Engagement Party Invitations

Getting engaged is a happy event, and many couples want to share that happiness with their friends and family members. To do that, many choose to have an engagement party. Like most parties related to weddings, however, there are some guidelines those couples need to keep in mind when planning such an event.

Engagement Party Basics

The most important question is probably who covers the costs. The traditional answer was the bride's family. However, that's not always the case anymore. The couple can throw their own engagement party or their friends can do the honors. Either way, whoever is planning the celebration should definitely set a budget before making the preparations.

Depending on the length of your engagement, you can have your party at different times. For short engagements - less than six months - you really shouldn't throw an engagement party yourselves. Sending out announcements is usually sufficient. Engagements of around 12 months can be celebrated at least six months prior to the wedding. For a longer engagement, you should have your party a few months after becoming engaged but no sooner than one year before the wedding.

The location of the engagement party is another issue and depends on the formality of the event. More formal parties might require renting a hall or booking a private room at an upscale restaurant. Something more casual could be held at a restaurant, a sports bar, a home or barbeque at your backyard, a swimming pool, a public garden park, etc. The choice would depend on the weather, the size of the guest list, and your budget.

Choosing the guest list is another issue. You would never want to invite anyone to your engagement party who would not be asked to attend the wedding and since you've probably not had time to put together your wedding guest list yet, you should only invite the people who are closest to you: your family, your friends, etc. Out of town family and friends should not be asked to come into town for your engagement party, but both the bride's and the groom's family - regardless of where they live - should be invited.

Remember that gifts are not usually given at an engagement party so don't be disappointed. You'll have plenty of gifts and thank you cards to worry about in the coming months.

Fun Engagement Party Ideas

Most engagement parties include toasts to the happy couple and to their families, but you might always to inject some fun into the affair and turn it into a real party. For example, you should try to have dancing at your party. That might mean picking a location, such as club, that already has dancing available or hiring a deejay.

Engagement parties held in warm weather might be more fun around the pool with swimming and a backyard barbecue. The relaxed atmosphere makes it easier for the families to mingle. You could have a stereo playing music or you could rent a jukebox for the event.

Beyond entertainment, casual engagement parties are a good place to have sundae bars, baked potato bars, chocolate fountains, coffee bars, and similar catering innovations which let guests have more control over their food. You might also choose to serve platters of appetizers and cocktails. Just make sure that if you're serving alcohol to your friends and family that no one drives home drunk. A tragic accident would be a bad way to celebrate your engagement.

Engagement Party Invitations

Part of the engagement party planning is choosing and sending invitations. As with the wedding itself, the formality of the engagement invitations depends on how formal the party itself is going to be. Of course, these invitations don't need to be engraved or printed on imported paper. Choosing a quality card stock, a readable script, and a nice color combination is the best way to create a formal look for your invitations. In fact, many online stationers do offer pre-made engagement party invitations, although some of these may be more casual than you might want.

Make sure you send out the invitations early enough that you will give guests sufficient time to return their response cards. You should also set a deadline for sending back those responses, then call the guests who you have not heard from by that date so you'll be able to put together a final guest count

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