We have the Bat Mitzvah for my youngest daughter in a couple of weeks. We are putting together a really nice party on a budget. I was astounded at the price increases since the last one (4.5 years ago) but when we opened our minds to alternative options, we were pleasantly surprised. Check with me after 2/1 and I can let you know how it all went!

If you want to see a fun Bar Mitzvah check out the Bar Mitzvah of Harry Boychick at Emerill Hills C.C. on Saturday nights and Sundays.Get tickets at 800=838-3006 or on line at www.boychickaffair.com

When it was time for my daughters Bat Mitzvah. We rented a truck, took all of the furniture out of the house and brought in tables and chairs. Hired a caterer (Kosher of course) and he brought in the food. I bought nice plastic plates and flatware. Decorated tables with colorful (rented tablecloths) and hired a balloon person to do centerpieces.(which was used at home and at the synogogue) In total, we spent less on dinner for 35 out of towners Friday night, buffet lunch at Synagogue for 160 and dinner at home for 90 (50 of which were kids) and breakfast buffet for 35 then if we were to go to a hotel. I hired a DJ, had the party outside. Told neighbors and invited them to join us. a it ended at midnight.
The kids and the adults loved that it was homey and not contrived to look like a hotel party. Everyone had a great time.
The previous year we took a trip to Israel and that was my daughters present. She got lots of compliments from her peers and I was happy that we did not go into debt to do it.

My daughter just had her bat mitzvah last April and at the time we were very tight financially. We were able to put together a very classy event without spending a lot of money. Here are some tips: Only invite close family and friends,limit the amount of friends that your daughter can invite. Design and print the invitations yourself, don't rent a tent, use a DJ as both MC and DJ, set up and clean up yourself, make centerpieces yourself, rent linens, use plastic (you can buy some really nice plasticware at Party Supermarket, etc very inexpensively), buy liquor at a liquor store, no bartenders. No dancers are necessary if you have a good DJ/MC. We served lunch at the shul w/o a tent and had salads and fish as our main course (this was the most expensive part)again we supplied the drinks ourselves from a beverage store. Have the party the same night at about 8:00 and serve dessert and liquor only. Give out party favors only for the kids(wrap them yourself). If you only invite close family and friends they'll understand why you can't afford to have the expensive extras and will enjoy themselves anyway. This worked very well for us, our daughter was very happy with the results, so were we. Our guests really enjoyed themselves because it was a very intimate event where everyone knew each other. It's a lot more work than doing it the usual way but it does save quite a bit of money the whole bat mitzvah cost was under $10,000. Hope this helps, mazel tov and good luck.

I have worked in the catering business for 25 years. In my opinion, this party should be for the kids, it is HER party. not yours (Completely opposite from last post) Therefore the focus should be on them. 1st money saver, NO BAR nothing worse than watching people drink at a child's party, someone always over does it. Next, most kids don't really care about fancy food, the most inexpensive way to go is a buffet. There should be two, one for the kids ONLY and one for adults. The kids should be fed ASAP so the DJ can "get the party going" Decorations are not that important to kids either, if there must be a theme, you can still keep it festive but minimal. If people only knew how many of the fancy balloon filled, HUGE glittery table decorations go right to the trash, they would think twice. The most money should be spent on a DJ company that can CONTROL the kids through the entire party with dancing and games.(Not all are able to do this I would research this to be my #1 priority) It is also important to remember 13 is a difficult age. I would try to keep "older" kids to a minimum, they tend to bore easily and ruin the fun. Babies are cute but require a lot of attention Focus on your child, her needs, her wants, her friends! Socks still make the best guest gift for the dancing and sliding. It may seam like a good idea to have a party at the club house where you live or even at your home, but in the long run, your time is worth money. The less time you spend in the kitchen, the more time with guests, etc. Leave the cooking and clean up to the professionals. Shop your venue early, many dates are opening up because of the economy and deals will be plentiful.

Lots of good tips there. We decided to forgo the DJ and instead hire another amusement for the kids. It was a Dance Dance Revolution set-up. We did it with a local outfit called Amusitronix, they came and set everything up and stayed during the event to make sure all was ok. I was interested to note that their set-up was even better looking than the arcade versions. Even though there were different levels of expertise and different ages, we were able to choose appropriate songs. And people who were not actually playing the game could dance too! It was a big hit, and not too much strain on the budget.

I started Affordable Affairs Photo and Video 6 years ago for this main reason. No company was offering high quality photography for parents (Single or couples) at prices under $2000.00. I had worked with different companies and none of the owners cared to cater to people that couldn't afford their regular prices so... my wife and I formed Affordable Affairs Photo with packages of $495.00, $795.00 and $995.00 in order to let everyone have the chance of having beautiful memories of the day that their child became a Bar or Bat Miztvah. 6 years later... there are many imitators, but nobody does as good of a job as we do providing Quality, Creativity and Fun...It's what we do. www.AffordableAffairsPhoto.com

After 32 years in the business of entertaining at Bar and Bar Mitzvah events, there are 4 important elements to consider in making a high energy party for kids:
the MC/DJ,dancers,lighting,and party props. If you are having over 50 kids then you need two dancers. Its not about the dancing, as much as it is about the crowd control. Unless you have an MC who is extremely experienced working with large groups of kids, you should have some dancers.
Order a cheap lighting package from your DJ to give the room some ambiance and order your favors from
www.RhodeislandNovelty.com
Let your child choose them.
Order no more than 3 items for each kid and ask your MC to hand them out.

Ask the entertainment company you are considering how many Bar Mitzvahs they entertained at last year.
Then ask them the same question for weddings.
If their weddings outweigh there Bar Mitzvahs, don't go with them. A Bar Mitzah MC must have a minimum of 25 parties under his belt to really know what he is doing.
MC's must have an incredible personality to entertain for kids. They have to be "cool" but also maintain control.

If your child is not into dancing, then don't have a DJ party! Instead rent a few sports games or video games and rent a speaker from any local Dj company and let your child connect his ipod.

I am having a Bar Mitzvah for my son and it is a sports theme. Anyone know where you can just rent centerpieces?

Hey i just had my BM and we did a very fun/cheap party. we have a big back yard so we did it in that but if you dont have one you can always do it at your temple for VERY cheap but we had swimming in our pool and we rented projecters and screens and projected videogames HUGE on wall recomendations (rockband, guitar hero, racing car cames, and Sing star) we got very cheap caterers and here is the best part my mom let me create and itunes playlist and we blasted it WAY LOUD wich saved thousands of dollars on a dj. other recommendations No less than 200 people no cake do a make your own sunday bar we did a make your own taco bar wich was a big hit and was pretty cheap and we bought a lot of soda and beer and did our own open bar wich saved alot!!!

Hey i just had my BM and we did a very fun/cheap party. we have a big back yard so we did it in that but if you dont have one you can always do it at your temple for VERY cheap but we had swimming in our pool and we rented projecters and screens and projected videogames HUGE on wall recomendations (rockband, guitar hero, racing car cames, and Sing star) we got very cheap caterers and here is the best part my mom let me create and itunes playlist and we blasted it WAY LOUD wich saved thousands of dollars on a dj. other recommendations No less than 200 people no cake do a make your own sunday bar we did a make your own taco bar wich was a big hit and was pretty cheap and we bought a lot of soda and beer and did our own open bar wich saved alot!!!

hello,
There is a common misconception that the Bar Mitzvah ceremony causes a change in status from youth to adulthood. This is the rights and responsibilities vest solely.