The 1950s was an iconic decade for fashion, music, and culture, but this era was perhaps most remembered for the long nights of entertainment known as the cocktail party. Whether attended by invited guests or thrown spontaneously, the atmosphere of these gatherings was filled with jazz, creative concoctions, and, of course, nostalgia. If you’re looking for a way to turn back the clock this weekend, why not host a 1950s inspired cocktail party for your friends and family?

In this article, we’ll provide tips on invitations, music, décor, and recipes to help ensure your party is a truly authentic experience. So, regardless of your age, let’s get ready to party like it’s the 50s!

1950s vintage photo of 1950s cocktail party featuring stylish women standing around the punch bowl and food in 1950s cocktail party dresses

Updated Feb 2024

Note: This post is an extension of “The Mini Guide to Hosting the Ultimate 1950’s Themed Party“. Inside this post, I talked about invites,decor, music, clothing and food, the essentials for a successful party. This article jumps into deeper into the Cocktail party side.

NOTE: For ideas on hosting a Virtual Cocktail Party, please scroll to the end.


Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Etsy , eBayUnique VintageRocknRomance Vintage Collectif are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. 

NOTE: If you click on any of the items featured below and they are not available, don’t fret! Hit the search button and see what else is on the websites.


How to Host a 1950’s Cocktail/Lounge Party

1960 Vintage Photo: A cocktail party At The Imperial Hotel, Tokyo, Japan, March 13, 1961
A cocktail party At The Imperial Hotel, Tokyo, Japan, March 13, 1961

Source: Wikipedia

Party Invitations:

No email for this party, go really retro and send your invites via the post office (you can still send via email). The mini guide post has ideas on where/ how to get your invites created, so stop in there after your done here (Note: Lots of great ideas for that VIRTUAL Cocktail Party invites & how to host a virtual vintage party at the mini guide link post above).

1944 Vintage photo of women working in a post office sorting mail.

Source: Vintage Everyday

Example of an invite that can be personalized and on sale on Etsy.

retro cocktail invite

Music:

I think that music is the most important part of any theme party. It truly makes or breaks it. So if you can only do a couple of things to make this theme come to life, music should be number one on your list. But what kind of music should you play? Well simple….Lounge Music.

Lounge Music-is a type of easy listening music popular in the 1950s and 1960s. It may be meant to evoke in the listeners the feeling of being in a place, usually with a tranquil theme, such as a jungle, an island paradise or outer space (source). There is also the ‘Swinging music of the 30’s & 40’s’ with an emphasis on the vocalist that is considered part of this genre of music. The Rat Pack, Louis Prima, Bobby Darin, Wayne Newton are just examples of the artists that can be on constant rotation on your record player (or Cd).

OH and don’t forget the Brazilian music style of the Bossa Nova which was popularized in the 1950’s & 60’s as well.

Here are some YouTube vintage cocktail party mixes to get you started.

Cocktail Party Food:

Appetizers for a cocktail party are easy breezy but you want them to be in the 1950’s style so make sure you check out my post “Party Foods of the 1950’s” & “1950s Dessert Ideas For Your Next Party” for ideas and inspiration.

Cocktail Party Cookbook

Source: Attic Paper

Vintage Drinks:

1959 Illustrated Liquor Ad, Playboy, Barcardi Puerto Rican Rum, Southern Playboys & The Bacardi Party

Source: Flickr

Drink Ideas

(Note: many more on the internet -Use the Search Term “1950’s Cocktail Recipes”).

Here is a helpful article from Liquor.com to get you started: 24 Classic Cocktails You Should Know How to Make

1950s cocktail drinks image -Vintage Cocktail Inspiration for your next 1950s / 1960s party
  • Manhattan
  • Gin & Tonic
  • Champagne
  • Gin Fizz
  • Whisky Sour
  • Tom Collins
  • White & Black Russian
  • Bloody Mary/ Caesar
  • Punch
  • Sidecar
  • (Note: This is not a complete list, just some ideas!)
1950s Party Punches Ideas for your next 1950s Cocktail Party / 1960s Cocktail Party
Source: Chronically Vintage- + Some Party Punch Ideas

Drink Accessories:

Lastly, make sure you bar is stacked with items like swizzle sticks, garnishes and if possible vintage glassware like lowball and coupe glasses. Here some great examples of glassware you can pickup at any vintage store that tends to stock 50’s & 60’s items (or online on websites like ETSY).

