Graduation Party Ideas

Well, my baby of five graduated High School, this May...One of the reasons I've been so busy this Spring.  I didn't throw a party for any of my other kids, but we did go out to eat or commemorate in some fashion. 

Here's a little tour of the party decor...

 Starting at the front Entrance...

Pictures everywhere... 
Jacob, in red and his best friend Josh, in yellow ~ Pre-k!

 Jacob wearing one of Moma's many hats. She is famous for her hat wearing and at one time or another most of her grand kids and great grands  have been photographed wearing one!  She is a great- great grandma.



  Moma picked up this little ceramic shoe at Goodwill, back in March for Jacob's birthday...He loves soccer, played since he was 4, and played for his High School team.  This is a cloche I always leave sitting on the buffet.  It can easily change with the seasons or go with the flow of whatever is going on in our home.

 For Jacob's graduation party,  I enclosed the tickets and program, along with the decorations

 This is a  drink Koosie, cut open, like a book...these were leftovers from a Sr. party us parents threw, just for them, which was so much fun, a great last time together as a class.  If your Sr. doesn't have a party like that planned, you should head one up!

 The overall buffet...a place for cards and more pictures.  I simply laid a frame down across his fav class picture.  The vase with white roses are a touching tradition of our Sr. Assembly, held during the school day for students, family and friends...The entire class file in connected by the silver shiny ribbon and flowers they are holding (on the buffet) and at the end of Sr. Assembly they walk across a wooden play bridge, which many of them climbed on in Kindergarten, and their ribbon is cut, kind of like apron string.  Each student keeping their flowers and a portion of the ribbon.

I really,  wanted to get the stairs finished painted, but procrastination and other legitimate priorities have come first...besides it was  family coming, and they don't mind...and I almost hesitated to show y'all my slowness, but I knew you would understand and be excited when I finally do show you the "after" pics.  Right now every other stair is painted and no risers...but painting isn't always what my life is about. Sometimes it is about a spoonful of this or a glass of that.

 This turned out to be my favorite spot...around from the buffet, tucked into a tiny corner, we have a coat rack.  I dress it up in Jacob's invitation, program, tie, sashes, cap and gown...with a little ribbon and confetti thrown in. Panther Paws and picture of us with Jacob at Baccalaureate.  "Done".




Another tradition we have is doing a silhouette  of every Kindergartener and then again as a Sr.,
                             sadly they have stopped doing the Sr. one.
           I have an overhead projector, wonder if I could get him to sit still a minute, lol.

 We hold graduation over an hour away...and the graduate has to be there so early...the timing was just off and it is so hard for everyone to make it so far, with all the busy lives, add in  tornadoes all around, that night.  Even with all of that, Jacob did have all his immediate      family and then some. 

Next, you step up to the dining room...

Just some ribbon, tissue, napkins, and more pictures...as far as I'm concerned nothing beats photographs!

The table centerpiece...A Panther, of course!

 This next little idea, I got from Lanette.

She is full of them, so check out her blog...

Look at the little rock, "You Rock Jacob".  

When she posted about this,

I thought it was just so very clever.

 

          These little vignette was on my heritage hutch

 Next around the corner from my dining room...We had an icecream Sundae bar set up in my laundry room. It looked really "sweet", with all the toppings showcased, in my milk glass, but I was so busy with the party in full swing, sorry, no pictures.

My huge deep freeze is right under this and that is where the Sundae Bar was set up.  "Cheeky" is his nick-name, so I just put it up on the table with magnetic letters, for a little personal touch.  We also had Chili Dogs with all the works in the kitchen.  To make it flow , the drinks and desserts are  in the laundry room part of my great room.  

After the kitchen, (that I didn't take any pics of) you step down and are full circle, back to my living area...here is another idea I got from Lanette, when she had her own son's graduation party. 


Our French Doors... decided on black paint for them, someday.

We had tables outside, too, since we had 45 guests, but only the really young and the smokers ventured out in this Texas heat.  I double sided the photographs, so there would be one to look at outside, too. I couldn't put them all the way down, 'cause of them grand daughters!  They love Jacob.  They both stand at the bottom of the stairs and just yell his name.

oh, yeah, as I was cleaning for the party, I found my crystal stash, so I added a little to my piano roll shade. It had a little ring just begging for it, also it helps weight it down. 

At the spur of the moment, I decided to have a celebration,  at home the following weekend.  So, these are some of my ideas, besides napkins, picked up last year for hardly anything, I don't think I purchased much to decorate with, maybe a few dollars spent at Goodwill and such.  Mostly, I just walk around and decided where to add some party!  Paying attention to the flow of 45 people and it turned out great!
 


Hopefully, if you have a party, in your future,  some of these ideas, will come in handy, too.  We don't have to spend lots of money for meaningful decorations, just use what you got, especially personal items, and let your imagination grow!


done graduated

Lezlee