How to Plan the Perfect Sweet Sixteen for Your Daughter
For the past three years I have been pinning ideas for how I would celebrate my oldest daughter’s Sweet Sixteen, but when it came time to begin planning, I didn’t know where to start. Do I select the date before the venue? Should we wait to choose a theme after she finds the dress? Do I send an online invites or should we continue with a traditional invitation? The entire thing left me with more questions than what I was prepared for. Sadly, I came down with pneumonia weeks before her birthday, and we decided to postpone her big day. Now that I’ve recovered all I can think about is how much time and talent I built up that didn’t get used! I mean, three years of Pinterest planning and the day passed by me while I was stuck in bed.
Hurry! Someone give me their daughter’s sweet sixteen party to plan!
Since I have had a LOT of time to reflect on her Sweet Sixteen Birthday Bash, I finally have it all figured out. You know that old saying, hindsight is 20/20? Well, allow me to give you a 20/20 view of how to plan the perfect Sweet Sixteen for your daughter!
How to Plan the Perfect Sweet Sixteen for Your Daughter
Step 1: Choose the event style, budget, and venue first! Talk to your daughter and ask her where she wants to have her party. Maybe your daughter wants a small adventure with a few friends to a nearby theme park, or has always dreamed of an airplane ride with her bestie. Better yet, she would really love to go rock climbing instead of the full princess sweet 16 you hoped for. All of these things are okay, and none of them mean skipping the cake and traditions you’re used to! Bring the party to the venue she chooses, or surprise her with more than she hoped for after her big adventure is over!
Step 2: Order invitations. The greatest milestones in life still deserve an invitation that can be mailed and saved in an album by your family and friends. Baby showers, birth announcements, graduation, weddings, and milestone birthdays should always have a traditional invitation. Basic Invite allows you to create invitations online in minutes! Take a look at this cute invitation I created (below). My sweet sixteen year-old is very in love with this one and being the font junkie I am, I’m a little obsessed myself! So clean, modern, and elegant all at the same time!
Step 3: Plan the menu, select the cake (or cupcakes). I think this is the sweetest part of the sweet 16, right?
Step 4: Decorations and final touches. I like to make most of my decorations myself, but I caution you not to attempt it unless you are planning her birthday party well in advance OR you have a lot of help! After all, this party is celebrating your child — that means you should be celebrating, not stressing (or stretching yourself thin and getting yourself sick!)
Step 5: The clothes! Your princess should look her best and so should everyone in your immediate family (parents/grandparents, and siblings.) Make sure you leave a little room in the budget to treat the family to a new outfit for the big day!
BIG TIP: Hire a photographer! No matter if your daughter is opting for a grand adventure, or a full-on princess sweet 16, hire someone else to take pictures so you can enjoy every moment first hand! If you don’t have wiggle room for a professional photographer, ask an Aunt or a close friend. Put someone you can trust in charge of capturing the memories!
About Those Beautiful Invitations!
Basic Invite is one of the few websites that allows customers almost unlimited color options with instant previews online. Once you select a design you can change the color of each element on the card to over 180 different color options so you can make sure the card is exactly how you want it down to the littlest detail. This is what sets Basic Invite apart from almost any other online stationery company.
See, feel, touch, and order your custom samples from Basic Invite! Basic Invite is one of the few websites that allows customers the ability to order a printed sample of their actual invitation, so they can see exactly how it will print and examine the paper quality before they ever have to place their final order.
Do you love color? Basic Invite is just as colorful with their envelopes as they are with the invitations. Customers can choose from over 40 different colors when it comes to their envelopes so that they can make their invitation stand out even before it is opened. BONUS: All of their envelopes are peel and seal so the envelopes can be quickly and securely closed. No licking. No spongy water mess! Just peel and seal mommy!
Do you want the envelope to look as professional as your invite? Checkout Basic Invite’s Address Capturing Service! Basic Invite offers an address capturing service that allows customers to simply share a link on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or any other form of social media to request their friends and family’s addresses which will be stored in the customer’s account and can then be selected during the design process. Note: Basic Invite offers recipient address printing at no cost on all Christmas card orders too.
Sorry you got sick. Happy sweet sixteen to your daughter.
That’s so great they offer a sample, and peel and seal. Two features that make a huge difference! I’ll have to remember Basic Invite if I have a party.
These are such great ideas for the party. I love Sweet Sixteen Parties. They are so special.
That’s a huge event.. 16 is sweet 16 definitely big.
My niece will be 16 this year. This is no doubt advice her parents will need soon.