Updated on: Oct 05, 2024
A 50th wedding anniversary is not only a celebration of a long and happy marriage, but it is also a celebration of life! An occasion as big as this needs to be celebrated properly. 50 years of marriage is a big accomplishment and this achievement deserves a beautiful and well-decorated party.
50th Anniversary Party Ideas: Decorations
1. Life-size Cut-outs
Make life-size cutouts of the couple during important points in their marriage (the wedding/honeymoon, the birth of a child, special trips, etc.). This option is creative and comedic. If you choose to play games at your party, use the cutouts as prizes. If you choose to keep the cutouts for yourselves, they can be used as physical reminders of your lifelong commitment to one another. Check out some online stores to see if they can make such cut-outs!
2. The Color Gold
50th wedding anniversaries are traditionally denoted with the color gold. The majority of parties incorporate gold in some manner, the color depicting a fruitful and prosperous relationship. If you would like your party to have traditional elements, incorporate accents of gold into your color scheme. For example, gold tablecloths, gold balloons, gold streamers, and even gold frosting on your cake will leave your party glowing! If gold is not your preferred color, but you appreciate its symbolism, you can pick a complementary color to go with it!
3. Wedding Memorabilia Decorations
Celebrate your wedding all over again by showcasing your wedding memorabilia. Display the wedding dress for your guests to admire. You can place your wedding photos into gold frames and use them as centerpieces. Decorate the walls with copies of your wedding invitations or other memories. Incorporate gold into all these ideas to keep with the tradition. This option is extremely personal and creates a sense of partnership between you and your guests.
4. Violet Flowers
Violets are flowers traditionally used to symbolize 50 years of marriage. They are a deep purple color and can make any boring party space vibrant and colorful. If you choose to use this flower, you could create garlands out of violets to hang around the room or place them in vases for your centerpieces. Additionally, you could incorporate candied violets in your dessert. Check your local florist for beautiful violet arrangements.
5. Past v. Present
Photos truly say a thousand words, and decorating your space with multiple memories from your marriage can make your party truly special. Focus on the time that has passed by decorating your 50th wedding anniversary with photos of you at the beginning of your marriage and some of you from the present. Create a digital photo book and project it onto a screen in chronological order of your life since marriage. You could even create personalized photo placemats that your guests can take home!
6. Slideshow/Short Movie
Playing off the photo decoration idea, having a slideshow/little movie of the couple's memorable photos is a great way to let everyone feel the love and celebrate their long time together.
50th Anniversary Party Ideas: Favors
7. Mini Personalized Champagne
A gift that your guests are sure to love – champagne! Search the web to come across amazing custom miniature champagne bottles. Personalizing the bottles with custom name labels and patterned sleeves will make this small token of appreciation something special and worth keeping.
8. Gold Tradition
Gold is the traditional color used for 50th wedding anniversaries. Table cloths, balloons, cakes, and chairs are usually gold in color. Celebrate this tradition by gifting gold-colored favors. For example, you can give guests gold-wrapped chocolate or other various candies! If you are looking for something more elegant or sophisticated, gold-colored candles or tealights make great gifts for your guest. Also, gold bottle openers, wine toppers, or champagne bottles are good party favor options for any avid wine drinker. Anything wrapped or accented in gold will take your favor to the next level.
9. Theme Favors
Using a party favor that matches that theme is always a good idea if your party has a specific theme! For example, if you are having a movie-themed anniversary party, a gift card to a local movie theater would be a great idea!
10. Picture This
Pictures are always memorable but having a nice frame lying around isn’t always accessible. Sending your guests home with personalized gold frames or empty photo boxes is a great option. It’s up to them what they put in them! They could put a picture of the happy couple in the frames, or if your party has a photo booth, your guests could take those photos and place them in the photo boxes. Pictures are capable of capturing the most amazing moments at any party, sometimes guests just need something to put them in!
11. Personal Wine Glasses
If your guests are of legal drinking age, send your guests off with a personalized wine glass! Companies can put nearly anything on a wine glass, so creating a piece for each person is a unique way to say thank you. You could include the date of the wedding, your names, and a traditional “50th-Wedding Anniversary” graphic towards the bottom of your glass. P.S. make sure to use gold lettering if you have chosen a traditional theme. A gold-colored wine topper would be a nice complement to go with your personalized wine glass.
12. Fake Wedding Rings
Get the guests the anniversary experience by providing fake rings for them to wear. Now they can feel like the happy couple celebrating and get in the anniversary spirit.
50th Anniversary Party Ideas: Food Ideas
13. Taco Bar
A taco bar is an easy way to offer guests a crowd-pleasing dish that has a little bit of everything! It makes it self-serving, and simple, and ensures that guests get exactly what they want to make their tacos just the way they like them.
14. Charcuterie Boards
Charcuterie boards are a display of cured meats that are perfect for 50th-anniversary parties. They have gained a large amount of popularity in recent times and are easy to prepare as they mostly just include delicious meats and cheeses.
