Weekly Reminder #5
In this e-mail we’ll present:
Printing your invitation?
Invitations can be ordered from a
number of different sources - both local and online. You
choose the style you like and provide the wording and the
supplier will do the rest! Visit our
Printed Graduation Invitations webpage for the most up
to date styles and options.
You can take your time browsing
without feeling any pressure. We offer a great selection of
classic and casual graduation invitations. Some suppliers
allow you to order a sample before you commit to the whole
order.
Classic & Casual Graduation Party Invitations
 Classic Graduation
Invitations usually include an ensemble of
invitation items including the announcement itself,
inner and outer envelopes, name cards, and open
house cards.
Casual Graduation
Invitations have many of the same features
as Classic Invitations but they tend to be a little
lighter, a little more fun. And they're usually a
little less expensive.
Carlson Craft has many different styles to choose from, in both
classic & casual. They also offer a number of
choices for text and font style. And they
allow you to order a sample (for a very small fee)
before you buy the entire quantity you need.
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Graduation Photo Announcements
Graduation Photo
Announcements include a photo of your graduate. Some
photo announcements even allow you to use two or even more
photos.
For the photo, some people use a
formal graduation picture such as the grad in their
graduation gown & mortarboard and some people use a more
casual photo. The choice is yours and there really is no
right or wrong way.
For photo announcements having
more than one photo some people use current photos of their
grad and some people use a mix of current photos and photos
of when their grad was a baby or a small child. Once again
the choice is yours.
Carlson Craft offers several different styles of photo
announcements. Just
click here to go to their website and browse their
selection.
Online photo developers such as
Snapfish.com
also offer photo announcements. They have a few different
options to choose from including photo cards, note cards,
and postcards. While the quality may not be as
luxurious as Carlson Craft and while you'll have to create
your own text, this option is a little less expensive.
Invitations through a Photography Studio
If you loved your graduate’s
senior photograph, consider ordering your invitations
through the photographer. Many offer this additional service
when you have your photograph taken. Their prices may be
high, but the quality of the image will be superior to
copying your own photos. Production time is relatively long,
so contact them early.
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Warning!
You
may not be able to use
a professional photo for photo announcements unless
you have a written waiver from the photographer. So
check with your invitation supplier to see what
their requirements are and call your photographer to
obtain a one-time copyright waiver. Your supplier
may need a copy of this. Your photographer may
charge a small amount of money. This varies by
photographer. Or choose photos you took yourself for
your invitations/announcements. |
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For a More Personalized & Less Expensive Invitation ...
Design and print it yourself!!
We have a wide range of "you print" stationery in our
online store - Flat Card Invitations, Open House Note
Cards, Slim Invitations, Graduation Letterhead, and more!
Thank You Cards
While you’re at it, why not order
your thank you cards and personalized return address labels.
Have them ready for the graduate. Don’t forget to get
stamps, too. Our
online store also carries a nice selection of these
items.
Congratulations Cards
Think of the other graduates in your life. If you anticipate being invited to their parties,
stock up on greeting cards. Don’t wait until the last minute
and pay card shop prices. Order today! You'll be glad
to have these on hand.
Invitation Add-Ons
Details do make a difference! Take your Graduation Invitations
and Thank You Cards to the next level by enhancing them with Graduation
Envelope Seals, Graduation Return Address Labels, Photo Stamps, and
Photofetti or Graduation Confetti. Just visit our
Add-Ons webpage to see some different ways you can make
your invitations and thank you cards fun & unique!
RSVP?
We have found that if you are
having an open house, RSVP’s usually don’t work. Don’t be
disappointed. If you are having a sit down dinner, then the
RSVP is a good idea. You may have to make some follow up
phone calls anyway. In our book, Graduation Parties!
Everything You Need to Know From Start to Finish, we
have an invitation checklist with more specific suggestions.
How many will come?
How do you decide how much
food to serve if you don’t know how many people are coming?
