The debut that we know today originated from the French word début, which means “first appearance”. This is an event where a girl makes her first appearance to her family and friends as a young woman. Although planning the perfect debut may seem to be a challenge and a headache, here are some tips to ease your worries and make the process more smooth and seamless.
1. Make Your Guest List
The first step in planning your event is to make a list of your guests. Knowing how many people you want to invite and be present on your special day, will allow you to move forward with the rest of the planning and decision making. After all, the number of guests you plan to invite will dictate a lot of things, including catering, event venue, and more.
2. Benchmark Your Budget
From your list of invitees, you can now set a preliminary budget. This will usually be a discussion among family members to know how much will be allocated to your coming-of-age party. Whatever budget you come up with initially, it’s a good idea to pad it by around 10 percent in case of any unforeseen extra expenses.
3. Decide on Your Theme and Event Scale
Now that you have a budget, you can see if your guest list needs to be shortened or if you have extra resources to allocate for more invites or other special effects to your event. This is also the time for you to decide on the theme, so you can better choose an event venue that is most suited for your party. Knowing your guest count will also help you choose the right venue with the right size.
4. Pick A Venue
Do you prefer an intimate picnic or brunch, an outdoor cocktail party, or an elegant dinner in a ballroom? Choosing the right debut venue will make a big difference in setting the right theme for your event and will make an impact on your guests too. Once you’re set with the venue, you can also call in your event stylist and caterer to ensure your debut vision comes to fruition.
5. Form Your Program
Many debuts are all about the program – from the performances to the dancing and speeches. Come up with a list of the people who you want to be part of the program, so you can also inform them in advance to prepare for their roles. Having a program will also help you know what else you will be needing and which suppliers to contact.
6. Embellish the Event
This will be the fun part. Embellishing your event is all about the extras and added features to make your debut more memorable, from your choice of dresses to choosing the cake and the giveaways. This is also the part where you consider other suppliers such as a photographer and videographer, lights and sounds, an event host, a DJ, and the list goes on depending on the theme of your event. Some venues may have more complete event packages that will lessen your headache to search for other suppliers, so this is something that you can also keep in mind. When in doubt, there are always family members and event coordinators who you can turn to.
