I’m not generally an 80’s person, being a generation y’er and a true blue 90’s kid I’m not necessarily a fan of the curly and unruly hair, the beads and overlapping textures and all the grunge. Don’t get me wrong – I love a bit of grunge – but the 80’s just didn’t do it for me.

So “why am I doing an 1980’s costume post” you ask? Because I understand how important the 1980’s were for themed parties! Turning 30 soon? Celebrate the decade you were born with an 80’s theme? Simply love 80’s music? Go all out! And because I love a good themed party, it’s hard not to walk away from it as a post, so here goes nothing!

Material Girl Madonna

Madonna in the Material Girl years was the quintessential 80’s girl and defined her fashion and her style in this era, making her the perfect go to costume for any 1980’s themed party. Whether your channelling Madonna herself, or going for a classic Cyndi Lauper style instead, layers of lace, fishnets, pearls and neon colours are the way to go!

The Bad Boy in the Big Coat

John Cusack’s character Lloyd in Say Anything and Bender from The Breakfast Club – what do they have in common? 80’s stylin’ and a big ass trench coat! John Hughes’ Brat Pack were the biggest stars of the 1980’s so any character toting a boombox above their head, Hammer pants and a trench coat will do nicely for your next 80’s themed party.

1980’s Rockstar

If you want to be a bit more edgy for your 80’s themed party, there is nothing more edgier than the punk rock bands that shaped rock music today. You can don shiny pleathers and black and white face paint to be the band members of Kiss, or you can channel your inner Steel Panther and rock the night away with a mass of crimped hair, bandanas and ripped jeans. You could even do a homage to the icon legend Prince and dress in one of his awesome outfits! No matter the rockstar you choose, you will be bound to look rockin’!

Video Game Characters

It made up a lot of the 80’s, but it’s not all studded metal belts and bad hair. The 80’s was also the time of the video game and out spawned classics like Super Mario and Pacman. If you want to channel more of your inner gamer than your inner rocker you can dress up like Pacman, Mrs. Pacman or one of the colourful ghosts haunting Pacman on his quest, or even dress up as Mario, Luigi or Princess Peach. If you think this costume sounds hard, check out Sewcando for the DIY version!

Tom Cruise in Top Gun

One of the ultimate late 80’s movies, for a bit of suave sexiness to your party instead of glam, you can go as Tom Cruise’s character Maverick in Top Gun. Don some sexy aviator sunglasses, slink into a military style aviation suit and smoulder every chance you get!

So there you have it, some fun options for your next 1980’s themed party to attend. If you happen to have thrown your own 80’s themed party, or have some awesome ideas, please feel free to send them my way and leave them in the comments section below.