15. Beverages
Let's face it, drinking is everyone's favorite thing to do at a 50th-anniversary party. To make it fun, give guests tailored bottles of water or champagne glasses and tie on a colorful ribbon matching the theme of the anniversary party or that includes a message.
16. Dessert Stands
These dessert stands will make every dessert the married couple love look fantastic and delicious to all of your guests and are the perfect centerpiece for a table of food at a 50th-anniversary party.
17. Custom Cookies
Excellent custom cookies in the midst of tasty foods at a 50th-anniversary party are sure to hit the spot. To stray away from the cookie-cutter designs, feel free to order designs for the cookies that fit the occasion.
18. Cake
What better food to celebrate a party than with cake! If the couple wants, the cake can be just like the one at their wedding or their favorite flavor of all time!
50th Anniversary Party Ideas: Games
19. The Couple's Facts
Put your guests to the test with the who knows the couple best game! Ask them fun questions about the couple to see who knows them best in this fun anniversary party game. See if your guests really know the married couple and whoever proves their knowledge of the couple the best will win the prize.
20. Dance Interpretation
Have your guests choreograph and perform a dance that they think embodies the couple’s life together. Watch as some of your guests try to interpretive dance their way through marriage, having kids, and buying a house. For younger kids who might not understand this game, have them create a dance for the honorees to a song of their choice.
21. Get Closer!
Create an “island” by ordering some large sheets of blue paper and brown paper (or finding it locally here) and placing it in the center of the floor, one for every two guests at the party. Start off with a large square piece of blue paper measuring at least 4 feet by 4 feet. Place a sheet of brown paper on top of it – at least 3 feet by 3 feet.
Instruct each pair of guests to stand on the blue paper however they wish and not fall off of the island and into the “water” (onto the floor). Once everyone seems to be standing on their island, ask them to fold their brown paper in half (thereby making the island much smaller) and assemble themselves on it again. Continue “shrinking” the island until only one pair is left standing.
22. Our Life
Milestones are an important part of a 50th-anniversary party, and He said She said is another fun game that allows your guests to dive into the special couple's personal life and guess about important landmarks in their marriage. This will keep your guests laughing and guessing as the real answers are revealed at the end.
23. Pot of Gold
This is a relay race between married couples. Buy some gold buckets and enough lemons so each couple has at least six. One spouse will carry a lemon under his/her chin to their partner who will get the lemon without using their hands and carry it the rest of the way to a bucket and drop it in.
Whoever can get the most lemons in their gold bucket in 50 seconds wins. You can substitute anything else you prefer instead of lemons as well.
24. Dance the First Dance Again
Relive the memory of that first dance at your wedding with everyone. If you want, you could make it a competition and let the couple celebrating to select the winners.
25. Karaoke
If the couple likes to, let them and the guests sing their favorite songs for everyone! To make more romantic, let the couple sing their favorite songs as a duet and let them cherish it with the audience.
50th Anniversary Party Ideas: Party Supplies
26. Anniversary Party Sign
Look no further if you're asking yourself where to find the perfect sign to cap off your beautiful anniversary party. Your guests will adore this 50th-anniversary party sign and will love the backdrop it creates.
27. 50th Anniversary Party Napkins
These 50th-anniversary personalized napkins are perfect for any engagement party! Not only do they fit the mood perfectly but they'll also make for cute decorations on every table.
28. Champagne Glasses
Anniversary champagne glasses make for an excellent party addition. Having the soon-to-be bride and groom label themselves with their glasses will make them stand apart and enjoy the party that much more.
29. Anniversary Balloons
Beautiful custom balloons decorated with the names of the two special people during their engagement party are a great, affordable idea for decor.
30. Anniversary Party Plates
Anniversary party plates make for perfect table decor and are also perfect for representing what's so special about the occasion. Since a majority are paper plates, it's not only an easy clean-up but also affordable.
31. Romantic Music
Create a romantic atmosphere for the guests and couple. If possible, play some memorable music that the couple holds dear to their hearts whether it be their main slow dance song at the wedding or their favorite romantic song to dance to in general.
50th Anniversary Party Ideas: Conclusion
50 years of commitment is a huge achievement and creating a party space that impresses your guest and commemorates this success is not always easy. If you can fill your party space with some of these 50th-anniversary ideas your party will be special and memorable. However, no matter what color you choose or what centerpieces you decide on, 50 years of marriage deserves to be celebrated. We hope this article makes party planning for your 50th wedding anniversary a little less difficult! If you'd like more useful resources such as budget worksheets, extensive gift guides, to-do lists, and other ideas, be sure to check out the different blog articles on our site!
Written by Jessica Bundy, Chris Kulesza and Matvei Mozhaev; Contributors: Anna Wertman, Jack Lynch and Tallon Haag