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How to throw an 80s theme party

Updated September 8, 2026
Teenagers at a retro-themed house party
Quick answer

For an 80s party: set a clear dress code (neon, denim, power suits, big hair), build a playlist from roughly 1980–1989, decorate with neon, cassettes, Rubik's cubes and a synthwave-grid backdrop, and use AI 80s portraits for the invites and as photo-booth print-outs.

Dress code

Give guests options so nobody skips it: neon workout gear, double denim, a thrifted power suit with shoulder pads, band tee and leather jacket, or full glamour shot. Provide a basket of scrunchies, sweatbands and clip-on earrings at the door.

Music

Stay inside 1980–1989. Mix pop, new wave, hair metal and early hip-hop. A synthwave block later in the night bridges nicely into now.

Décor

Food and drink

Cheese-and-pineapple hedgehog, cocktail sausages, fondue, and anything with a lurid colour. Cocktails: Blue Lagoon, Piña Colada, Midori Sour.

Invites and photos

Restyle each host or the guest of honour into an 80s portrait for the invite. On the night, take a headshot of each guest, restyle a batch afterward, and send everyone their 1980s self as a party favour. A Weekly plan covers 7 images per 7 days; the Yearly plan or two weeks covers a bigger guest list.

Try it on your photo

Upload a photo and 80s Filter restyles it into a 1980s portrait — hair, wardrobe, film look and all.

Open 80s Filter