With the onset of warm weather and viral TikTok videos, theme parties are making a come back as the popular event of the summer. The ideas are endless, and fun for all ages since anyone can whip up a costume for a themed BBQ.
A quick Google search of “theme party ideas” will bring up multiple pages of articles with theme lists. I’ve decided to rank my top five favorites and explain them here, in hopes it will inspire readers to get creative when hanging out this summer.
Starting the list off at number five: Retro Theme.
The retro theme is up to the party planner and can be anything from the Roaring 20s to Disco to 90s grunge. The whole idea is to pick a decade or an era and have guests dress accordingly. I’ve also seen people put a spin on this party theme and choose to dress as a person that is the age of an era: if the theme is the 80s, a guest might come dressed up as a an 80 year old donned with slippers and a walker.
Number four: Dress As Your Partner/Spouse.
This is a fun one because you obviously get to raid your other-half’s closet. The idea is to trade aesthetics with your significant other for the night, which may result in your partner wearing that one dress you bought for that night out with the girls two years ago. You might also trade with your partner only to find out you’ve already been wearing their t-shirts for the past year and a half, anyways. The possibilities for embarrassment and cute outfits are endless.
Third place: Adam Sandler Movie Characters.
Hear me out, a movie character night is always fun, but to make it even better, you might have to dress up as “the water boy.” This theme doesn’t only include the characters Adam Sandler plays, but the other characters in his movies. Truly, there is no wrong answer for this theme, only fun and laughter.
Runner up: Tie Dye Fight.
This was a hard one to rank second, because it’s something that ten year old me would have fawned over. The guests should wear all white outfits that they are prepared to have decorated with tie dye by the end of the night. It’s up to the party planner or host to supply the fun part though: water guns and/or water balloons full of the water/dye solution. Then, chaos ensues and your inner child is full of laughter as you embark on a water fight that completes the tie dye ensemble by the end of the night. Voila! A new, spunky, colorful outfit.
Gold medalist: Dress As A Song Title
The possibilities with this theme are endless. Think of all those fun song titles in your playlist and the costumes you can come up with based off of them. A personal favorite is Rhinestone Cowboy by Glen Campbell. Bejewels that cowboy hat you thrifted three months ago and throw on a sparkly outfit. Or dig out that old superhero costume and paint a lightning bolt on your face for a unique spin on Heroes by David Bowie. The creativity is never ending with this one, which is why I deemed it worthy of first place.
Honorable mentions: Mr. Worldwide and Guy Fieri
These ones are just fun, and I thought they would be perfect for the honorable mention portion. For each, guests just show up as the man of honor. Throw on that bald cap and grab a microphone to showcase your inner Mr. Worldwide, or thrift a button-up-flame-Hawaiian shirt and don a spiky blonde wig for a rad Guy Fieri costume.
Go forth and throw your best theme parties and BBQs this summer. Just remember, it’s not just the theme that makes it fun, it’s the people you’re surrounded by.
Although, a good costume helps.
