8 Ways to Get Into the Holiday Spirit

The holiday season is in full swing! If you haven’t adopted a cheerful temperament yet and are still mumbling “bah humbug” under your breath every time Feliz Navidad comes on the radio, never fear! These 8 ways to get into the holiday spirit will have you grinning and wishing passersby well in no time. Most of the activities on our list are great for people of all faiths and backgrounds. Enjoy!

1. Decorate
   Nothing quite gets the whole family into the spirit of the season like decorating for the holidays! If your family celebrates Christmas, picking out a tree together is a great activity. Make the trimming a whole-family event complete with Christmas music, hot cocoa, and cookies.

2. Bake Cookies
   Who doesn’t like cookies around the holidays? Baking and decorating cookies is an activity that kids and adults alike can enjoy, and the best part is that cookies aren’t exclusive to any particular holiday—you can bake them all season long! Gingerbread houses are tons of fun, too.

3. Attend a Religious Service
   Whatever your family’s background, attending a service together celebrating your winter holiday is the perfect way to connect right to the true spirit of the season.

4. Family Story Time
   Whether you’re attending a winter folklore story afternoon at the local library or reading books together by the fire, now is the perfect time to pull out the Hannukah stories, Christmas and Kwaanza books, and winter folk tale stories.

5. Neighborhood Lights Tour
   Nothing cheers the spirit like a sparkling holiday light display. If you live somewhere snowy, this activity will be extra magical! Many local newspapers list the best neighborhoods to view lights so you can get the full Clark Griswold experience.

6. Get in the Giving Spirit
   Nearly every religious tradition’s winter holiday involved generosity of spirit and/or a tradition of exchanging gifts. As Scrooge learned in A Christmas Carol, generosity connects us to our hearts and brings joy year round if we choose to live in a giving way. Whether you choose to give time or money to charity, buy or make gifts for friends and family, or simply embody a manner of kindness, giving feels great.

7. Host Friends
   Despite the hustle and bustle the season brings, none of the dozens of items on our to-do lists would matter without good friends and family in our life. Take time to host friends and family through a cookie exchange, latke cooking, game night, white elephant gift party, potluck dinner, or traditional holiday party.

8. Write Holiday Cards
   Even if your list of who to purchase presents for is short, there’s no limit to how many people in your life you can send a card or write a short email or note to in order to express your appreciation of them and tidings of joy. If you’re sending out cards, many sites like Zazzle offer deep discounts on paper holiday cards during December, and sites like Jib Jab allow you to create hilarious e-cards to be passed around online.

Whatever your holiday tradition and whomever you celebrate with this season, we wish you the very best! Happy holidays from Worldwide Ticketcraft!

 

December 15, 2014December 15, 2014 by Jennie Lyon Categories: Fundraising, SchoolTags: christmas, community, events, Fundraising, hanukkah, holiday performances, holidays, school, school activities, school events, school performance, sports, winter, winter activities, winter fun, winter performances Leave a comment

6 Fundraising Ideas That Are Perfect for Winter

Winter’s arrival is no reason to stop being charitable! On the contrary, many people experience a greater need for charity during winter because temperatures drop, necessitating more and warmer layers, heating bills rise, and travel can become difficult for some. The possibilities for doing good during the winter months are endless, from clothing and food drives to raising money for organizations that help transport the elderly and disabled, to funding shelters. Here are 6 fundraising ideas we think are great!

