Sometimes, when it’s late on a Friday afternoon and we’re brainstorming party planning articles, we can’t help feeling nostalgic for the 1990s. Running home from school to switch on MTV and catch up with Beavis and Butt-Head. Perfecting our eyeliner and making sure our messy hair was on point to capture that disheveled grungy look. Wearing our thumbs – and packets of AA batteries – out on Pokémon Red.
Yes, the 1990s were a glorious decade (and were also thirty years ago, if you can stomach that news). In this, the inaugural entry in our Party Theme series, we explain how to get in on the resurgence of everything ’90s-themed, and to host a intime soirée that Frasier Crane would be proud of (or a birthday bash worthy of the Vengaboys). Read on to get refreshment recommendations, décor directions, and advice on activities!
Be Our Guest: Designing ’90s-Themed Invitations
Before we start gushing like Wayne and Garth about our favorite ’90s media, let’s focus on the essentials. When planning any party, compiling a guest list and sending out invitations are pretty important. Depending on whether you want to host your party at home or in an external venue, you can scale the numbers up or down. Regardless of how many people you ask, make sure you give them enough notice – in case they need to make arrangements, or in case putting together that Power Ranger costume takes a little longer than they expected. For a more comprehensive look at these considerations, check out our articles on “Top Tips for Planning a Birthday Party” and “How to Plan a Party 101.”
Decade-nt Decorations: Taking Your Venue Back to the ’90s
The 1990s were a quirky decade, so we encourage you to be equally experimental with your party décor. For example, alongside the conventional banners and balloons, why not litter the venue with props and any ’90s memorabilia you can lay your hands on? Think Pogs, Troll dolls, Polly Pockets, or that crazed Furby from the attic! In terms of a color scheme, neon colors and graffiti art would help you to capture that colorful, punky vibe, and hang up posters of some ’90s icons to finish things off – think Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003) or that Pulp Fiction (1994) print everyone had in college.
From Grunge to Pop: Creating Your ’90s Playlist
Of course, we can guess why you decided to host a party at all – your loneliness was killing you, right? Well, don’t lose your mind! From the grunge bands that began the decade to the upbeat boy and girl groups that ended it, the 1990s is almost synonymous with hip-hop, rock, and pop music. To recapture the eclectic mood of that era, dig out your old CD collection and do a tour of the classics: Fatboy Slim, Nirvana, Salt-N-Pepa, the Spice Girls. You could even host an impromptu karaoke session and burst into the chorus of “My Heart Will Go On” or “I Will Always Love You.”
The Funkiest of Fashion: Rocking ’90s Party Attire
When it comes to music, the 1990s were loud – but the same can be said for its fashion trends. How about modeling your party wear on The Fresh Prince of Bel Air (1990-1996), and sporting a neon-colored fanny pack, high-waisted mom jeans, or those infamous one-strap overalls? Remind your guests that a baggy ’90s wardrobe and vibrant color palette is required with a line in your invitations about the dress code. Some other cool accessories you could reference are the Vans shoes beloved of street skaters, Men in Black-style sunglasses, and our personalized denim jackets.
Snack Attack: Dishing Up Food and Drinks from the ’90s
In line with the tie-dye t-shirts and multicolored Tamagotchis, the 1990s were also the heyday of brightly colored candy and snacks, too. To refresh your guests – and take them on a trip down memory lane – serve up childhood favorites like Capri Sun, Pepsi, and Kool-Aid. For finger food, lay out a spread of cookies, pretzels, pizza rolls, and pigs-in-blankets. And to top it all off, encourage everyone to drop by a snack platter full of Doritos, Dunkaroos, and Oreo cookies. It might not be the most nourishing buffet, but hey, tonight we’re gonna party like it’s 1999.
Be Kind, Rewind: Host A ’90s Movie Marathon
VHS might be a thing of the past, and there may only be one Blockbuster Video left in the U.S., but that doesn’t mean you can’t have an ’90s movie marathon. Put together a watchlist composed solely of movies like Beauty and the Beast (1992), Toy Story (1995), and Space Jam (1996). To give your movie night an analog feel, rely on DVDs, Blu-rays, or 4K UHDs, which you won’t have to travel to Bend, Oregon to rent. Then everyone in attendance can chant their favorite lines together: “Keep the change, ya filthy animal!” always goes down a treat.
Here We Go! Organize a ’90s-Only Retro Game Night
If you weren’t devouring junk food or recording episodes of Dawson’s Creek (1998-2003) in the 1990s, then you were probably playing GoldenEye 007 (1997) or struggling to clear Stormy Ascent in Crash Bandicoot (1996). For one night only, put the console wars aside – SNES, Genesis, we’re all friends here! – and dig out some Sony, SEGA, and Nintendo classics. You don’t need to rig up a CRT, as between the Switch, PS4/PS5 and Mini consoles, there are more ways to play retro games these days than ever before! Play and be amazed at how your muscle memory kicks in for Street Fighter II: Turbo (1992)!
Our Final Answer: Convene A ‘90s-Themed Quiz Night
Just before the 1990s ended, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (1999–present) made its U.S. debut, and that fact has given us an idea. How about testing the knowledge of the other thirtysomethings in attendance with a ‘90s-themed quiz night? You could base the questions around something that a lot of people are familiar with, like FRIENDS or The Simpsons, or present them with a mix of topics and types of questions. If you don’t feel up to composing the questions yourself, just search for them online! And as you can tell from this article, our own memories of the 1990s are quite vivid (the Backstreet Boys are one of our specialist subjects).
As you can tell from this article, our own memories of the 1990s are quite vivid (the Backstreet Boys are one of our specialist subjects). We’d love to hear more about your own plans for a ‘90s-themed party, though, or any other kind of party – we’re still brainstorming those party planning articles, after all. Stay tuned for the next entry in our ‘Party Theme’ series, and if you simply can’t wait for that, head to our list of “36 Birthday Party Ideas for Kids, Teens & Adults”!
Eoin is a Content Specialist at Zazzle in Cork. He’s recently bought a house with his fiancée, and thus most of his time these days is spent trying to keep the walls from caving in and the wolves from the door. Still, he’s always open to book, game, and movie recommendations, so if you have some, let him know: he’ll add them to a very, very long list.
