• 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 5:00? Do yourself a favor and have a beginning and an ending time.

  • Photographs: If you loved your graduate’s senior photograph, consider ordering your invitations through the photographer. Many offer this additional service. Their prices may be high and production time is relatively long, so contact them early.

    Warning – You may not be able to use a professional photo for your invitation unless you have a written waiver from the photographer. 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 for this release. It varies by photographer. Too much hassle? Choose photos you took yourself.

  • RSVP: Include this if you like, but unfortunately people usually do not call. Since some people do not know what RSVP means, we recommend that you state: “Please let us know if you can come by…” Provide a date to call by and your phone number or email address. It’s a very busy time of the year and people may say yes and then something comes up. It is frustrating, but you just have to estimate. If you invite 100 people, expect 60 to come.
  • 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).
  • 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 full 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 Venable.
  • 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.
  • 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. Affiliate link here
  • Thank You Cards: While you’re at it, you may want to order thank you cards and personalized return address labels at the same time to save yourself the hassle after the party. For suggestions on what to write on Thank you cards click here.