1. Winter Carnival
   A great option for schools and churches, an winter carnival offers all the fun of summer carnivals, only inside. Pick a charity and charge an entrance fee. Hosting a raffle at the event can help increase ticket sales, and in place of rides you can offer winter-themed activities like a visit to the North Pole, cookie walk (instead of the traditional cake walk), and even a parade of lights or light display for guests to enjoy if you have an outdoor space to use.
2. Cookie Party + Food Drive
   Cookie parties are tons of fun. Guests mingle, enjoy drinks and snacks, bake together, and, best of all, bring home a mountain of cookies! If you want to take your annual cookie party to another level this winter, add in a request for guests to bring canned and dry goods and take up a food drive. Since your guests will already be out shopping for baking ingredients at the grocery store, it’ll be easy for them to pick up a bagful of canned goods to donate on the same trip. You’ll help a lot of people and allow your guests to do something they feel good about this season, too.
3. Warm Up Event
   Host a hot chocolate and warm cookie filled event where guests bring coats, hats, mittens, and blankets to donate to the homeless and others in need. While many coat drives take place before November, those less fortunate need warm clothes and coats throughout he holidays and winter months.
4. Ice Skating
   An ice skating fundraiser, where attendees pay for a ticket or food and vendor proceeds go towards your cause, is a great way to raise money for your charity while having tons of fun! Ice skating is an activity that people of nearly all ages can enjoy—or enjoy watching as giggling guests slip and glide their way around the rink.
5. Winter Wonderland
   A winter wonderland fundraiser is perfect for schools and youth organizations. Create an indoor, “snow”-filled paradise with different stations for story reading and winter folklore, learning about winter wildlife, and the winter holidays of multiple cultures.
6. Super Bowl Tailgate Party
   Throw your own fundraising Super Bowl tailgate party that’s fun for all ages! A few ideas for raising money include selling mock Super Bowl tickets to the event, setting up games for kids and adults that are pay-to-play, and raffling off a home-made Super Bowl trophy or football memorabilia.

As you can see, winter can be tons of fun and winter activities offer a wealth of opportunity to put the “fun” in fundraising! Check out our raffle tickets, themed admission tickets, and more today!

November 22, 2014November 24, 2014 by Jennie Lyon Categories: Fundraising, SchoolTags: christmas, community, events, Fundraising, hanukkah, holiday performances, holidays, school, school activities, school events, school performance, sports, winter, winter activities, winter fun, winter performances Leave a comment

Whatever Your Event, We Have it All

Not only do we offer more flexibility and customizable features than any other ticketing outfitter on the web, we’ve also done a lot of legwork for you by creating admission packages with themes and products suited especially to your specific event. Whether you’re hosting a sporting event, musical concert, parade, or play, you’ll find an appropriately-matched ticketing product on our site. Read on to learn more about some of our best selling themed admission products.

Winter Events

Nutcracker
With winter just around the corner, dance troupes all across the country are gearing up for productions of The Nutcracker ballet. Our Nutcracker-themed posters, wristbands, and tickets have your performance admission needs covered. General admission tickets include personalized text on the body of the ticket and ticket stub as well as two foil security images on the front and a clear security varnish on the back. Reserved seating tickets come in one of six full-color image themes and seating information can be customized according to your venue. For shows with intermission, our wristbands are perfect. Choose from one of our Nutcracker themes or upload your own artwork and add custom text. Finally, 12×18”, DIY performance posters provide an eye-catching way to advertise your show.

Christmas
Christmas is a magical time of year, filled with cookie parties, fundraisers, theatrical events, winter concerts, and light parades. Whatever your event, we have an admission product to match. For larger events, or any event needing security, our Christmas-themed tickets with gold foil security badges and a clear security varnish have you covered. These tickets are sequentially numbered and customizable. General admission and reserved seating tickets are also available and allow several lines of customizable text, brightly colored Christmas background themes, and the option to upload your own artwork on reserved seating tickets. Tamper-proof, full-color wristbands are perfect for events with intermissions, alcohol, or security at the door and allow the option to choose from a Christmas theme or upload your own artwork and add text. Complete your event with DIY, full-color posters for marketing.

Sporting Events

Basketball
Purchase a complete package of admission products for your basketball tournament, game, or season or pick and choose from our line of basketball products. Options include 12×18”, full-color, DIY posters to advertise games, general admission tickets with or without security features, wristbands for re-entry that come in several basketball themes with the option to upload custom text, and DIY, laminated badges that allow you to upload your own artwork or choose from one of our full-color themes. Badges have an area to insert a personalized image or your sponsor’s logo.