1950s Cocktail Glasses

Source: Etsy

1950s Coupe glasses perfect for 1950s and 1960s parties.

Source: Etsy

Don’t forget the Swizzle Sticks for the drinks! Learn about the history of Swizzle Sticks HERE.

Vintage Swizzle Sticks, Barware Vintage Advertising

Source: Etsy

1950s cocktail drink image

Cocktail Party Decor:

First up, your living room is the perfect place for the party. Set up a make shift cocktail bar area, turn the lights down low (or just decrease the lights) and you are on your way to setting the mode. Do you have a record player or know someone who does? Add it to the room and if it works and you have the records, play your lounge music from there.

Remember that vintage glassware I mentioned above? Make sure they are on display or if you have enough, have your guests actually use them.

1950s party photo featuring a group of people at a house party in 1950s clothing eating and drinking together.

The Cocktail Party Dress Code (1950s Fashions):

Really encourage guests to dress-up, because if everyone does then you have already boosted your “decor” by 10 fold. 1950s party/nice dresses, suits for men, vintage apron for the hostess. Cocktail parties were fancy dress-up affairs so showing up in jeans is not going to work.


Shopping: I have created a collection of vintage 1950s cocktail fashions on ETSY available for sale (updated monthly). Take a look HERE.

Note: For any items on Etsy or other sites if the outfit no longer exists take a look around the website and see what other options you can find. I gurantee that you will find what you are looking for!


Three elegant young ladies enjoy the nibbles on offer at a cocktail party, circa 1955. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Source: Getty Images

About the below photo: Red (right) was the bell captain at the Sands Hotel and Casino back in the 1950’s and 60’s. This was taken at his Christmas Party around 1958. See how the 2 men are dressed in nice suits. Perfect Cocktail Party attire.

1958 Cocktail Party -) was the bell captain at the Sands Hotel and Casino back in the 1950's and 60's. This was taken at his Christmas Party around 1958. See how the 2 men are dressed in nice suits. Perfect Cocktail Party attire.
1950s Evening Dress with Draped Neckline vintage sewing pattern

1950s chiffon floral party cocktail dress.

Vintage 50s Dress Chiffon Floral Party Cocktail

Source: Etsy

A fantastic 1950s dress made from soft cotton with lurex thread running through it, cut into a chevron pattern.

Vintage 1950s zip front chevron dress

Source: Etsy

Are you looking for modern fabrics and modern sizes? Then check out the following vintage reproduction clothing websites….

RocknRomance

1940s & 1950s Vintage Style Clothing

Unique Vintage

1950s Style Dresses from Unique Vintage-Cocktail dresses for a 1950s / 1960s Party

Collectif

Collectif 1950s Style Dresses / Vintage Reproduction Clothing.

And there is your 1950’s Cocktail/Lounge Party theme. Your guests will have a blast, you will enjoy being able to have time to actually chat with them and the clean up is pretty simple. Just remember to ensure that your guests don’t drink and drive at the end of the night (this is not the REAL 1950s anymore).

1950s cocktail party kodachrome slide vintage photo

Source: Etsy

HOW TO HOST A VIRTUAL PARTY

Host an online party & invite your friends to join in on the fun.

There are many tools you can go about to do this. You can use Zoom, Facebook Messenger Video Chat, Skype or Facetime on your iPhone (only works if everyone has iPhones). My preference as of late has been Facebook but that is only because all my friends are on there. I Skype with my parents.

Virtual 1950s/60s Cocktail Party: Ask everyone to dress up in their best cocktail outfits and make themselves a drink (once again boozy or not). Put on some lounge music (as stated above) and dim the lights to create some ambiance. Have some finger foods on hand while chatting with guests, OR have a fondue cocktail party . If any of your friends have fondue pots, ask them to fire it up and join in on the fun (like I did with my friends below).

I also played some games, like Name that Tune and guess the 1950s slang. Everyone loved it!

Next up! Send out a virtual invite (ecard). I mentioned some above but here is a reminder of what you can use:

Party Tip: Go with small groups, have multiple parties! One at 7pm, One at 9pm. Too many people on a call makes it’s hard to chat with others, so break up the parties. It’s your party do what you want!

Further Reading:

Food:

Party Games, Party Decor, 1950s Music, 1950s Fashion & More

Liz