joy a huge celebration when your school days are coming to a close. Figuring out how to plan the perfect graduation celebrations can be a little tough, especially when it comes to arranging the most exciting party for you and your fellow students to enjoy!
Thankfully, you needn’t struggle through your plans for much longer. This handy guide contains some of the most effective steps that you can follow to organize a star-studded graduation get-together that you and your friends will remember for years to come. You’ll be able to wave goodbye to your school years and say hello to the next chapter of your life, maintaining the biggest smile on your face throughout the whole experience!
So, what are you waiting for? Read on to discover more, and plan your graduation celebration today.
Decide What Kind Of Party To Throw
Deciding what kind of graduation party you would like to throw will of course have a large impact on your planning efforts, so this should be your first priority. You can choose a bog standard house party with music and drinks, or opt for something totally different that has a specific theme. For example, you might like to go out on a camping trip into the wilderness with your study buddies if you prefer something a little more challenging and memorable. Or, you might prefer to go out for a bar crawl of all of your favorite drinking spots next to your old educational facility! Just take some time to think about what celebration will provide you with the largest sense of relief, as it’s all about waving goodbye to your school and graduating on to bigger and better things. Don’t be afraid to let your hair down in the process!
Inviting The Right Guests
Inviting the right guests can have a huge impact on your graduation celebrations, as the wrong crowd turning up to your get-together could end up ruining the vibe and leaving a sour taste in your friend’s mouth.
Always take the time to make a list of intended guests whenever you are planning out a party that’s as important as a graduation ceremony, as you can make a note of those who you do not want to attend your shenanigans for fear of their negative vibes. School bullies and people who have never shown you respect or care do not receive an invite to your special party – they do not deserve to enjoy any of the fun that you’re going to be having with your guests, and drawing a line in the sand in this way can really help to set you up for the future with no detrimental ties to hold you down! Instead, invite all of your nearest and dearest including your closest friends from school, and potentially a few younger family members that can fit in with the general age group of your peers.
Preparing Your Venue
When you know what kind of party you would like to throw, and have subsequently made a list of attendees that you are going to invite, then now is the time to begin preparing your venue! This may be one of the biggest steps that you have to take, as it can often require a good few hours or maybe even days to transform your venue into the most enticing and exciting space ready for your celebrations.
If you’re going to be throwing a house party, then it’s a good idea to begin by deciding which rooms should be ‘off limits’. Never keep all of your doors unlocked when you throw a house party, as you need one space (likely your parent’s bedroom or your home office) that you can use to house anything expensive or fragile.
Don’t let your party get ruined by an unfortunate accident! Once you’ve cleared your home of any valuables, you can start to decorate the walls with some graduation-themed accessories. You can add some bunting and fairy lights, or invest in some graduation-themed accessories like themed paper party hats and drinks glasses that feature funny study-related slogans. You can likely buy a party pack online that will include lots of suitable decors, so this is an easy option to utilize if you don’t want to spend hours searching for accessories. If you’re going to throw a party in a dedicated venue, then you have a lot more scope to put on a properly themed celebration.
Most venues come as a kind of blank canvas, allowing you to create whatever kind of atmosphere you choose! So, start by picking a few key colors, and potentially choose a specific theme or style that takes your fancy. This might be related to the topics that you studied or the job you intend to take after graduation, such as an animal-themed party if you and your friends want to be veterinarians! Make sure that your venue can be instantly recognizable as a graduation party too, as you don’t want it to end up feeling like nothing more than a small function.
Food & Drink
Deciding on what food and drink you would like to provide your guests with should be your next focus, as you need to add a few snacks and beverages around your venue to keep people satisfied and busy! There’s nothing worse than heading to a party that’s due to go on for hours, only to find that there isn’t anything to eat or drink. This will certainly turn your guests off and encourage them to leave early, so don’t make such a mistake if you want to host the most amazing graduation celebration ever. If you and your fellow students are old enough to drink alcohol or have the permission of your guardians to do so, then creating a cocktail bar is one of the best options that you can explore.
You can come up with a signature graduation cocktail that’s made especially for your party, which your guests will no doubt love! Just make sure that you don’t allow any attendees to go overboard when drinking alcohol, as this will impact everyone’s enjoyment of your celebrations. It’s a good idea to add some finger food around your venue, but just make sure that it’s easy to eat and won’t make too much of a mess. No one will want flaky pastry or tomato sauce all over their graduation gown, so opt for bite-sized items that are less likely to make you dirty.
Preparing Yourself
It’s all well and good preparing your venue, but you also need to take some time to prepare yourself, too! Your graduation party is a huge celebration that will likely be one of the biggest events of the year, so you can’t just turn up in an old pair of jeans. Instead, you can grab the opportunity to dress up in your fanciest attire, turning heads as you strut through your party like no one is watching! There are so many different kinds of graduation dresses that you can choose between, from sleek fitted gowns that hug your figure, to loud and proud dresses with an eye-catching ball gown style. It’s often a good idea to go dress shopping with your friends who are going to attend your special event, as this way you can all make sure that you aren’t going to be wearing the exact same outfit to your get-together. They can also offer their opinion when you try things on, which of course can be extremely helpful when you have to make such a tricky decision! As long as you feel totally confident and comfortable in your graduation gown, then that’s what really matters.
Don’t Forget To Snap Some Pictures!
Last but by no means least, it’s vital that you can remember to snap a few pictures of your party when it’s in full swing, as you’ll no doubt want to remember your graduation celebrations for years to come. You can choose to hire a professional photographer if you would like to benefit from high-grade photos, or you can simply snap a few pics with your smartphone or digital camera if you’d prefer them to be a little more organic. Taking a few pictures will provide you with the opportunity to make a kind of scrapbook or photo album after your party is all said and done, which can be the perfect way to reminisce over your fun memories when you start a new and important chapter in your life!
Final Thoughts
Figuring out how to plan the perfect graduation celebration has never been such a simple task when you can utilize some of the brilliant tips and ideas that have been carefully detailed above. Be sure to start your career with your best foot forward, enjoying one last hurrah before you need to knuckle down and find your feet in the world of work!