Photo Announcements

• Photos are a great way to announce a graduation party, since they'll give faraway friends and family a chance to "see" your graduate even if they can't come to the party. Have your grad take a special commemorative photo and print it on a postcard or traditional folded four-panel card. You might choose to have a professional studio portrait made, with a prop cap and gown, or just a casual snapshot of your grad on campus, savoring her final days as a student there.
  
  You can also use the photo to indicate what's next for your grad. If she's off to college, have her pose with a sign that says, "Yale, here I come!" If she's moving to the big city, have her hold up a map or guidebook for that city. You can use this photo to show off your grad's chosen career, too---if she's going into finance, for example, have her hold a copy of the The Wall Street Journal; if she's about to become a chef, pose her in a chef's hat and apron.
  
  

Themed Announcements

• Any graduation party with a theme needs invitations to match. Springtime graduation parties might have a luau theme, sports theme, floral theme or a simple color scheme that ties in with the grad's school colors. Scrapbooking stores are great places to find paper, confetti, glitter, stickers, hole punches and more that can help you create personalized announcements. As an example, creating custom party announcements for a graduate who was a cheerleader might have paper printed to look like a football field, with stickers in the shape of pompoms and bullhorns.
  
  

Object Announcements

• For all the non-conformists looking for a memorable way to announce a graduation party, try sending objects instead of flat paper announcements. If your football star is graduating, buy small plastic footballs from a toy store or dollar store and use permanent marker or letter stickers to put party information on the football. Drama majors can send cardboard masks painted or printed with the party info. Grads who've finished an education degree or teacher credentialing program can box up apples with stickered with party info. Stroll the aisles of a grocery store or toy store and look for miniature versions of items that reflect your grad's passions, career goals or achievements.