant necklace, is a popular choice. A keepsake like an engraved scrapbook also works if she prefers memories to jewellery.

What can I give my parents for their 35th anniversary?

A shared family gift works well, such as a personalised wall plaque or an engraved scrapbook everyone adds to. Choose something that can be displayed or opened together on the day.