Traditional Meets Modern: Finding a Perfect Gift for Your Wedding Anniversary

I love the fact that I keep in touch with my former brides.  After all of the time spent together planning, it is easy to discover that a friendship carries on long after the wedding day has passed.

I met Jeri and Monte two years ago as I planned their wedding at The Rancho Bernardo Inn.  As their anniversary  approaches, Jeri started researching the perfect gift for year number two.  One of the many reasons why I adore Jeri is her out of the box take on most everything and this is no exception.  She is so creative and authentic…

 

Today, in honor of their Second Anniversary, Jeri is blogging about finding the perfect anniversary gift.

 

Traditional Meets Modern: The Challenge of Finding a Perfect Gift for Your Wedding Anniversary

As anniversary number two quickly approaches, I find myself fascinated by the endless enigma of traditional vs. modern natural elements list of anniversary gift ideas. Tradition says COTTON is the proper gift for year two, but why? (By the way it’s not just elements that are listed. There are also charts for anniversary flowers and gemstones too).  Monte and I married a bit later in life, and so part of our vows was a commitment to love, honor, and cherish each other for “40 to 45 years,” given that we hoped we would live that long. That rules out the possibility of a Papal, royal, or presidential letter of recognition that is available for those who have stuck it out for 50 years or more.

How do you show your mate you love them with cotton, when the real recognition really comes from the heart?  To go the cotton route means the obvious choice: linens. The poetry of the marital bed dates back well before they mythic bed of the characters Odysseus and Penelope, whose bed, carved from the waist of an olive tree, symbolized the unending life of their marriage.

If I’m going to showcase my favorite textile or linen procurers, it has to start with French General in Silver Lake, CA.  Not just any Francophile’s fantasy of textiles and curios, French General sells luxurious linen sets that will have you feeling like you’ve died and woken up in Provence. You literally can go to Provence with the gang from French General and rummage around old attics looking for vintage fabric and buttons, stopping for the occasional wine break. Heaven on earth.

Another idea for showering your mate with cotton bliss is the handcrafted quilt. Whether bought or DIY, there’s a whole new modern twist on the “loving hands of home” type of craft—no offense to the Shabby Chic lovers out there. The genius asymmetrical handwork of the Gee’s Bend quilts pulls the traditional craft of quilting into the modern art form.  While the actual quilts from this tiny hamlet in Alabama will now set you back a few pennies, for the modern crafter there are a variety of venders who sell Gee’s Bend Quilt kits.

But my favorite cotton anniversary idea is a different twist on the traditional thinking, a hammock built for two. What a perfect way to snuggle up and celebrate your anniversary, than with your honey swaying beneath the summer sky.

Thank you for sharing Jeri!  The real question is…  What did you end up getting Monte for your Second Anniversary?