July 30th is International Friendship Day, which gives us the perfect excuse to properly appreciate the people who make our lives better. While we’re glad the U.N. made it official in 2011, we didn’t really need their permission to celebrate the friends who stick with us through everything!
Different countries have their own ways of marking this day. India embraces the friendship bracelet tradition, Argentina fills social media with heartfelt appreciation posts, and everywhere else people find their own ways to show love to their chosen family. Friendship can feel universal yet so deeply personal. Whether you’re texting your best friend at 3 AM or having deep conversations over coffee, those connections mean the same thing everywhere. But what makes some friendships last decades while others fade away, and how can we nurture the bonds that truly matter? Let’s find out!
Creative Ways to Celebrate
Long-Distance Friendships: When your friend lives across the country and you mainly communicate through memes and reels, it takes extra effort to stay connected. Set up a virtual movie night, attempt the same recipe while video chatting, or create a shared playlist. Consider sending a mug as a gift with an inside joke – every time they have their morning coffee, they’ll think of you.
Local Activities: If your friends are nearby, recognize what a privilege it is to have your chosen family within reach, and do something memorable together. Organize a dinner party where everyone brings food from their cultural background, finally take that hike you’ve been talking about; try pottery, painting, or an escape room. Make group adventures special with t-shirts featuring your friend group’s name or a funny quote that defines your crew.
Community Service: Volunteering together creates meaningful bonds while allowing you to give back to your community. Consider helping at a local shelter, organizing a neighborhood clean-up, or teaching digital skills to seniors. Shared experiences of making a difference often strengthen friendships in unexpected ways!
Creating Lasting Memories
Annual Traditions: Start something you can look forward to every year: an annual camping trip, a holiday cookie decorating session, or a yearly catch-up conversation where you reflect on how you’ve both grown.
Documentation: Snap candid photos when your friend is doubled over laughing, screenshot those ridiculous 2 AM text threads that had you both crying with laughter, and record voice memos of their contagious laugh or the way they tell their favorite stories. Turn that blurry but perfect photo into a canvas print, create a gallery wall that tells your friendship’s story, or surprise your friend with a framed print of that moment when you knew you would be for-lifers.
Time Capsules: Create a digital folder or physical box with current photos, inside jokes, predictions about your future selves, and whatever else feels significant right now. Opening it years later will either make you laugh or cry (probably both).
Meaningful Gifts and Gestures
Budget-Friendly Options: Great friendships don’t require expensive gifts. Create a photo book filled with your favorite memories together, write a heartfelt letter explaining what their friendship means to you, or give them a plant with a note about how nurtured relationships grow over time. Greeting cards offer an affordable way to express your feelings – design a card with photos from your adventures together, add a heartfelt message, and mail it the old-fashioned way. In our digital age, receiving physical mail can feel extra personal.
Experience-Based Presents: Instead of buying material items, consider creating memories together. How about concert tickets for an artist you both love, a cooking class where you can laugh at your mistakes, or even just a picnic in the park with their favorite snacks? Experiences like that will spawn anecdotes you’ll share for years to come!
Handmade Gifts: Channel your creative side by making something yourself. Friendship bracelets might remind you of school, but they’re still sweet and thoughtful. Bake their favorite cookies, create a custom playlist, or make something crafty that reflects you both. Take your handmade approach digital with design tools to create keychains, magnets, or stickers featuring drawings you’ve made or photos you’ve taken together.
Honoring All Types of Friendships
Every Friend Matters: That childhood friend who knows all your embarrassing stories, the work colleague who makes difficult days bearable, an online gaming partner who’s never seen your face but understands your personality. These are the friends that all deserve recognition.
Inclusive Celebrations: Make sure your celebrations welcome friends from all backgrounds and walks of life. Learn about their traditions, respect their boundaries, and create environments where everyone feels comfortable being themselves. The strongest friend groups are those where authenticity and individuality is welcomed and celebrated.
Supporting Through Difficult Times: Real friendship isn’t just about fun moments – it’s about showing up when life gets challenging. Try using this day to check in on friends who might be struggling, offer support without trying to fix everything, and remind them they’re not alone. A simple card with an encouraging message can mean the world to someone going through a tough time.
The Real Value of Friendship
So, reach out to that friend you’ve been meaning to contact, plan that get-together you’ve been postponing, and remember that in a world that often feels disconnected, genuine friendships are what keep us grounded. Your friends aren’t just people you have fun with – they’re the ones who will see you at your worst and choose to stick around anyway.
Friendships deserve to be celebrated and nurtured. International Day of Friendship is just a reminder of what should be happening year-round: appreciating the people who make life richer, more meaningful, and infinitely more enjoyable.
Meg is a Content Specialist at Zazzle in Cork. Born and bred Corkonian. An avid animal lover with two cats named Beamish and Biscuit, a dog named Fudge, a fish called Panda and a fiancé called Leigh. Favorite pastimes include wearing anything animal print, vintage and charity shopping, venturing down the rabbit-hole on niche conspiracy theories, reading books and board games.
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