<p>I know I’m late to the party on this one. I didn’t order these through the school because I wanted something a little different. So of course it needs to be done NOW and I am still brain dead from all the other college stuff. Anyone got any geat ideas for wording and such? I have chosen some lovely cardstock for announcements, with matching pieces for the open house invite and thank yous.</p>
<p>Another issue: I’m feeling kind of creepy about who to send these to. Do people think you are just trying to get gifts? What about pastors, teachers, and others you would most certainly NOT want to feel obliged in any way? AARRGGHH!</p>
<p>My daughter is in the same boat. She did not like the standard announcements and is going to do her own. The job kept being put off due to college visits, AP study, etc. Now we are getting really close to graduation, so I imagine she’ll put something together this week. I’ll ask her if she has any good ideas to pass along.
You might want to work up something a little different for teachers and the pastor. Maybe a “thanks for all you did to get me here” card and one of your wallets. Send the relatives announcements, and enjoy their gifts! You earned them.
I know my daughter is using photoshop, but other than that, I have no clue what she is doing.</p>
<p>Hmm…pattykk you may be on to something…maybe rather than an announcement, she could send teachers/mentors/etc a thank you note with an invite to her party. I know 90% won’t come anyway as they get invited to many, many things like this, but she is quite close to a few of them. That could work, positioning it as a way to thank them rather than announcing something they already know!</p>
<p>I’m hoping somebody creative will post with some groovy wording and we can all copy (and then send royalties, of course…)</p>
<p>Same boat here - the school ones were SO ugly and SO gaudy and SO dreadful that we couldn’t order them. We’re doing the same as the OP, but desperately need some good wording. </p>
<p>There is no family party that we can invite people to, so does an announcement without an invitation sound like a request for gifts fo money? We don’t want to do that either.</p>
<p>So, to echo ez, suggestions for wording on these things…?</p>
<p>Internet has quite a few ideas if you google. I found numerous wording approaches, from sing-song to fairly traditional/formal. I’m planning on the latter, as below (unless I get a better idea here). Harder time is getting the design/artwork. I found all the Josten’s and internet designs appalling.
I have the school medallion or whatever it’s called, so probably just use that?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Not planning to send too many - fear of appearing to ■■■■■ for gifts.</p>
<p>Just brainstormed with D about wording, style and who gets what. Now we are waiting for her brother to get home to see if we can print them nicely here, which would solve all my problems. I took the card stock out of the box, and found that it is less heavy than I thought, so perhaps we can try one and see.</p>
<p>She opted for a less-formal-than-wedding-but-same-idea format, as in:</p>
<p>Ma and Pa Kettle
are pleased to announce
the graduation
of their daughter
Freckles Beanwhistle Kettle
from Hillbilly High school…you get the idea.</p>
<p>A separate invitation to open house would go in where needed, and a 3rd one will invite friends to her party, which will take place in the evening after the open house. She will mostly be passing those out at school.</p>
<p>Of course if we can’t print them here, I’m back at the drawing board.</p>
<p>Like JM, don’t want to ■■■■■, but man, I have paid out plenty in years past! ; )</p>
<p>I just created one (in Monotype Corsiva font) with these words (but may change it):</p>
<p>Ma and Pa Kettle
wish to announce
the graduation of their son</p>
<p>Boom Bah Kettle</p>
<p>Hillbilly High Schiool
Class of 2005</p>
<p>Graduation ceremony will be held
on this date at this time
at this place</p>
<p>In the Fall, Boom Bah will be
attending Harvard University</p>
<p>========</p>
<p>But will probably change it because by listing the graduation time and place, it sounds too much like an invitation for people to attend, but we are not doing anything afterwards.</p>
<p>I did order from D’s school/vendor, but will share how hers looks:</p>
<p>Front is school crest with design around…at bottom reads Class of Two Thousand Five</p>
<p>Open top flap up and says: “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us” -Ralph Waldo Emerson, and then the place for the name cards.</p>
<p>Open it up again and the middle portion reads:
The ______ _______ High School
Class of 2005
proudly announces its
Graduation Ceremony
3:30 p.m., May <strong>, 2005 </strong>__________ (the location of the event)
________________ (the city and state of the event)</p>
<p>The bottom section is an artist’s drawing of the school/</p>
<p>Its all done is a very cursevey (spelling?) font, and looks very nice.</p>
