Buying guide
The 5th Anniversary Is the Wood Anniversary: What to Give
By the Naked Wood Works shop, Pryor, Oklahoma · September 2026
Wood is the traditional gift for a 5th wedding anniversary, so the simplest good answer is something made of wood that the two of you will use and keep. We make engraved maple and walnut cutting boards, serving boards and coasters for exactly this, each made to order in Pryor, Oklahoma, with your names and wedding date on it.
Why wood marks five years
The traditional anniversary list starts light and gets sturdier as the years add up: paper for the first year, cotton for the second, leather for the third, fruit or flowers for the fourth. Wood arrives at year five, and the usual explanation is that a marriage at five years has put down roots. You do not need the symbolism to justify the gift, though. A wood piece holds up to use, gets better looking with a little oil, and sits on a counter where people see it every day.
Anniversary lists vary by source. The common modern list puts wood at year six instead, which means a wood gift covers both lists if you are unsure which one your spouse follows. Our anniversary gifts by year guide lays out both lists side by side.
What to give
A good 5th anniversary gift is personal, useful and still wanted in ten years. That rules out most novelty items. These are the pieces we would point you to first:
- An engraved cutting board. The Circle Monogram Anniversary Cutting Board puts your names, last-name initial and wedding date inside a round monogram. Boards start from $29.70.
- A bolder name board. The Bold Last Name Anniversary Cutting Board sets your last name in large serif capitals with first names in script and the wedding date. It reads well from across the kitchen.
- Something a little different in layout. The Diagonal Monogram Anniversary Board runs your initial, names and date corner to corner, which suits a board that will lean against a backsplash.
- Coasters. Circle Monogram Anniversary Coasters come in maple or walnut, in sets of 2, 4, 8 or 16, from $16.50. They are a good choice if your kitchen counters are already full.
- A matched set. The Circle Monogram Board and Coaster Gift Set pairs a board with coasters engraved to match, from $46.20.
You can browse every piece that fits this occasion on our 5th anniversary wood gifts page.
Maple or walnut
Both are solid hardwoods, and every board we make is one solid slab. Maple is light and creamy, and the engraving shows up as a crisp dark brown. Walnut is a deep brown, a little softer, and the engraving reads quieter against it. If the kitchen is bright and white, maple tends to stand out; if it has dark cabinets or butcher block, walnut often fits in better. Our maple vs. walnut guide goes into the practical differences.
Picking a size
Our boards come in four sizes:
- 8x12 in, 0.75 in thick: a good everyday size and easy to wrap.
- 10x14 in, 0.75 in thick: roomier for serving, still light enough to handle.
- 12x16 in, 1.5 in thick: a heavy, substantial board that stays put on the counter.
- 16x24 in, walnut only, 1.5 in thick: a large serving and display piece.
For a 5th anniversary, the 10x14 is a good middle ground. The 12x16 is the one to pick if you want the gift to feel like a real piece of furniture for the kitchen.
What to engrave
Keep it short. First names, the shared last name or initial, and the wedding date are enough for most boards. If you want to add a line, a short phrase or “5 years” under the date works better than a long quote, which gets small and hard to read on a board. Our guide on what to engrave on a cutting board covers name order, hyphenated names and date formats.
We engrave your names and date exactly as you type them. Look closely at the date and the spelling of every name before you check out.
Rounding it out
Board add-ons include a custom-fit display stand, conditioning oil, a handwritten card and paper gift wrap. A stand is worth considering for an anniversary board, since many couples keep it on display rather than cutting on the engraved side. The oil keeps the wood from drying out over the years; our care guide explains how to use it.
Timing
Every order is made to order in 3-5 business days, and shipping time comes on top of that. Two to three weeks ahead of the anniversary is a comfortable window. If you are closer than that, ask us about rush before you order and we will tell you plainly what is possible.
