31 Days of Hospitality: Day 25-Invitations

October 25, 2011

Holiday Party Circle Cards Cookie Circle - Front : Umber

Invitations are my favorite part of throwing a party. There are so many options out there. I LOVE the idea above for a cookie swap (from Tiny Prints).

Flat Holiday Party Invitations Embroidered Holiday - Front : Ruby

This Holiday Party invite (also from Tiny Prints) is really fun, too.

When doing your invites there is some important info you don't want to leave out:

Type of party & who it's for. For a Christmas or Holiday Party it's pretty cut and dry. For a birthday choose something like: Hailey's 3rd Birthday Party! Again, pretty simple. Just make sure your guests know what they are invited to.
Date & Time. I like to add the day (as above) as well as the calendar date. For a child's party I always include a begin and end time. If you don't people will linger - this may include little people whose parent has dropped them off - you need to know when they will return! For an adult party in the evening I usually don't put an end time. Most people (at least those in my age group) will start departing around 11:30 or so. If you're okay with that then I would leave it open. If not, state an end time.
Place. At the very least you need a street name and number. Our town is isolated so I don't put the town but if you live somewhere where one town goes into another and people will be coming from all around I would list the town name. For LM's parties I always write 'LM's house -123 Oak St' so people know it's at a home. If it's not at a home you should name the business to make it easier to find - (ie. Chuck E Cheese, 123 Oak Street, Hooterville)
Hosted by. This is kind of optional. If you have stated 'Hailey's 3rd Birthday Party' your guests will assume that Hailey's parents are hosting. If you have stated 'Holiday Party' you should list your name as the host.
RSVP. I always say 'RSVP by date to Debra at xxx-xxxx. Be prepared to have some guest not RSVP - sad, I know but it happens.

If you order your invites on line most companies will show you a proof before you complete your order. I love this! If you make your own invites or buy the fill in type I suggest writing our your info on a sheet of paper before writing on the invites.

If you have missed any of my 31 Days posts you can find them all here. Other bloggers are taking part in the 31 Days series too. Check them out!