<p>I am not creative and son could have cared less, we bought the announcments sight unseen, they ended up being unique anyway. I enclosed a little letter with a quick note of son’s college plans. In the letter we thanked everyone for being a part of his life and asked that they help celebrate with us. We invited everyone to an open house. We stated that would like everyone to please give son a gift of good thoughts, wishes, prayers, smiles or anything that would spread some joy. I don’t think people felt we were fishing for gifts and we had a great time.</p>
<p>I was also could not bring myself to order the school approved announcements. Happily I met a woman Saturday night with a little home graphic arts business who will make what I want, as few (~15) as I want and for only $2 each! I am also not sure about the text, as S will not even be in town for the ceremony. Am considering–</p>
<p>Please join us in congratulating our son
Fred Kranch
on the occasion of his graduation
from World Class High School
6 June 2005</p>
<p>Ma and Pa Kranch</p>
<p>Seems a little short, I thought about including his college plans, but decided that sounded pretensious. Any feedback? Please?</p>
<p>I finally got mine done. I got some fancy invitation stock (for $17, got 50 embossed cards with a small silver metallic line within the embossing, 50 inner envelopes, 50 outer envelopes, and 50 little tissues that go in the card.</p>
<p>I scanned one of the embossed crests from one of the school cards that was sent to us, isolated the mascot in photoshop, jiggered with it a while to make sure it retained the embossed and metallic gold look that it had, enlarged it, and printed it on the front of the card in the embossed area. Under it, I put text that said “Class of 2005.” I did two layers of text, one black (the bottom), and one in the same gold that I “eyedroppered” from the mascot, then offset the bottom one JUST slightly to give a three-dimensional, embossed look.</p>
<p>Then, on the inside, I used a Monotype Corsiva font (very nice looking) to say:
Bill and Linda Snicklefritz
proudly announce the graduation
of their son</p>
<p>Johnny Boy Snicklefritz</p>
<p>Stalag 17 High School
Class of 2005</p>
<p>Wednesday, May 25th, 6:00 pm
Field House
Sin City College</p>
<p>When it was all put together, it looked very nice indeed and the front ALMOST looks embossed, especially within the embossed rectangle on the card.</p>
<p>But we opted out of putting college information for various reasons. For some relatives, we’ll add an extra sheet inside with that info. For many others, we’ll have another sheet with a party/barbeque invitation/map.</p>
<p>jmmom <em>reads dig’s post, gasps in awe, droops in consternation, shakes head in despair</em></p>
<p>All of that stuff you did is what I want to do. But I lost you after “bought the invitation stock.”</p>
<p>The thing is, I’ve GOT the scanned crest, fixed the color the way I wanted it, switched from Publisher to Word for some reason I now forget; can’t figure out how to change the color on a scanned object in Word; haven’t fooled around with layout to get crest on front and text inside… </p>
<p>Word will work just fine! But DON’T try to do anything fancy with the layout other than centering everything.</p>
<p>The major thing to remember is to run the invitation cards through the printer twice: print the front and the back as separate files. If, in Word you change the page size (in Page Setup) to the size of the card stock and center the image (in one file) and text (in the other file) then it will work just fine. Make sure that when you hit print, check to see if you also have to adjust the paper size in the printer pop-up dialog. </p>
<p>Try a few test runs using plain paper cut the same size as the invitation cards.</p>
<p>We just bought the school ones. Not great, but didn’t want to deal with trying to do more than the invite inside. As for ■■■■■■■■ for gifts, go for it! After all the years when I went to baby showers, weddings, etc., it’s finally my D’s turn!</p>
<p>I’m coming to the same conclusion. Who am I to tell my son that he shouldn’t get any graduation gifts because I think these things are slightly tacky? And believe it or not, there are some friends and relatives who really WANT to give him gifts.</p>
<p>My S is dead-set against either announcements or a party, because he says it feels to him like he’s asking for presents…I’ve overruled him–told him I’m graduating, too–from full-time daily-routine motherhood (as a job, not as a relationship) and I have a number of family & friends who WANT to share the joy (and sadness) of the day…and I’m simply not going to worry about presents…I’ve sent my share (and will send more)…and would have sent (will send) gifts whether or not I get an announcement…or a party invitation…and I’m only sending/inviting to the people who fall into that category…</p>
<p>Bottom line: told him one small piece of his graduation is for me…and I expect him to be present, dressed nicely (that will be the hardest part for him), and pleasant…he didn’t fight me too hard…he wins more than he loses with me, and he knows it…so he’s going along, even with some graciousness…</p>
<p>I ordered the school announcements (I like them)…now I’m obsessing about when the right time to send them is…May 6 seems too early for a 6/25 graduation…I was thinking maybe June 6 or so? What do you all think?</p>
.</p>