No really, I am excited about it. I should rephrase that, I am excited about planning it. Still in total denial that it's been 10 years and that the big 3-0 is just around the corner. Total denial. =)
Anywho. The venue has been selected for our Friday night activity and we are having a family day on Saturday morning. Saturday is easy - I told everyone to bring their own food, chairs and games. Done! Friday night is a little more difficult. Maybe it's because I'm a perfectionist or I always like things to look expensive...or maybe I just want everyone's approval when they walk in the door. It's probably a combination of all three. =)
Since there are so few of us in my graduating class (56 to be exact) and we are low on funds (i.e. BROKE), I decided to send evites. Most of my classmates are on Facebook, so that made tracking them down much easier. Of course I would've loved to have sent out beautiful, expensive invitations with lined envelopes, but those cost money! I went on over to the trusty evite.com site to try and find something that fit my needs. After looking and looking, I just wasn't thrilled with anything. So I googled "electronic invites" and my new favorite site EVER popped up....Punchbowl.com!
This site makes me happy! You can send out save-the-dates as well as invitations. It can help you plan the whole party with vendors and everything. My favorite part was the actual invitations. Most are free and if you pay a small fee you can get the "*Plus" designs. The part I liked was that even the free ones are really nice. I didn't feel like I had to upgrade to get the cuter designs. Once you pick your stationary, you can change the font colors, the color of your envelope lining (yay! I got my fancy lined envelopes), and you can even pick the stamp that goes on the front. Super cute and very personal. When you get the email, you see the front of the envelope, it flips over, out comes the invite and all the details. Here are some of the ones they have for picnic/cookout in honor of Labor Day Weekend. I LOVE the watermelon one!
So that part was fun. I've also selected the table linens (which happen to be plastic - once again, broke). My deal now is coming up with centerpieces. Have you ever googled "centerpieces" - oh my gracious! After looking at a few hundred pictures, I realized that that they are all the same. Vase, flowers, mirrors, candles, beads, etc. I want something different (and budget friendly). Here are a few that caught my eye (and I'm sorry, but I didn't pay attention to where I found these. Most seem to be personal photographs, so I hope no one gets upset). They will need to be tweaked to fit our colors (maroon & gray), but it's a start.
Really like the painted jars...never thought to do that before.
Wrap up empty boxes with paper & tissue
I thought these were cute...but it's probably just the fun colors...and a cookie. Who doesn't love a cookie?
I love topiaries and I've been making my own ribbon trees, so this could be cute. Especially on the food table or at the entrance
I kinda really like this one. It's simple, easy to do but is pretty cute too!
EHS flags? I think they would be a fun party favor. These are apparently the new things at weddings. You wave your "yay" flag when the couple is leaving - instead of bubbles, rice, birdseed, etc.
Yes, these are straight pins...how cool is that! But very tiny!
I wish we were the red devils....somebody made a cute collage of stuff to use. They must've had a big budget. Love the cupcakes!
So, here I go...off to create something fabulous out of nothing. =P Wish me luck!
