Spring has sprung, which means only one thing is on the minds of soon-to-be high school graduates. It is time to start planning their graduation party! This is the time of year when they can invite friends and family over to celebrate the end of their four-year high school career, and move onto a new and exciting period of their lives. While the fun and celebration is on the minds of the graduates, the parents may be overwhelmed by the thought of throwing, and paying for, the upcoming graduation party.It may be difficult to even figure out where to start the planning process, so here are a few tips to help you start planning and make sure it is as stress free as possible.

 1.)  Set a Budget:

This may be one of the most important first steps that you can have when planning your event. Setting a budget will give you an idea of what kind of food you can afford, what kinds of decorations are reasonable, how many people you may wan to invite, and what kind of venue you should have your event at. A great suggestion would be to pick the most important thing to you, and spend a larger portion of the budget on that. Then you can skimp on things that may not be a huge priority. According to Graduationparty.com, the average cost for a graduation party is $1,200, with the majority of that budget going towards food. Some ways to cut back on this amount would be to ask close family and friends to help prepare certain food dishes, not go too crazy on the decorations and host the event at your home.

2.)  Pick a Venue:

This step is very much tied to the previous step. If you are looking to save some money, having the event in your garage or back yard can be a great alternative.  Although, having the event at you home may require some additional rentals to make your house party ready. If you don’t have a lot of shade covering in your space, you may want to think about renting a party tent. Also, if you are having a rather large event, you may want to consider renting additional portable restrooms or luxury restroom trailers. Portable restrooms can be set up anywhere, and can keep all of your guests from walking around in you home during the festivities. On Site’s luxury restroom trailers feel more like a stationary restroom and can also come with options for air conditioning to keep your guests cool.

3.)  Pick the Date:

It is important to pick a date that will work well with most of your family and friends. It can get hard in the summer with weddings, family events and, of course, other graduation parties. Make sure you take into account all other events of the summer before hammering down a date. Also, if you are renting a venue make sure to check availability first

4.)  Don’t Spend Too Much Money on Invitations:

Paper invitations can get expensive, so make the decision to spend less. Pick something simpler, like a post card. With a post card, you still get the picture and information, but without the cost of envelopes and individual printed pictures. Also, in the age of social media, have your graduate send an invite through Facebook or email to their friends instead of sending paper invitation to their homes. This will save a lot on postage and materials.

Be sure to have fun when planning your event. This is a once in a lifetime experience for your graduate, and you will want to make sure it goes as smoothly as possible!

http://www.graduationparty.com/graduation-party-budgeting.htm