65th wedding anniversary gifts
Blue sapphire is the traditional 65th anniversary gift, and no modern gift is established for the year. This guide gives Australian-priced ideas at three budgets, most of them suited to a gift from children and grandchildren, with comfort, memory and easy outings close to home in mind.
What this anniversary symbolises
Sixty-five years married is a milestone very few couples reach, and by now the family around them often spans three or four generations. The blue sapphire name comes from UK usage, where a Scottish council and a Lord-Lieutenant have used it in public congratulations, and from the anniversary list on Wikipedia. None of the Australian retailer lists we checked goes as far as the 65th, so take the name as a gentle theme for the day rather than a rule the family has to follow.
Sapphire already marks the 45th, so the 65th brings the couple back to a stone they may have been given twenty years earlier, this time with the word blue in front of it. For many families the deep blue reads as steadiness, the colour of something that has held its shape through a long life. After sixty-five years together, steadiness is a fair word for the marriage, and the gift can say that quietly.
By the 65th, most couples own everything they need and have little room for more, so choose things they can hold, read or look at from a favourite chair. Grandchildren can make a photo book or record messages for well under $50. A framed family tree or an afternoon tea a short drive away sits in the middle band. Genuine Queensland sapphire starts near $1,000, which is where children pooling their money makes sense.
Traditional gift: Blue sapphire
Blue sapphire is the 65th gift, and Australia has its own sapphire country to draw on: Rubyvale and Anakie in the Central Queensland gemfields, and Inverell and Glen Innes in the New England region of NSW. Taylor's Fine Sapphires in Rubyvale lists pendants and rings from about $990 to $1,850. Where the budget is smaller, carry the colour instead, with a blue cover on the family photo book or blue flowers on the afternoon tea table.
- Traditional
- Blue sapphire
- Name
- Blue sapphire anniversary
In Australia: The Victorian Premier's anniversary message scheme names the 65th the "Blue sapphire" anniversary, so the term is in Australian official use even though no Australian retailer list covers the year.
Gift ideas by budget
Under $50 (AUD)
Photo book made by the grandchildren
Each grandchild fills a spread with photos and a few lines in their own words. Officeworks personalised hard cover books start from about $18.
Newspaper from their wedding day
A reprinted newspaper from the year they married costs about $29 from Etsy AU sellers, and the old headlines give everyone something to talk about at the party.
Recorded messages from relatives far away
Gather short voice or video messages from family who cannot travel, then play them on a tablet set up beside their usual chair.
A letter for each of them (for her, for him)
Ask each grandchild to write one short letter to each grandparent about a single memory, printed large enough to read without glasses.
$50 to $200 (AUD)
Framed family tree
A tree naming every child, grandchild and great-grandchild. Red Hill Creative has listed plaques at about $65 to $75 (check stock), and The Humble Gift Co makes one in plywood and hardwood for about $100.
Afternoon tea for two, close to home
A weekday afternoon tea for two at Melbourne's Hotel Windsor is about $178 through RedBalloon. In any city, pick a venue a short drive away and ask about step-free entry and seating before booking.
Personalised anniversary wall clock
Zazzle AU prints personalised anniversary clocks with the couple's names and wedding date; ask for a face with large, clear numbers.
$200 and up (AUD)
Green Island glass bottom boat day
For a couple who still enjoy a day out, a Green Island trip from Cairns with a glass bottom boat is about $110 to $127 an adult through Experience Oz, so about $220 to $254 for two, and shows the reef's blue water without any swimming. Check boarding and mobility needs with the operator first.
Rubyvale sapphire pendant (for her)
Taylor's Fine Sapphires lists Queensland sapphire pendants from about $990, a fitting gift for the children to give together.
Queensland sapphire ring (for him)
Rubyvale makers on Etsy AU list sapphire rings in 9ct gold from about $1,200; ask for a plain, low setting if he has never worn a stone.
In-home family portrait session
Book a photographer who comes to their home, so the couple can stay in their own chairs while every generation gathers around them for the picture.
Custom family tree artwork
Acorn Family Trees in Perth draws custom family tree artwork from about $235, with space for every branch added since the wedding.
