Graduating on the Cheap: Wrap-up

The major pointers of graduating on the cheap have been covered, so now it's time to take care of the little things.

Parking: save your guests some money by encouraging them to carpool.

Cap and gown: most people have to buy the cheapy stuff, and some of us have to rent them. I'm not happy with my $75 or so being spent on a gown, hood, and a very ill-fitting mortarboard (it's top-heavy and doesn't stay on). Keep in mind that most rentals have to be turned in right after the graduation ceremony, so that means we need to get our pictures taken with family and friends before then. If you skipped the overpriced school portrait days like I did but still want some wallet-sized photos for family and friends, haul your rented garments to your local photo place and get it done there. It's much, much cheaper.

Degree frames: personally, I don't care for having a frame with a school logo/seal on there. After all, it's already on your degree, so no one is going to be mistaken about where it came from. Better to save the money on a custom framing job elsewhere, or get something nicer from any ol' store, say Target. Getting a cardboard matte for around $2 makes the degree look like a million bucks without spending as much.

Don't forget to send Thank You cards out to your guests afterwards! The increase in postal rates is not cool (it's been a huge headache trying to revise a reasonable shipping rate for my shop, but I'm disgressing), but people always appreciate snail's mail. Getting non-grad theme notecards will leave you with leftovers that you can use for other occasions.

That's about it for graduation planning. Most importantly, go out and have fun. Enjoy your big day!