Baseball
If baseball is your game (or another one of your games!), you’ll enjoy the same admission products as we offer for basketball (only in full-color baseball themes) with an extra option to include raffle tickets. Raffle tickets are full-color and include an image of a baseball player on the front. This large, 5.75×2.875” ticket with a 1.5” stub is easy to customize and add images to. It’s the perfect way to round out your tournament, playoff, or game’s admission needs and offering a raffle is a fun way to engage the crowd between games.

Concerts
We offer an array of concert tickets to suit any and all admission needs including general and reserved seating admission tickets, concert tickets with security features, DIY full-color posters, and DIY wristbands. All options allow the customer to upload artwork or choose from a variety of themes to suit their event’s needs, and include personalized text providing event details and additional information. Some design options allow for maps or advertising. View your options and get started.

November 18, 2014November 18, 2014 by Jennie Lyon Categories: Fundraising, SchoolTags: christmas, community, events, Fundraising, hanukkah, holiday performances, holidays, school, school activities, school events, school performance, sports, winter, winter performances Leave a comment

5 Winter Performances for High School Drama Clubs

With the holidays just around the corner, high school drama clubs across the country are gearing up to showcase their talents through a variety of winter performances. From dance to drama to literature, there are so many theatrical performances that traditionally take place in winter for drama clubs to recreate. These theatrical performances are always a fun way to kick off the holiday season and are sure to be an activity that your family will look forward to year after year. Whether you are looking for inspiration for your own school’s winter performance for years to come or wondering what type of performance you might see your local high school’s drama club put on, read on for few of the most popular and a couple ideas of our own!

1. Christmas Carol
   A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens, is thought by many to be the greatest Christmas story of all time. Filled with strong, memorable characters and images, the theatrical opportunities in the form of sets, costumes, and lighting are endless. Most importantly, A Christmas Carol is a story about one man’s transformation from cruel and miserly to generous and unconditionally loving through honest self-evaluation and change of heart.
2. The Nutcracker
   The Nutcracker ballet, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, is one of the most visually beautiful and fantastic performances of the holiday season. While traditionally performed by professional ballerinas and dancers, students with a lesser knowledge of ballet techniques can modify the dances by providing their own take on the music through interpretive or creative dance. The sets and costumes in The Nutcracker are typically colorful and joyful, another reason it’s a great piece to perform around the holidays.
3. White Christmas
   White Christmas, originally a movie starring Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, and Vera-Ellen, is a heartwarming musical that combines the warmth, snow, and sparkle of the Christmas season with a glimpse back into post WWII culture. The story is upbeat and the original film incorporates song and dance at every turn. A high school drama club would do well taking a few scenes or songs to create a White Christmas montage or mash-up.
4. It’s a Wonderful Life
   While this story has strong Christian undertones, it communicates a powerful message about the value of human life and how our generosity of spirit touches others in ways we may never know—perfect themes for high school aged students coming into their own as young adults.
5. Multi-Cultural and Literary Monologues
   Instead of choosing one play or performance to recreate, high drama clubs may enjoy the dynamism and creativity provided by performing a series of monologues from winter literature. Among some of the most memorable are Edgar Allen Poe’s dark poem, “The Raven”, which takes place in December, Mark Twain’s “Letter from Santa Claus”, and Clement Clarke Moore’s “A Visit from Saint Nicolas.” Folklore from other cultures can be woven in such as the Ukranian folk tale, “The Mitten”, or a Kwanzaa story. Finally, Hanukkah stories like the Hanukkah lights tale will round out the showcase of multi-cultural winter tales.

November 10, 2014November 10, 2014 by Jennie Lyon Categories: Fundraising, SchoolTags: christmas, community, events, Fundraising, hanukkah, holiday performances, holidays, school, school activities, school events, school performance, winter, winter performances Leave a comment

Get Festive with Our Holiday Themed Tickets!

Christmas time is just around the corner and with it come tons of fun holiday events and activities—and of course goodies and gifts! Whether it’s the Nutcracker ballet, a holiday symphony, chorale concert, cookie party, parade of lights, tree lighting, or another festive winter event, most families and communities have created a tradition out of regularly attending a holiday event.

