I’ve got quite a few parties that I’ve been meaning to share with you. Since we are getting into the thick of wedding season, first up is this beautiful summertime 50th Wedding Anniversary celebration my sister and her family threw for her in-laws.

When we first began discussing the party, and looking around for supplies, I’d have to say we were both underwhelmed by the product offerings specific to the Golden Anniversary. There is, what I would call, a big opening in the marketplace for tasteful 50th anniversary party goods and accessories. Martha, if you’re reading this, we’d love to see what you can do with bringing some gorgeous options to a store near you. Or me.

No worries, though. We knew we’d have to get a little more creative with the decorations and the use of the color gold throughout. Both of my sister’s in-laws are retired educators. Her father-in-law was an administrator and taught biology, and her mother-in-law is a local historian. History lending itself ever so slightly more toward this kind of party in a small historic New England town, we decided on a “50 years of history” theme. The party was held at a local historic mansion designed in the 1850s with lovely details and beautiful grounds.

Isn’t this a great location to celebrate a couple’s history? Here’s a look at the invitation I created.

Guests were welcomed into the home by this beautiful door treatment. I love how the garland traces the shape of the door and the initial detail on the wreath.

This is one of my favorite details!

The buffet and bar were set up inside, while they took advantage of the gorgeous grounds for seating.

Muted gold and ivory linens added to the feel of this “golden” celebration and worked well with the yellow and ivory flowers in over-sized gold mint julep cups.

A note of caution. My sister had ordered pale yellow roses online in bulk from a wholesaler for the party. Without warning, they substituted yellow rose of Texas colored flowers, which clashed with the gold vases. WHAT? Many of those ended up on the kids’ table, but she was able to buy enough pale yellow and ivory roses locally to mix in with those she had ordered. I think the arrangements turned out beautifully!

Since it was a casual family affair, the kiddos had their own pint-sized table, complete with bubbles and coloring books to keep them happy and occupied.

Looks like it worked!

Inside friends and family viewed a slide show of photos from the last 50 years. Outside, they enjoyed food and drink and had a good time catching up while listening to hit music from the year the couple married. Then, they turned their attention to the main event. Cake!

But first, our historian honoree took a moment to share the historical relevance of the mansion and the grounds the guests were enjoying!

Then it was time to bring out the cake. This three-tiered beauty included one layer of her favorite, carrot cake, one layer of his favorite, chocolate, and then yellow cake for the remainder.

50 years! A golden chapter in the history book.