Quick picks by recipient
For her
- A letter for each of them (for her, for him)
- Rubyvale sapphire pendant (for her)
For him
- A letter for each of them (for her, for him)
- Queensland sapphire ring (for him)
For the couple
- Photo book made by the grandchildren
- Recorded messages from relatives far away
- Afternoon tea for two, close to home
For parents
- Photo book made by the grandchildren
- Newspaper from their wedding day
- Recorded messages from relatives far away
What to write in the card
- Sixty-five years, and you still save each other the last biscuit in the tin. Happy blue sapphire anniversary, from all of us.
- To my love: sixty-five years ago you said yes, and I have been grateful for it every morning since.
- Happy 65th to the two people who started this whole family. Every grandchild and great-grandchild is in this card in spirit.
- Blue sapphire is meant to be rare, and so is a marriage of sixty-five years. With love and admiration on your anniversary.
- From the great-grandkids: thank you for the stories, the patience and the endless cups of tea. Happy 65th.
More wording by recipient and milestone is in our anniversary messages and wishes.
What to avoid
- Long outings that leave them worn out; at sixty-five years married, a full day of travel can mean several days of rest, so keep the celebration short and near home unless they ask for more.
- Bulky gifts that need shelf space, a cupboard or a carry up the stairs, since many couples at this stage are downsizing rather than adding.
- Blue glass sold as sapphire; if the budget will not reach a genuine Queensland stone, give the colour honestly through flowers or a photo book cover.
- Surprise parties with loud music and long speeches; check hearing, mobility and rest times with the family first, and ask the couple what they would enjoy.
Ways to celebrate
- Hold a family afternoon tea at their home or in the common room of their residence, with blue flowers and the good cups.
- Ask every generation to bring one photo from the year they were born, and lay them out in a line that starts with the wedding photo.
- Read the official messages from the King, the Governor-General and the Prime Minister aloud at the party, if the family requested them in time.
- Set up a quiet corner with a tablet so relatives overseas can video call in during the afternoon.
- Ask the couple to tell the story of their wedding day once more while a grandchild films it for the family.
Official congratulations for the 65th
From the 50th anniversary, the Prime Minister and the Governor-General send a free message of congratulations. For the 60th, 65th, 70th and every anniversary after that, the King sends one as well.
One request covers every message. Lodge it with the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) through the online form, by email or by post, or ask the office of any federal MP or senator to lodge it for you.
The online form takes requests up to 3 months before the date, and it is best lodged at least 2 months ahead. You will need a copy of the marriage certificate or a statutory declaration. Belated requests are accepted up to 6 months after the anniversary.
Official sources differ on permanent residents and on some state rules for late requests, so check with PM&C if either applies. State Premiers, Governors and MPs send messages too: ask the office of your state MP how to request one.
65th anniversary questions
Blue sapphire. The name comes from UK usage and from the anniversary list on Wikipedia; none of the Australian retailer lists we checked reaches the 65th. Families tend to give either a genuine sapphire piece or a keepsake that carries the blue.
Australia mines its own sapphires, so a stone from Rubyvale or Anakie in Queensland, or from Inverell or Glen Innes in NSW, adds a local story to a 65th gift.
No modern gift is listed for the 65th, so blue sapphire is the only established theme. Memory gifts from the family, such as a photo book or a framed family tree, are a natural choice alongside it or in its place.
It is the blue sapphire anniversary. The 45th is the sapphire anniversary, and the 65th adds the word blue, which is how a UK council and the Victorian Premier's office both refer to it. None of the lists we checked agrees on a flower for the 65th.
In Australia the request goes to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C), by its online form, by email, by post or through your local MP. One request brings letters from the King, the Governor-General and the Prime Minister. Lodge it two to three months before the date, since the online form will not take a request more than three months ahead.
Include a copy of the marriage certificate, or a statutory declaration giving the couple's full names and wedding date. PM&C can post the messages to a different address if the family wants to keep them for a surprise.
Yes, and at this stage one shared gift often suits the couple better than a pile of separate parcels. An anniversary registry lets children, grandchildren and friends each contribute towards one thing, such as a sapphire pendant or a portrait session at home.
Prefer cash toward something bigger?
Set up a free anniversary registry and let friends and family chip in toward a trip, an experience, or one special gift.