If you are hosting a new event this holiday season or continuing an old tradition, we have your ticketing needs covered! Our general admission, DIY Christmas-themed tickets come in five different color backgrounds with sequential numbering that can be personalized with the details of your event. These tickets are horizontal, sized at 1.625” x 5”. For larger events, or events requiring security, check out our Christmas-themed tickets with security features including two gold foil designs on the front and a clear varnish on the back. Security tickets are vertical and are 5.5” x 2” with a 1.25” stub that is numbered to track attendance. Stubs have four lines on the back so that the stub can also be used as a raffle ticket.

We also offer special holiday-themed wristbands to use for entry into concerts, parades, and other events where guest admission needs to be verified by a quick glance at the wrist. Each wristband is 10” long by .5” wide with a 1.5” white tamper proof tab printed on tear resistant material. These bands allow the purchaser to overlay custom text on the festive background, as well as the option to upload your own design.

Finally, our DIY 12” x 18” Christmas posters are perfect for advertising your holiday event. The brightly colored, joyful backgrounds draw the eye and our website offers an instant preview of each poster with your personalized event details. You may add 13 lines of custom text onto the poster and an option to upload additional text or images from Facebook and Instagram.

What are your plans this holiday season? Whatever event you’re hosting, we can meet your ticketing needs.

Take a look at the full range of our Christmas-themed products here.

Happy planning!

November 4, 2014November 4, 2014 by Jennie Lyon Categories: FundraisingTags: christmas, community, diy tickets, generous, hanukkah, holiday posters, holiday products, holiday tickets, holiday tradition, holiday wristbands, holidays, posters, Tickets, wristbands Leave a comment

Holiday Traditions that Nurture Generosity and Gratitude

The holiday season is the perfect time of year to create new traditions with your family. Most kids and adults appreciate the tradition of breaking bread as a family at Thanksgiving and exchanging gifts at Christmas, though sometimes the beauty and meaning of these holidays can be taken for granted. By creating new traditions with your family, kids and adults alike can gain a new-found sense of gratitude and generosity. Below are a few ideas for traditions that will connect your family compassionately with others and fill everyone with the spirit of the holiday season.

1. Volunteer at a Food Bank
   Thanksgiving is a great time of year to volunteer at a food bank or distribution center bagging food for hungry families. Children can especially benefit from this type of service by learning that not everyone can afford to put a feast on the table, even once a year. Helping other families can nurture children’s innate desire to share and connect, and of course you’ll be helping a hungry family.

2. Help a Neighbor
   Most neighborhoods have at least a few residents who are elderly, alone, or disabled. The season of good will offers a great opportunity to create a tradition of helping a neighbor in need that can be carried on throughout the year. The opportunities to offer help are endless; your family can pick up groceries for a neighbor, shovel her walk, put up Christmas lights, or offer rides to appointments and social visits. Not only will your family be lending a hand to a less-able citizen, you’ll be forming a new friendship with someone in your community.

3. Send a Letter to a Soldier
   Many organizations, including the Red Cross, offer programs and instructions for how individuals and groups can write letters or create holiday cards for overseas soldiers during the holidays. Sending a personalized note of gratitude to a serviceman is a wonderful way to warm his or her heart and remind yourself of everything you have to be grateful for at home.

How does your family celebrate the holidays? Do you participate in any community service activities, or unconventional traditions?

 

October 29, 2014November 3, 2014 by Jennie Lyon Categories: FundraisingTags: christmas, community, generous, hanukkah, holiday tradition, holidays, thanksgiving, winter holiday Leave a comment

You’re Cordially Invited to The Nutcracker!

There are many reasons people get excited this time of year but one universal source of joy for people all over the globe is found by attending The Nutcracker ballet. This event is a long standing spectacular tradition – good for the young or the young at heart! The first performance of the ballet was held around the Christmas holiday season in 1892, at the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia. The popularity grew outside of Russia into England by 1934 and by 1944 the San Francisco Ballet held the first United States performance. For the last 70 years, The Nutcracker has evolved into a cherished favorite. See our Top Ten Must-See list below for more details on performances in your area. If you’ve never been before or if you haven’t had a chance to take your children yet consider this your formal invitation to make 2014 the year to experience the wonders of The Nutcracker! Read on to find where the nutcracker in playing in your state!