Look for our Food Formula (you will need to scroll down) on
the
Menu Planning page of our web site.
Two Money-Saving Tips:
Your graduate may come home and ask for 20 or more extra
invitations to pass out at school. Either order more than
you plan to mail, and avoid a reorder, or make a less
expensive version for the kids ("You Print" invitations are
great for this!). Or design a postcard. You’ll save on
paper/printing costs and postage. If you design your
postcard to be a maximum size of 6 inches long by 4-1/4
inches high the stamps are only 26 cents each.
When to mail your invitations?
We have heard all kinds of
opinions on this, but we basically recommend 3 weeks prior
to the party. Don’t feel bad if you get them out late. The
kids will pass them out at school right up until the day of
your party. If you are inviting out of town guests, send
them earlier, or call your guests ASAP so they can schedule
their visit.
Invitation Check List:
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Day and Date: Include the day of the week as well as the
date. For example, Saturday, June 2nd.
-
Exact Times: Be sure you put the exact times that you want
the people there. We saw an invitation that had: 11:00
am-? with no ending time. Do you really want people to
come as late as 9:00 at night? Do yourself a favor and
have a beginning and an ending time.
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Location: Give your full address (including city) if
you are hosting the party at your home. If you are
hosting the party somewhere else, be very specific, i.e.
Lake Ann Park Rec Center, 123 Lake Ann Parkway, (North
side of lake). Include zip code as many people will look
up your address on the internet and many search programs
do best with a zip code.
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Directions: Provide both a map and written
directions, making sure to include your home phone
number and the phone number of the location, in case
people get lost.
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Hosts: If you are sharing the expenses with someone else it is
appropriate to acknowledge the other people by name. If
it is a joint party, listing the other parents involved
helps people identify them.
-
Full Names: Be sure to use the name your child likes to
be known by. Some people like to give personalized gifts
and will use the name listed on the invitation, so don’t
write Charles if your son prefers Charlie.
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Dress: If you are throwing an unusual party, be sure to help
your guests by specifying this. For example, if you are
having a picnic outside say “casual picnic clothes,” so
women will avoid high heels. If you are out on the lake,
state: “Swim suits appropriate,” or “We will be
swimming.”
-
Gift Suggestions: Unless you’re thinking of saying “No
gifts please,” it is not appropriate to offer
suggestions. However, you may want to have a few ideas
in case someone calls to ask.
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Return Address Labels:
If you don’t have a large supply of return address
labels, you might want to order some custom return
address labels. We’ve seen some with the mortarboard and
tassel or confetti that would also be cute for return
address labels for your graduate’s thank you cards.
Can’t wait for the next e-mail?
 You may want to jump ahead and get started on some more of the details… order a copy of
Graduation Parties! Everything
You Need to Know From Start to Finish available from our
website as a book in paper copy or a convenient downloadable version!
Click here
to find out more about the book.
This 100-page guide provides great advice from experienced moms - like you!
Or visit our website at
www.graduationparty.com. It also contains a lot of
information including ideas, tips and hints for all your
graduation party needs. You can even order unique
graduation-themed items such as invitations, decorations,
and much, much more.
We will be sending you friendly reminders to help you get
organized and avoid the last minute panic. If you do
not want to receive these reminders please reply to this
e-mail with “take me off your mailing list” in the subject
line.
If you have a friend that is planning a graduation party,
please forward them this e-mail and suggest they sign-up for
our e-newsletter. They can just
click here
to go to our Newsletter sign-up page.
If you have a burning question that is keeping you up at
night, send us an e-mail, we will try to get back to you so
you can sleep tonight.
Good luck!!
Ginger Venable
ginger@graduationparty.com
PS: All of our newsletters
are kept on our website. If you’ve missed an earlier version
or if you want to take a peek at the upcoming ones just go
to our website, www.graduationparty.com, and click on “E-Newsletters”.
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