First Anniversary Gifts for Under $50.00

The first anniversary means a lot. It signifies that a couple has become acquainted with each other's imperfections, pet-peeves, obsessions, ways of habit and more. It also means that you can still tolerate each other and are trying to make things work! Hooray for you!

The first anniversary is important and is also something that should be taken seriously. Don't be cheap and get a gift for your sweetie from a Cracker Jack box! Also, if you get house ware, make sure it's something that you both can learn to love or enjoy using! Excellent gifts to give each other are:

1.) A scrap book of your genesis and evolution as a couple that led to the first date, first kiss, first intimate moment, proposal, and then marriage.

Go through your mementos that you and your sweetheart have saved such as photographs, ticket-movie stubs from dates, dried flowers or rose petals, candy wrappers, or anything that was given or shared between you to as a sign of affection or etc.

If you aren't the sentimental type that saves everything, it's okay because you can go on a scavenger-hunt to re-collect these items. If you're missing flowers, go to a flower shop for rose petals, and dry your own, or a craft shop.

2.) A romantic message in a bottle along with a jewelry item: If your first date or place of introduction was at the beach, return to that spot, and collect sand, maybe even some water if your beach is certified as being a clean spot.

Bring your camera along to take a few photos of the spot where you met, had your first date, or kiss. Be sure to make these photos count. Make sure that each photo is a place on the beach that will make identifying your meeting spot to your honey obvious.

The 'message in a bottle': get an adorable bottle from a craft store such as Joanne's, fill the bottle with the items, minus the water, and add a romantic jewelry item(s) or jewelry charm in the bottle...

The mystery and excitement will be in trying to get the gift out of the bottle and if a woman lacks patience, she may hit you over the head with the bottle in order to get the gift out.

3.) Gold/silver Charm Bracelet/Necklace: Charm bracelets aren't just for women, they can be unisex! Give each other a charm bracelet. Select a charm that signifies what your relationship means to each other for the first year.

With the increased popularity of charm bracelets, and the multi-faceted world of charms that have been made to suit every type of man (metro or not) or woman, your selection is limitless.

Guys: give your girlfriend/fiancé/wife a charm bracelet or necklace. Sterling silver is usually less expensive than gold.

Girls: Don't be afraid to do the same. Give your boyfriend/fiancé/husband a charm necklace.

4.) Barnes & Noble Gift card: Barnes and noble isn't just about books, they have nearly everything! They have gifts as well such as journals, diaries, how-to's, trinkets, and even quirky little gifts such as magnet puzzles.

5.) Scents & Oils: There is nothing more exciting than oils and scents which can be used for a number of things that range from aromatherapy, deodorizing office space and home, to even dripping on candles.

Find out your honey's favorite scent and have it mixed and made into a cologne just for them. Better yet, hop over to Bath & Body Works, jet to the oils section and start sniffing! Pick out scents that you know your honey likes or scents that remind you of your sweetie. They usually cost as much as $8-10.00 a bottle and sizes vary.

Be creative: stop over at Joanne's or Michael's Art's 7 Crafts and grab a few tight-capped or corked bottles that range from $1.29-$4.00 and mix the scents up to create one universal scent! If you are uncertain about mixing scents, you can always return to your local Barne's & Noble and buy a book on oil mixing and aromatherapy that will guide you!

Please keep in mind that one drop or dab of oil goes a long way and oils last longer than perfumes and are usually richer in scent and affect.

6.) Candles: Candles are romantic and can also lead to other sexy activities... Check out a local candle shop in the mall, internet, or neighborhood and buy a few candles to adorn, bedeck and drench with oils for a special evening. Again, go to Bath & Body Works! They have a very nice selection that won't kill your budget! www.bathandbodyworks.com

7.) Personalized Pottery Items: why not find a pottery studio and get dirty? Acquaint yourself with clay, and design a personalized coffee mug, erotic vase, coin/entry hall key holder for your sweetie?

Yes, working with clay can be fun and it's amazing what you can do and make from pottery! Why not sign up for 'couple's classes' and make something together that will promote togetherness?

8.) Personalized Office Calendar filled with your photos: Pictures are worth a thousand words right? Well, this can also be the same for a calendar! Why not do a calendar for your sweetie filled with either your photos or both of your pictures together? You can usually have calendars made at Kodak.com.

9.) A fruit tree: A fruit tree such as that as an apple, pomegranate, plum, or peach tree can also be a romantic gift! Even if you live in an apartment or condo, you can still have a potted fruit tree because more than likely, if you're a newly wed couple, the tree with bare fruit, which will signify your budding marriage or relationship.

Eventually, you will buy a home, plant that tree, and the result will hopefully be fruitful, such as that of your relationship, eventually baring fruit, becoming symbolic to your future. You can purchase fruit trees at your local hardware store such as Home Depot, Lowe's, Ace Hardware and etc.