The Nutcracker: The Holiday Must-See Event:

1. Houston Ballet
   “Nutcracker shows tradition can still thrill.”- Houston Chronicle
   
2. Boston Ballet
   “A holiday season without The Nutcracker would be like New Year’s Eve without champagne.” –The Improper Bostonian
3. San Francisco Ballet
   Get out your iPad and interact with SF Ballet’s magical production through the new iPad application!
4. New York City Ballet
   George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker™ is one of the most complex theatrical, staged ballets in the Company’s active repertory.–NYCB
5. Atlanta Ballet
   “For Atlanta Ballet’s Nutcracker, the beauty of the dance makes the gift.” –ArtsATL
6. Pacific Northwest Ballet
   Pacific Northwest Ballet can proudly lay claim to the world’s most recognized and celebrated production of Nutcracker.
7. Miami City Ballet
   This lavish performance – one of the ONLY productions of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker ™ in the nation – features magnificent scenery, elaborate costumes, and the magical music of Tchaikovsky.
8. Ballet Chicago2014 marks the 18^th year of Ballet Chicago’s performances of The Nutcracker!
9. Saint Louis Ballet
   “Lovely ‘Nutcracker’ spins holiday magic at Touhill.” –The Current
10. Moscow Ballet
    Moscow Ballet performs Russian ballets in over 70 cities across North America annually. Get tickets in Your City!

In addition to attending one of these amazing events above you could always put on a Nutcracker production of your own at your school or local theater company. Check out all of the awesome Nutcracker ballet products we offer to make your production one to remember! Journey with Clara as she dances on the arm of the Nutcracker Prince through sparkling snowflakes in a kingdom of sweets. Come one, come all and experience the magic of The Nutcracker!

September 30, 2014October 2, 2014 by Jennie Lyon Categories: FundraisingTags: children, christmas, event, events, family, Fundraising, holiday, holiday event, nutcracker, school, winter holidays 1 Comment

Season’s Greetings: How to Raise Funds for Your School This Holiday Season

The holidays are the perfect time of year to raise funds for your child’s school. Since it is already September, now is the perfect time to start planning your holiday fundraiser. Be creative and don’t feel compelled to put up the same old card table to sell homemade treats for 50 cents apiece. There are more lucrative ways to raise money these days besides bake sales! With a little planning and preparation,  you school can end the holiday season in the black – with funds for that school library makeover or new computers for the tech lab!

Go the traditional route with a twist!

It’s up to you and your school to decide what product is best for your students to sell. Perhaps you want to focus on calendars, greeting cards, gift wrap or gift tags, since these are items many parents will be picking up for the holidays anyways. It can be tricky deciding what to sell but remember that seemingly small items can add up to a lot of money! School groups raise more than a billion dollars every year selling items such as cookie dough, calendars or coupon books. Don’t miss your opportunity to get in on the action and raise funds for your school.

Once you decide on the best product to sell be sure to advertise your fundraiser. You can put up customized posters throughout the school and in your local libraries, churches, grocery stores and shops. You could also create customized postcards with your fundraisers information – these could be sent home with the children and even mailed to local businesses or given out at community events.

Take your fundraiser online! Most people these days will appreciate the opportunity to shop online in the comfort of their own home. Not to mention this type of fundraiser works great for family or friends at a distance that still want to support your school. Your school most likely already has a website, so just dedicate a page to use to collect funds via PayPal, so grandparents and family that don’t live locally can still donate to your child’s school. Don’t forget – this holiday season is the perfect time to remind people that all donations made to the school are tax deductible.

 

 

 

September 23, 2014December 9, 2015 by Jennie Lyon Categories: Fundraising, SchoolTags: children, christmas, events, fundraiser, Fundraising, gift tags, gift wrap, hanukkah, holiday event, holidays, postcards, raise funds, school, schools, seasons greetings, special event, winter holidays Leave a comment