40th anniversary gift ideas: 40 ruby anniversary gifts for parents and couples

Ruby appears on both the traditional and modern US lists for the 40th year. Its deep red is the color of love, and it is one of the hardest natural stones (ruby and sapphire are both corundum), a fair symbol for a marriage that has weathered four decades. The 40th anniversary flower is the gladiolus, often associated with strength of character.

You do not need to buy a gemstone to honor the theme. Anything red works: roses, a vintage wine, a red leather album, a ruby-colored glass. See every year in our anniversary gifts by year list.

1. A ruby pendant, ring or earrings, with a card listing forty memories.
2. Ruby cufflinks or a ruby tie pin for him.
3. Forty red roses, each with a short note tied to the stem.
4. A red leather photo album, one page per year.
5. Ruby-red wine glasses engraved with both names and the date.
6. A bottle of wine from the year they married, if a wine shop can find one.
7. A ruby-red Christmas ornament with the wedding date.
8. A framed print of their wedding song lyrics on red paper.
9. A red cast-iron casserole for the family dinners they host.
10. A bouquet of gladiolus, the 40th anniversary flower.
11. A red cashmere blanket for two.
12. A ruby set into a ring she already wears, with her agreement.

1. Letters from each child and grandchild, collected in a red box.
2. A family dinner at the restaurant where they celebrated their wedding, or the closest equivalent.
3. A slideshow of forty years, ending on their wedding song.
4. A weekend away, with everything at home handled by the children.
5. Their wedding photo restored and framed next to a new portrait.
6. A family photo session with every generation.
7. A memory jar: friends and relatives each write one story.
8. A tree planted in the garden with a plaque for the date.
9. A book that tells the story of how they met and the forty years since.
10. A recorded interview with each of them, using our questions to ask your parents.

If they already have everything, see our gifts for parents who have everything.

1. Ruby cufflinks or a watch with a red dial, engraved with both dates.
2. A weekend back in the town where you met.
3. A framed newspaper front page from your wedding day.
4. Tickets to see his team, forty years after the first game you watched together.
5. A leather-bound book of the letters you wrote to each other.
6. The novel of your forty years, written from your memories.

1. A ruby pendant with a letter about the day you met.
2. Forty red roses and forty reasons, one per rose.
3. A trip she has dreamed of, planned down to the last detail.
4. A vow renewal with the children and grandchildren.
5. A charm bracelet with one charm per decade.
6. A book of your love story, told in the first person.

Forty years hold more stories than a party speech can fit. A book gives them a place.

A personalized anniversary book is written from the memories you share in a guided conversation: how they met, the first home, the hard years, the children, the inside jokes. Nothing is invented; when a detail is missing, it is left out. You read a free first page before paying, review every chapter, and approve the text before it is printed as a hardcover ($69, or $95 for the Prestige edition) and shipped within the United States. For your own marriage, the love story book is written in your voice.

1. A red-and-gold table, with the wedding photo at the center.
2. The menu from their wedding reception, or their favorite family dish.
3. A playlist of the hits from the year they married.
4. Short toasts: one per child, two minutes each.
5. A photo wall with one picture per year.
6. A guest book where everyone writes one thing the couple taught them.

• Forty years, and you still look at each other like that. Happy ruby anniversary.
• Mom and Dad, forty years of love built the family we are. Thank you.
• Four decades, one team. Happy 40th anniversary.
• Rubies are rare, and so is a love like yours. Congratulations on forty years.
• Forty years ago I said yes. It is still the best answer I ever gave.

Find 100 more messages in our anniversary wishes.

These are estimates, not guaranteed dates. If the anniversary is very close, give the digital edition ($35) on the day, or a card announcing the book with its first page printed out, and let the hardcover follow. Prices: $35 digital, $69 hardcover, $95 Prestige hardcover, paid once, US shipping included, sales tax calculated at checkout (pricing).