Write a birthday invitation

Content

To step
Part 1 of 3: Providing important information
Part 2 of 3: Stating additional or sensitive information
Part 3 of 3: Get creative with invitations
Tips

Birthday parties are fun for kids and adults of all ages, and creating an invitation is an important step in planning it because with an invitation, people know they are welcome. But if you are not familiar with the layout of a birthday invitation, writing your own invitation for the first time can be intimidating, especially if you are working with blank invitations or want to make your own. It's about telling all your guests the most important information, such as when and where the party is. So you have to put all this on the invitation. Once you've mastered the basic layout of an invitation and gathered all the relevant information, you can experiment with fun and creative invitation texts.

To step

Part 1 of 3: Providing important information

Tell the guests about the birthday boy or girl and the organizer. There are four main elements to any invitation and they are who, what, when and where. The first element to put on an invitation is who, because people want to know whose birthday they are celebrating when they go to the party.
- To start the invitation, state the name of the person's birthday. You can say something simple like, "It's Karin's birthday!"
- Usually, people invited to a birthday party are close friends or family, so you don't have to use more than the first name to introduce the birthday boy.
- If it is not the organizer's birthday, you must also mention the organizer. If the organizer is not known to all guests, you can provide more information, such as the last name or the relationship of the organizer with the birthday person.
- For example, you can say, "Marie, Karin's sister, would like to invite you to join the celebration."
Explain what the invitation is for. After telling your guests your birthday, you need to explain what you're inviting them for. In most cases it is a birthday party.
- Don't be afraid to include details like how old the birthday boy will be, especially if it's an important birthday.
- For example, you can say, "Karin is turning 40!"
Tell the guests where the party is. This is an important element, so be specific and provide details. You can't just say "Saturday," because then your guests won't know which Saturday you're talking about! Indicate the time and specific date of the party.
- If the party only lasts a few hours, put the time in the invitation.
- For example, you could say, "The party is on Saturday, February 29 from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm."
Don't forget to tell your guests where to go. Regardless of whether the party is being held at someone's home or in a restaurant, a club or wherever, you must provide the name and address of the venue. Never assume that guests know where the house is or where a particular restaurant is.
- If the party is at Karin's home, say: "The party is at Karin's home, at Willemsestraat 124, Utrecht."
Ask guests if they would like to respond to the R.S.V.P. If you need to know who is attending and how many people are attending, the last sentence of the invitation should include a call-to-action, asking guests to let the organizer know if they are attending or not.
- Traditionally, RSVPs are sent by post, but nowadays people prefer to call or email. Make sure you tell the guests how you want them to receive R.S.V.P.
- An R.S.V.P. can be as simple as: "Answer the R.S.V.P. to Marie on 06-34892354 ".

Part 2 of 3: Stating additional or sensitive information

Include the dress code. For adult and child parties, there may be a theme or dress code that you should let the guests know. Most of the useful and sensitive information can be listed on the last line of the invitation, for the R.S.V.P. Dress codes include:
- Black-tie if the party is in a classy restaurant or club.
- A theme if it is a dress-up party.
- Casual when the party is at someone's home.
Ask guests to pay attention to special instructions. There are different types of parties where the guests must bring certain items, and this should be stated on the invitation. Examples are:
- Swimming parties for which guests must bring swimming gear and a towel.
- Sleepovers for which guests may need to bring their own pillows and a blanket.
- Excursions for which guests may require a tent, sleeping bag, food and other gear.
- Craft parties that may require guests to use old clothes, paint brushes and other craft supplies.
Indicate whether people are not allowed to bring extra guests. At some parties you can bring an extra guest, but at some parties that is not possible. If you're throwing a party where you don't want people to bring extra guests (such as friends, sisters, brothers, or partners), include this on the invitation. You can say something like:
- "No sisters or brothers, please!"
- "Please note, there is no room for extra guests."
- "You have been invited to an exclusive and intimate party," which you can mention in the "what" section of the invitation.
Inform guests about the food. This is especially important if guests have to bring their own to a party, such as at a potluck (a communal meal where everyone brings something). Otherwise, you can tell that you are serving a meal, snacks, or drinks, and that way the guests will know how much to eat before going to the party.
- You can also ask guests here to inform you of any food allergies or special dietary requests. Ask them to let you know when they reply to the R.S.V.P.
Indicate whether parents can stay or not on a children's birthday. For children's birthdays, you may prefer other parents to stay or drop their kids off and then leave. In case you don't want the parents to stay, just say, "You can pick up your child at 5:00 PM" or whenever the party ends. If you prefer parents to stay, you can say:
- "Parents are free to stay"
- "We serve separate snacks and refreshments for adults"
Indicate whether it is a surprise. This is an extremely important element to add to an invitation if the birthday boy or girl does not know that a party is going on. The last thing you want is for all your hard work and planning to go to the moon because you forgot to tell the guests it's a surprise party! You can tell this by saying the following:
- "Karin will certainly be surprised!"
- "Please note, this is a surprise party"
- "Please be on time: we don't want to ruin the surprise!"

Part 3 of 3: Get creative with invitations

Include a quote. Whether you want to be serious, formal, funny, or silly, a quote is always a great way to personalize a birthday invitation. Quotes, poems and other creative texts can be placed wherever you want on the invitation, but they are a good way to start or end your invitation. Some well-known quotes about age include:
- "Middle age starts when your age shows on your waist!" - Bob Hope
- "Age is just a problem of the mind. If your mind doesn't mind, it doesn't matter! "- George Bernard Shaw
- "Wrinkles just show where the smile has been." - Mark Twain
Write a poem. Poems come in any moods you want (funny or serious), they can set the tone or theme of your party and they can convey important information that you want to tell your guests. Examples of poems are:
- Funny: "Dear Karin, don't lose heart, even after 50 life is super good!"
- Seriously: "The birthday day comes back every year, wants to gather joy, because life goes fast."
- Adorable: "Everyone can hear it 1 day a year, today we celebrate that you were born!"
Say something witty or funny. Everyone loves to laugh and this can certainly come in handy for those who don't necessarily like birthdays. You can use a funny quote, a poem, a joke, or just say something funny. You can try something like this:
- "Karin turns 39 ... again!"
- "Age doesn't matter unless you're cheese." - Helen Hayes
- "What's going up and never going down again? Your age!