It’s time to wear those gowns and toss those hats in the air! Graduation is an exhilarating experience and it’s like a treat for you after powering through years to get your degree. So, a party is definitely a must. If you’re looking for helpful tips on how to plan the perfect graduation party, then you’ve come to the right place. Just make sure to connect with party rentals and choose a venue on time.
Pick A Theme
Graduation parties are incomplete without a proper theme. Usually, people go for a theme that incorporates the colors of their colleges, their sororities, and more, while others can go for a basic graduation theme.
You can decide which one you want to go for, but if you’re throwing a party with a couple of your friends who are graduating together, then try to have their college colors combined as a theme.
The Costs
The next order of importance is the budget and the overall cost of the party. This is where planning ahead will really give you a head start.
You want to research different venues, vendors, and decoration options before making a budget. It shouldn’t be too extravagant or too low. It should be reasonable, at the end of the day.
If you’re having a graduation party at your house or in your backyard, then the venue costs will be shaved off and you’ll end up with a perfect budget.
Make A Guest List
Before deciding on the venue, making a master guest list is crucial. You want to figure out how many people are coming to your party and who are the important guests that you’re inviting. If it’s a party between your friends, then your close circle is enough to include in the party.
However, if you’re having a family party, then along with friends, you’re going to need to invite family members and neighbors as well. This is a celebration after all, and you might as well include all of your loved ones in this party.
Pick A Location
Now that you’ve got the budget and guest list out of the way, it’s time to hit the venues and start your hunt for the perfect place to host your graduation party. Depending on the guest list, you’re going to want to select a venue that can house the desired number of people you’re inviting, which is why making a guest list prior is more important.
You can search for banquet halls and parks or even rent tents if you’re looking for a budget-friendly option. Halls and restaurants can be a bit on the expensive side, so you don’t want to make any hasty decisions that could hurt your budget.
Decide On The Time
This is something that you’ll need to decide before finalizing the venue as well. The date and time of the party are very important to go over because you want to select a date and time that ensures everyone’s availability.
The right date and time of any party can also be advantageous to you because you’ll find a venue more easily, especially if it’s not peak party or wedding season. So, try to pay a bit more attention to this department and decide on a day and date that not only works for the guests but is beneficial to you as well.
Send Out Invitations
So, you’ve got your desired venue and have the date and time settled, Now the only thing that’s left to do, is to send out invitations to your friends, family, and other relatives. This can be done a week or two before the party because, as simple as they sound, invitations can be time-consuming to make and deliver on time. So, you want to hit the ground running and deliver them as punctually as possible.
You can use technology to your advantage here and send email or text invitations or if you’re willing to go the old-school route, then you can take your time and create invitations by hand or get the made by a service and send them through post.
Finalize The Vendors
Vendors, either for food or décor, should be tackled after the venue has been decided. Why? A lot of the time, the venue management can offer decoration and food services, if the crowd is big enough and that can actually be more budget-friendly. So, you want to check all of your available options and go for the best one.
If you’re not satisfied with the venue’s services, then you can certainly contact independent vendors and rentals.
The Décor
Speaking of decorations, your graduation party needs a bit of pizzazz with colorful banners, lights, props, and other things. If you are already creatively skewed, then you can take this task upon yourself and come up with a great decoration plan, and the best part is that you can include your friends in the process as well.
Do your research on the internet and find graduation party décor inspiration. You can get an idea as to how you want your party to look and you can bring the visual to life.
The Menu
Food is probably the most important part of any party and you don’t want to skimp on it. There are a lot of options for food when it comes to graduation parties because it’s a semi-formal event and there’s no need for perfection.
The main goal is to select foods that you know everyone is going to love. The items can include tacos, finger foods, fried foods, some protein like meat and chicken with a side of veggies, soups, cheese boards, mini burgers, etc.
For desserts, you can go for a graduation-themed cake, or single-serving decadent desserts that are going to cheer you up from the inside out. As for drinks, you can have a mix of fresh juices and sodas depending on what your guests fancy.
The Entertainment
If you’ve ever been to a party with zero entertainment, then you would know how boring things can be. Well, you definitely don’t want your graduation party to be gloomy and boring, so it’s best if you bump up the entertainment.
Having a dance floor with upbeat music, group activities like board and card games, photography, and farewell speeches are going to add that element of fun and people will remember this moment forever.
Double-Check Everything
As the day of the party is fast approaching, you want to double-check everything and ensure that all the payments have been made, all of the things you’ve ordered are delivered on time, and the invitations have reached timely to all of the guests.
Since you’re the host, there’s no time to rest your feet because you want to make sure that everything is perfect and if things go wrong, you have a backup plan to salvage the situation. Don’t forget to have fun and dance the night away.
Conclusion
These tips are pretty simple and easy to follow, and you don’t even need to be a party planner to master the art of parties. It’s time to hit the drawing board to create a plan, and then begin looking for venues and party tent rentals Northern VA.