I’m sorry for the delay in posting this week. I had the flu this past weekend and then another situation arose, so everything is a bit delayed. But, we are picking up with our 31 Days to an Awesome Party series and I’m excited to jump in to 10 cost cutting ideas for your next party. After all, who doesn’t like to save money and still throw a great party. To see the entire list in this series, go here.
10 Ways to Save Money on Your Next Party
1. Cut the traditional invitation. You can cut stationery and postage costs by sending a digital invitation. Try a free service like evite or tackk.
2. Make your own decorations. Yes, you could have amazing Martha Stewart Decorations, but you can save a lot of money if you make things yourself.
3. Make your own food. Rather than catering your event, make the food yourself. If you are serving a lot, think through what you can make in advance and freeze. You’ll save a lot of money especially if you shop the sales.
4. Host the party at home or a local park. You don’t need to pick an expensive venue or a place with child party packages. Have the party at an inexpensive venue and get creative.
5. Choose a theme early and shop in advance. If you know what style of party you’re throwing, be on the look out for decorations and favor ideas well before the party. You can score a lot of deals by shopping after holidays and perusing the clearance sections.
6. When purchasing your plates, napkins and cups, avoid the themed line of products and go with your color scheme. Sure, princess plates would be nice, but pink will do just as well.
7. Avoid meal times. If you want to throw a party but not feed everyone a full meal, consider hosting a party in between meals and provide only snacks and drinks, or appetizers and desserts.
8. Do you need entertainment for your event? Call your local music institute. You can hire talented student musicians for a fraction of the cost.
9. Shop around. Give yourself plenty of time to shop around for the best prices. Whether online or in the store, do your homework. I love picking up plastic tablecloths, plates, napkins, streamers and balloons at our local dollar store (The Dollar Tree – a true dollar store).
10. While this isn’t the most popular of ideas, cutting your guest list can fair well on your wallet. If you are having trouble deciding on your guest list, ask yourself these questions.
Bonus Idea: Want to find linen tablecloths for dirt cheap? Here is what I do to score linen tablecloths at a great price.
piggy bank photo credit
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My name is Kristen. I'm a former Wedding & Event Planner blogging about fun ways to celebrate each and every day and the special occasions of life. Here you'll find inspiration for family fun, children's activities, party planning and a faith-filled life. 
Never thought of calling my local music department, Kristen. Such a simple but overlooked idea. Thanks for the tip!
Love the table linen tip!
I also started buying my party supplies at the dollar store. I picked up white plates with a dotted pattern for $1 each. I stuck with white since it will go with everything. When I have money in the budget, I’m going to pick up glasses, too.
Thanks for linking up at Frugal Thursday Rewind!
I love the dollar store! Sounds like a great find.
Invitations & catering? Who the heck does that for a party? You simply phone people up & cook your own food or hold a potluck. If it is a child’s birthday party, invitations only cost a few dollars and can be hand written.
It seems the demographic that you are targeting that would have printed invitations & catered parties are not the same ones that would buy their decorations at the dollar store.
Hi Kim, thanks for leaving a comment. With all the different kinds of parties (birthdays for adults/children, baby showers, bridal showers, themed parties…all the way to less formal ones), this list wasn’t intended to all apply to one kind of party. You have to pick and see what works for you and the kind of party you’re throwing.
When my husband’s family threw me a bridal shower, they held it at a restaurant (catered) and they could have definitely saved money by making the food themselves. Yet, since our family gets together often, they choose to print invitations themselves and hand them out, saving on postage. As I mentioned in the previous post on budgeting, you can always pick where you’d like to spend money where you want to save.
I’m glad you found what works for you. I love potlucks, but unfortunately they don’t work for parties when you are asking your guests to bring a guest.