10.) A few disposable cameras for around $6.00: This idea sounds super cheap right? Well, it is but it has an amazing and sentimental catch for the future! Go to your local drug store and purchase maybe two disposable cameras. Spend the day taking photos and documenting your time together on your first anniversary!

Travel a bit, sight see and take lots of pictures! When you're finished, use the remaining money to purchase an in-expensive scrap-book/photo album at your drug store Michael's, Wal-Mart, or Walser's Craft Supplies.

Have the film developed and make a scrap book of your first anniversary! You can decorate the scrap book with other items along the way, and then review it on your second anniversary, god-willing that you make it to a second anniversary! photos are personal and a nice thing to have for quick reference, emergency cases and many people hate the task of having to log onto their computer just to view photos. It's a task and what if your computer isn't working or it crashes? What do you do when you have saved photos ot a computer, or to a mass ubs flash drive, but you still need a component of the two to view photos. The computer must always work, so that's why it's still a great idea to develop photos.

Some would also suggest going digital with this project and not spending money on film or disposable cameras! Going completely digital is not a bad idea, being that everyone has a digital camera now-a-days, and digital photos last forever. You can keep digital pictures stored on several on-line albums services such as Kodak, and or Photo-bucket!

11.) Start a website: Why not start a public or even private website for your immediate family such as in-laws to see? You can get a 'do-it-yourself' website for as little as $12.00 a month with www.yahoo.com or as little as $8.00 a month with Homestead.com. Yahoo by far has the easiest websites template that allows even the most technically handicapped build their own site!

Building a website is a very savvy and innovative task, allowing you to add your own personal touches such as graphics, photos, add a chronic logical time line and more! It can also be a time for you and your sweetie to bond as well. It's even greater if one of you is very technical! The special thing is also the fact that you can protect your pages with passwords, restricting or allowing certain people to view your additions and special moments.

12.) An electric or regular vintage ceramic piggy Bank: Yes, get your loved one a piggy bank to share. Name the piggy bank something special such as spending spree or babies first holiday or whatever. Do you plan to have kids? Would you like to take an exotic vacation? What about the idea of just saving, being that the economy is in utter chaos and it would be wise to encourage mutual saving of funds for rainy days. Also, your bank does not have to be in the shape of a pig. It can be something that you made in your pottery class!

Check these sites out for the best banks under $50.00:

Electronic Pig-E banks: http://www.shopgadgetsandgizmos.com/products.php?name=Pig+E+Bank+-+Electronic+Bank+&x=19&y=13&gclid=CKX4gIGUzpYCFQhJagodC1Df3Q

Old Fashion Ceramic Piggy banks: http://www.chinatraderonline.com/Coin-Banker/Piggy-Coin-Bank/Money-Pig

14.) Healthy Gifts to Make Healthy Treats: 1.) A smoothie machine 2.) An ice cream maker 3.) A JuiceMan Juicer 4.) An Slushee or Snow Cone Machine...

To find these products, I would recommend looking in the following brick and mortar or on-line stores such as

1.) Target: www.target.com

2.) Bed Bath & Beyond: http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com

3.) Kohl's: www.kohls.com

4.) Macy's: www.macys.com

Target is the most reasonably priced store to find the kitchen goodies at. The electric gifts promise loads of fun for all occasions! Do be sensitive and make the most out of your first anniversary!

15.) Create a home away from home or add fun and creativity to your sweetie's office space: Why not make your honey as comfortable as you possibly can when they are away from home? One good idea would be to get them creature comforts such as coffee mugs, a coffee maker if there office space permits them to have one, of cool gadgets such as a digital photos frame? To find cool gifts, i would recommend going to these following places:

1.) The Discovery Store: http://shopping.discovery.com/category-1_HOMEOFFICE.html

2.) The Container Store: www.thecontainerstore.com

3.) Brookstone: www.brookstone.com - here you will find the best technical and logical gifts that are moderately priced.

3.) Klear Gear: a.) http://www.kleargear.com/office-gear-supplies-toys-gadgets-tools-gifts-executive.html

b.) http://www.kleargear.com/desktoppers.html

4.) Think Geek: c.) http://www.thinkgeek.com/homeoffice/

5.) OxFam Unusual Gifts is so cool because it has unusual gifts that are categorized into prices!: http://www.oxfamamericaunwrapped.com/home.php?xid=b4972ad02c89cc71c4ca96e06fff2807

Check out the links! The chances fo you finding the perfect gift are excellent! I am sure that you will find something unique that will be fitting for your sweetie, whether they're the great out doors type, the quirky geeky type, the technical type or whatever they are.