If you are planning early for your graduation, check out my post filled with Senior Graduation Photography Inspiration here.
This post features:
- Graduation decorations available to purchase at Unplanned Whimy’s Etsy Shop
- Inspiration on showcasing your achievements at your party
- Food Ideas
- A DIY for making a graduation cap wall decoration
- A DIY graduation game
How to Throw a Memorable Graduation Party
Have the Right Decor to Celebrate
All of the following pictures feature customizable graduation decor by Unplanned Whimsy available for purchase on my Etsy Shop HERE.
There is this festive Graduation Congrats Banner that would make an awesome backdrop for a photo booth or to place on the wall to draw guests’ attention to the gift receiving table.
These Graduation Centerpieces are completely customizable! Change the color options, add a personalized name into the mix (with no extra charge!), or even request specific shapes in favor of others. The sticks come pre-attached and each one is decorated in fun patterns and glitter. There are enough sticks included in the set to create TWO centerpieces, also these centerpieces even come with matching white, black, and gold crinkle paper!!
Why would you work hard running around town shopping at overpriced party stores for decorations that you will see over and over again attending other graduation parties? BORING.
Let me make you hand crafted decorations made with love and delivered to your home ready to display. You’re welcome!
There are also Graduation Cupcake Toppers. So cute! Everything in this series of decorations features non-dropping glitter cardstock, meaning it will not shed glitter into your food. With that said, stick these toppers all over your food spread.
Stick these toppers into fruit, appetizers, deli meats, desserts, small sandwiches, cheese cubes, veggies, and of course cupcakes.
Can we talk confetti? Heck yes we can!
Do you know what turns a graduation party into a memorable graduation party? Confetti.
Have a table of food that needs to be spiced up with some decorations? Confetti.
Want to keep something from your party for a graduation scrapbook? Confetti.
Have boring white or clear balloons that you wish were cool? Fill them with confetti.
Showcase Your Achievements!
Have a collection of awards and achievements? Display them proudly! You did the work and you shouldn’t be modest about showcasing your many accomplishments. Whether you have theater programs, certificates from honor societies, unique memorabilia, of course your diploma, and whatever else you can think of that will make mom and dad proud or validate their bragging rights put it on display.
Above is the card table I set up for my graduation from The Ohio State University. On it I displayed a shadowbox with my decorated cap, tassel, my stoles from different honor societies, same with the medals, honor tassel, and many many ribbons. I am actually a pretty modest person and would always listen with empathy to friends in my classes and at work about how difficult our shared class was… but in reality I graduated with a cumulative GPA of 3.96, in the top 5% of my graduating class (of roughly 10,000 students), and obviously graduated Summa Cum Laude.
The cover photo is actually a group picture of my work friends and I who all graduated from The Ohio State University together. When I showed up for the photo, wearing all of my stoles and chords (I thought the medals were a bit much), everyone was shocked to see my achievements. Some were too shocked… but that’s okay. Graduation is the time to display all of it!
So many chords…
Play with Your Food
This graduation candy display is from My.Life.at.Playtime.com and is super cute!
Make Your Own Decorations
From just a few items laying around your house you can make these festive graduation caps to hang on your walls, table sides, entrance door, windows, fences, on the posts of an outdoor tent, or wherever you want to add an extra touch of “hey I graduated” to your party.
All you need is construction paper, yarn, scissors, and tape. 
Voila!
For instructions on how to make your own Graduation Cap Wall Decor click HERE.
Here is a picture from my graduation party featuring some of the graduation caps that I made. I wasn’t planning on having a blog back then, so I am sorry this isn’t the best, but it’s enough for you to get the idea. I made a few in red/ scarlet (for OSU), then I made others to match my party colors with lime green, yellow, and pink tassels. You could even change the color of the construction paper to match your high school colors.
Play a Game
Once you have made a construction paper cap, you can create extra tassels and play “pin the tassel on the cap.” Here is how…
Once you have your shape created, attach the hat to a cork board with tape.
Take your two paper pieces (from the first step) and 
then align the pieces to make the hat more realistic.
Then prepare your extra tassels for the game.
Tie a knot at the end of your yarn (as in the wall decor)… 
then poke a thumbtack into the knot.
Now you’re ready to play! You can make as many different colors as you would like (one color per player) or make many tassels of the same color (to match your decor).
Congratulations on graduating!
You have a lot to celebrate so get your party started and have fun!
If you do any of these tutorials or purchase party supplies please share your thoughts in the comments below. Thank you.
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