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Save $5 on Personalized Grad Banners! Ends 5/31/2012

By graduationparty, on May 15th, 2012

Save $5 on Personalized Graduation Banners with promo SZAXVG. Hurry! Ends 5/31/12! Regular price as low as $14.99 for 18″ x 54″ vinyl banner. Details here: www.dpbolvw.net/click-1665362-11055843. 80+ designs to choose from. Here are just a few examples:

Personalized Graduation Banner

Erin's Graduation Poster Boards

By graduationparty, on May 8th, 2012

Graduation Poster Boards

These poster boards are casual in that the unmatted photos are placed on the boards in a haphazard, crooked way with some photos overlapping others. The boards are dressed up with die cut words & letters at the top. Most scrapbooking stores will let you use their die cuts if you buy the cardstock there. They all have letter die cuts and many have graduation and/or congratulatory messages. The salespeople at the store will help you if you haven’t used die cuts before.

For these die cut letters & words, two sets were cut. One in gold and one in maroon which were the colors of the grad’s college. The maroon letters were placed on the boards first. The gold letters were then placed on top, shifted a little so some of the maroon showed through on the left hand side and top of each letter or word, creating a shadow effect.

The photos were placed on the boards in a chronological order with baby pictures on the right hand side and graduation pictures on the left.

Graduation Cake Pops (& Gluten Free Graduation Cake Pops)

By graduationparty, on May 3rd, 2012

Graduation cakes, graduation cupcakes and now graduation cake pops! The latest trend in graduation desserts.

Graduation Cake Pops

Graduation cake pops are fun and very easy to make! They can be made ahead of time and frozen. They freeze REALLY well.

Some people make them from scratch. Just google “cake pop recipes”. But these are a lot of work.

The cake pops in the picture above were made using a Babycakes Cake Pop Maker. These sell for less than $30 and are available online through websites like Amazon or they may be available at your local department store. The Babycakes Cake Pop Maker comes with recipes for different cake flavors, however, the ones in the picture were made using a gluten free chocolate cake mix from Betty Crocker. You could also use a regular cake mix. The gluten free cake mix is nice because it makes a cake that’s a little denser than a regular cake mix which is great for cake pops.

These cake pops were dipped in melted milk chocolate . . . → Read More: Graduation Cake Pops (& Gluten Free Graduation Cake Pops)

Graduation Party Candy Bar

By graduationparty, on May 3rd, 2012

Candy Bars are fun, popular, easy and economical.

Graduation Party Candy Bar

Choose your favorite candy or pick candy in your school or college colors. Some candy ideas include:

M&M’s in your school, college or favorite colors. Or personalized M&M’s with your photo and/or fun sayings.
Hershey’s Minis with personalized wrappers.
Jelly Belly jelly beans in your school, college or favorite colors.
Skittles
Tootsie Pops
Swedish Fish
Caramels
Sugar Babies

Find large clear glass or plastic jars, vases or bowls. Borrow them from your friends or check your local dollar store or craft store. Large pickle jars from restaurants work great! Decorate the jars with bows or keep them plain and simple. Set out large spoons so your guests can scoop unwrapped candy. Put out small plastic bags with ties so your guests will have something to put their candy in. Or they can make a take-away bag if they want to.

If you set up your candy bar by the front door or backyard gate (where your . . . → Read More: Graduation Party Candy Bar

Chocolate Fountain

By graduationparty, on May 2nd, 2012

A fun and popular item at graduation parties is a chocolate fountain.

Chocolate Fountain

You can rent them at your local rental shop or there may even be a chocolate fountain rental business nearby. You can also buy chocolate fountains but they will likely be smaller in size and won’t be as heavy duty as rented ones.

When you rent a chocolate fountain the rental company will often come and set it up and then come back and take it down. So you don’t need to worry about heating the chocolate to right consistency or cleaning up the mess after. The rental compay will do it for you. Rented fountains are usually more expensive but if you’re having a joint party it may be worth the extra cost.

Here are some ideas of food to serve with your chocolate fountain:

Strawberries
Pineapple cut in chunks
Marshmallows
Cut up Rice Krispie Squares
Vanilla Wafers
Potato Chips
Pretzel Sticks (thick, 4″ sticks are best)

Some people like to serve cake but the crumbs may clog up the fountain. Store bought fountains are particularly susceptible to clogging.

You should also . . . → Read More: Chocolate Fountain

Hockey Sock Graduation Centerpiece

By graduationparty, on May 2nd, 2012

This cute centerpiece is the perfect balance between sportsy and elegant.

Hockey Sock Graduation Centerpiece

Any small potted plant will work. Even potted annuals which you can plant in your garden after. Simply put the potted plant in the hockey sock and set it in the middle of the table. This one was placed on a mirrored tile as an extra touch. It also has a small, plastic hockey stick on the left hand side and a hockey puck at the base. Of course you can use a sock from any sport. School colors are fun.

Individually wrapped candy is sprinkled at the base of this centerpiece as an added treat for guests. Halloween size candy like Hershey’s Minis, Laffy Taffy, and Skittles are good options. Or buy personalized candy bars (minis or regular size) from Shindigz or personalized M&M packs from My M&M’s.

Hockey Skate Graduation Centerpiece

By graduationparty, on May 1st, 2012

Love this idea for a graduation centerpiece! Hockey skate filled with licorice. New hockey skates are best . You can also use figure skates or basketball shoes. Buy licorice in your school or college colors if possible. This school’s colors happened to be red & black. But you can get licorice in other colors too.

Hockey Skate Graduation Centerpiece

To keep the skate upright, use a hockey puck and cut a slit down the middle. If you know someone with a circular saw this would be a good job for them. The slit should be wide enough to hold the blade and it should be at least half or three quarters the depth of the hockey puck.

This skate was lined with colored tissue paper but you could also use a patterned or solid color fabric. Other fun candy like Hershey’s Minis, Sweet Tarts, Laffy Taffy, and Skittles were scattered around the base of the skate. Halloween sized candy is perfect!

25% off Graduation Tableware

By graduationparty, on May 1st, 2012

25% off Graduation Tableware at Shindigz, from now until May 30th, 2012. Don’t forget to use the coupon code! Check it out here:

Hire the Ice Cream Truck!

By graduationparty, on April 30th, 2012

This is one of my all-time favorite grad party ideas. Who doesn’t love the ice cream truck? Memories of running to the curb when hearing that little jingle. It’s music to everyone’s ears.

Hire the Ice Cream Truck

One grad wanted to hang on to that memory one last time before heading off to college so her parents hired the local ice cream truck for her grad party. It came and sat outside their house for the entire party. Anyone wanting an ice cream treat simply had to walk up and order whatever they wanted.

It’s such an easy way to serve for the hosts, too. No worries about keeping the ice cream cold, how much to order, or what to do with the leftovers. They simply paid for whatever was served (at a pre-negotiated rate). So if your grad loves the ice cream truck why not consider this fun idea?!