What should be the "WOW Factor" at DD's Graduation Party?

[pw2pp]

I heard this term used by my friend .....

"the Wow Factor" ..... when she was trying to figure out what to have at her daughter's 18th Birthday Party .....
she ended up having a chocolate fountain for dipping fruits in (strawberries, etc...).
It was something that was "special" at the party and it was a big hit.

My sister had a Slurpee machine at my Nephew's Grad party.

I need ideas for a "Wow Factor" for my daughter's Graduation Party.

I know that some of you have Graduates this year and some have recently had kids who hve Graduated from High School, so maybe you had something special at YOUR party or maybe you went to Grad Parties that had a "Wow factor"?

Please share your ideas ....

I'm starting to get nervous about this whole thing ....
having a party for SO many people.

 

[DawnCt1]

Not the keg of beer!

 

[Patch'sD]

Profesional Male dancers.

 

[TnKrBeLlA012]

I think the chocolate fountain is a good idea. What I thought was really different was on a tv show they did the fountain with pink chocolate. We do the fountains at are parties and they are always a big hit. My brother makes the fountains. His are different because they have themes to them. He did a golf ball for a golf outing, birthday cake for a birthday. He has many more. Our family loves them.

 

[BuzzBoyMom]

Give her the check for the amount you would have spent on that party - that will give her the WOW factor and you won't be as stressed!!

Seriously - my kids are too young...can't think of anything.

 

[JKMastalski]

Maybe some kind of an entertainment? I just had my DH"s 30th Birthday party and I hired a wandering magician it was a HUGE HUGE hit. I was lucky enough to find him on craigslist.com and he was just starting out and he did it for free for the party. Everybody loved him and are still talking about his tricks.
You could also do something like a tarot card reader to read "the future"

 

[mickeyboat]

Will this be a party with friends or family?

If it's friends, how about one of those jumping houses - you know the ones that inflate? I bet the kids would love being "little" again.

If it's family I wouldn't worry about a "wow" factor. Can't the graduation be the celebration?

Denae

 

[Tink33]

Are you planning a theme? If so, it might help with suggestions.

I went to a party a few years back that had a celebrity impersonator - Marilyn Monroe. She sang songs and posed for pictures with all of the guests.

Something fun for teens might be caricatures. I looked into hiring someone for a party I was hosting and found several people online.

I had a luau for my DD's birthday last month and hired Hawaiian dancers. It was especially fun to see the boys with grass skirts doing the hula.

 

[ntburns22]

For my sister's we had a DJ set up in the backyard on the deck and he did karaoke later on. Her friends had a blast.

 

[Disney Doll]

I like the fortune teller idea.

 

[KelNottAt]

I like the fortune teller idea, too.

We've also done a trivia quiz all about the honoree for a few parties. It has worked well in a "multiple choice/fill in the blank" format and as a Jeopary format.

Kareoke is usually a good safe bet.

 

[kimmikayb]

You could invite me, I'm a WOW factor! LOL!!!!!!

Seriously, have grad parties changed that much since 1984? Oh no, just dated myself, lol. It was wow enough to just have a party with food and drink.

I like the fortune teller idea...I also like the tropical theme idea. And a moon walk (the thing kids jump in) would be a hit even with the teens, I think.

You just can't go wrong with a chocolate fountain.

 

[Bearvet]

We went to a graduation party last year for a close family friend. Her grandmother ordered personalized frisbees in the school colors - name, congats message, "Watch out (name of college)!". They turned them upside down and used them as paper plate holders. Then everyone got to keep them. Lots of fun to play with after eating.

It may not be a "WOW" thing, but I was really impressed and plan to do it for DS next year. BTW I think they got them at Oriental Trading Co. I've also seen the personalized M&Ms threads on the Dis and might do that too!

 

[scoutsmom99]

I didn't know about this whole wow factor until a couple years ago. I can honestly say that no one had a wow factor when I graduated in 1999. Friends of ours whos daughter graduated in 2004 had Karoke, full stocked bar with bartender (let me tell you it got the songs rolling at night for the adults), personalize candy, and they had lots of kiddie stuff too face painting and tatoos, etc.

 

[goofy's friends]

I love the luau idea---but I love themed parties. They would enjoy the limbo, grass skirts, tropical drinks (virgin, of course). YOu could have grass skirts, leis, flip-flops, and fun music. A DJ or Karaoke would be a nice fit with this, too. Sounds like fun to me!! Check out Oriental Trading for all the cool luau things.

YOu should have a wall (or table) of your graduate from kindergarten to Sr. too. Fun for everyone to look at.

 

[Cantw8]

This would make me say WOW

I'm just kidding How about renting sumo suits?? This really looks like fun...check it out
http://www.kssifm.com/sumo.html

 

[Rock'n Robin]

I think when my kids graduate it will be "WOW, mom is actually spending money on a party." Serioiusly! Don't parents of seniors have enough expenses! Senior pictures, announcements, etc. will suck you dry. I like the wall of photos, but other than that just have good food and beverages and have a good time. Why should parents bankrupt themselves when the kid gets the $?
Sorry if it's cynical but I teach seniors in HS and I know what these poor folks are shelling out.
BTW, my neighbors made that "how about we give you the $ we'd spend on a party" offer to their oldest DS and he jumped on it.
Robin M.

 

[carole88]

A really big hit at my DD's communion party was confetti personalized with her pictures. I got it from the website www.confoti.com. They did a great job. You could use pictures of your DD from the time she was a baby until now!

 

[simba928]

I like the chocolate fountain idea. A friend of mine had her sweet 16 party on Saturday. It was just for a few friends. She had one of those small chocolate fountain like you buy at Kohl's or whatever. I don't know if all of us are just so easily distracted and amazed (its a color guard thing) or what, but we spent about 20 minutes just staring at it and then wiped the plates clean of all the strawberries and pretzels and graham crackers and bananas etc. As people arrived at the party, noone said hi or anything, everyone was just like "go see the kitchen". LOL. Then people went in and stood there amazed just staring at it. LOL.

I don't know if anyone already mentioned this, but someone on here ordered personalized M&Ms for a wedding. You could get them in the school colors.

 

[MAKmom]

We went to a graduation party last year for a close family friend. Her grandmother ordered personalized frisbees in the school colors - name, congats message, "Watch out (name of college)!". They turned them upside down and used them as paper plate holders. Then everyone got to keep them. Lots of fun to play with after eating.

This is so COOL! If this party is for her friends do the Choclate fountain & Order the Chick-fi-lie party plater.... teenagers go crazy for this. I found a Pretzel place last week that sold hot pretzels 24 for $11.00 in a nice box. They were a big hit at my St Patrickdays Party