What To Wear To A 90s Party

This holiday season instead of hosting an Ugly Sweater Party (and honestly, that is so old), throw a 90s party instead. Raid your Mom’s closet, go shopping at Claire’s, or just embrace the 90s reboot that’s currently on trend. Break out N-Sync and the Spice Girls and a few looks for 90s party inspiration.

The Grunge Look

Ripped jeans, flannel shirts, and a t-shirt from a band no one’s heard of. It’s not hipsters, and the Grunge look wasn’t worn ironically in the 1990s. In fact, the fashion came into vogue in response to the glam, over the top 80s styles. You can assemble a grunge look yourself with some vintage jeans — make sure they’re baggy. You can even design your own “alternative” t-shirt, with nihilistic sayings or an Anarchy symbol. Raid a good vintage store for some Doc Martens (unless you want to pay $100 for a new pair) or combat boots. For extra authenticity, write “RIOT GRRL” on your knuckles, prison-tat style.

Clueless and fabulous

Each decade has their defining movie. For the 1980s, it was The Breakfast Club. The 2000s had Mean Girls. Clueless, and its loveable fashionista/ ditz Cher was the movie of the 1990s. If ripped jeans and black lipstick aren’t your jam, find a plaid mini-dress with a matching blazer, high heels, and a designer bag. Don’t forget your pager — As if!

Your baby sister’s clothes

Maybe not really. If you weren’t wearing your dad’s flannel shirts and boyfriend’s jeans, maybe you were wearing your little sister’s t-shirts or buying babydoll dresses and tees at Rue 21 or Maurice’s. Pair your babydoll dress with Doc Martens or square-heeled Mary Janes. Find above-the-knee stockings, or thigh-highs to wear with the dress. Bonus if you tie a flannel around your waist. If it’s too cold for a dress, wear a midriff-exposing baby doll tee and mid-rise jeans. Don’t forget a belly ring. Hip huggers weren’t worn for a few more years, so your jeans won’t be “standing room only.”

Rave babe

Raves and techno music (also called “House” if you were into European beats) were the best way to spend a Saturday night — or any night; invites were handed out on flyers with the venue sometimes not being revealed until the day of. Wide-leg, stovepipe jeans and tiny, tight tops in fun fabrics — think velvet and tie-dye were the thing, along with pacifiers and glow sticks. Don’t forget a choker — one with a mushroom or five-leaved plant leaf.

The Hair

If you can find small butterfly clips, braid your hair in tiny cornrows that stop at the crown, and secure with a tiny clip. Or, twist your hair into several tiny buns, with spiky ends. If you’re going for a grunge look, find some wash-out black dye (read the label to make sure it’s not even semi-permanent, unless you have a Goth Party to go to in the next month) and let your hair hang limp. You can also find some hair wax and twist your strands into faux-dreadlocks — bonus that if you use a lot your hair looks authentically greasy.