Remember the party invitations for your childhood birthday parties? A cartoon character on the front, the time and place filled in blanks by the party mom . . . the fun began when you opened and read the party invitation.
Your parties now are more sophisticated than Timmy’s 6-year-old Superman birthday celebration, but you can still generate that excitement with some creative party invitations that help set the mood for your party.
Even the most casual get-together can benefit from an invitation. Your guests will appreciate having the particulars – time, date, address, whether it’s BYOB, and RSVP contact information. A party invitation doesn’t have to be formal, stuffy or “official” in any way.
Custom Made Party Invitations
A step above the fill-in-the-blank card invitations are custom-printed party invitations. You can order a wide selection of invitations for everything from bowling parties to holiday celebrations and elegant anniversary parties, all with your personal party information printed on.
FineStationary.com has a good selection of themes. Depending on the type of invitation and the quantity you’re ordering, you’ll spend $2-4 per invitation and they’ll be mailed to you in about a week.
Some Hallmark stores have custom invitation centers where you can make your own invitations on a small computer stand right in the store. Most stationary stores have custom-printed invitation services, also.
Other custom-made party invitation resources are:
Hand-Made Invitations
Make a trip to the craft store, stir up your creative juices and make your own invitations for your next party.
- Make prints of a photo of the last time all of you were together, print the party invitation information onto transparent stickers and stick them to the back of the photos.
- A plain note card can be snazzed up by punching two holes in the top and threading through a piece of ribbon, tying it in a bow.
- Add beads, trinkets, cut-out graphics and photographs, and other items to take your party invitations to a new dimension.
And Now For Something Completely Different
Who says party invitations have to be on paper?
- Buy Hershey bars, unwrap the outer wrapping and open it up flat. Print out your party information onto sticky labels and put them on the inside of the candy bar wrapper. Place the wrapper back on the candy bar and tape it closed. Hand deliver these invitations or mail them in padded envelopes.
- Record your invitation on cassette audio tapes or video DVDs and send them as invitations.
- Make your invitations part of your party theme. Having a beach party? Write out invitations on small pieces of paper, roll them up and put them in seashells. Pool party invitations can be cheap beach balls, with the time, date and place written on in permanent marker. Fold them up put them in envelopes and mail them. The recipients can blow up the beach balls to read the information.
Email Invitations
Email invitations have evolved to the point where you don’t have to sacrifice creativity, color and design to use the Internet to invite your friends to a party.
Online invitation sources allow you to design invitations and e-invite your friends through emails with links to online invitation information.
Evite.com is one of many free, easy services in which you can send colorful themed invitations via the internet. The site helps you with party planning and RSVPs, too.
