Inexpensive 45th Wedding-Anniversary Ideas for Your Parents

The 45th wedding anniversary is also known as the sapphire wedding anniversary, but you don't have to mark the occasion by buying your parents a precious gem! There are many other sapphire-inspired gifts that won't break the bank.

If you can't afford a genuine sapphire, there are plenty of semiprecious stones, crystals and cut glass that have the same vibrant blue color, such as blue tourmaline and topaz. You could buy your dad a pair of cuff links or a tie pin with a sapphire-look stone in them, while your mother would no doubt be delighted with a pair of earrings, necklace or ring featuring a matching stone.

Sapphire is a striking blue, so homewares in this color can make for ideal, decorative gifts. Look for deep-blue glass vases, wine decanters and glasses, serving platters and decorative crystal artworks, says the Traditional and Modern Anniversary Gifts website.

If your parents' sleepwear or bedding need an update, you can always treat them to matching sapphire blue bathrobes, his-and-hers pajamas or sheets. Blue sleepwear and bedding are not only an inexpensive sapphire-anniversary gift -- Color Matters says the color also has a calming effect, so you can help your folks get a better night's rest too!

Gifts aren't limited to the ones you can unwrap and wear or hold. Experiences can be just as wonderful to receive and create lasting memories. So why not organize a blue-ribbon picnic or dinner for your parents? Include all their favorite, fancy foods, invite their friends and wait on them hand and foot for that genuine blue-ribbon touch. You could even ask guests to wear something blue, serve a blue cocktail to start or bake a blueberry cheesecake for dessert!