TL;DR
- Best overall: 1920s, black and gold, and a summer "tacky Christmas shirt" night. Guests can dress up from their own wardrobe, and all three look great in photos.
- Lowest effort: black and gold or all-white. You only change the dress code, the print design and a few decor touches.
- Theme the print, not just the room: a themed print design costs nothing extra on most corporate booth bookings and is the part of the theme guests take home.
- Melbourne reality check: December can be 35 degrees. Skip any theme that needs wool, fur or a full costume.
- Give six weeks' notice: announce the theme with the invite so guests can plan outfits without a last-minute costume-shop dash.
A theme does one useful job at a work Christmas party: it gives 200 people who sit on different floors something to talk about before the first drink. The wrong theme does the opposite, with half the room in costume and the other half feeling awkward about not making the effort.
We see a lot of themes from behind the camera. Every corporate booking gets a custom print design, so we’ve drawn up prints for 1920s nights, racing-season champagne parties, game days and plenty of black-and-gold galas. This guide rates 15 themes on three things we can judge better than most: how much effort they ask of guests, what they cost to pull off, and how they look in photos.
The quick comparison
| Theme | Guest effort | Cost to style | How it photographs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s / Great Gatsby | Medium | Medium | Excellent |
| Black and gold | Low | Low | Excellent |
| Tacky Christmas shirt | Low | Low | Great |
| Champagne and racing season | Medium | Medium | Excellent |
| All white | Low | Low | Great on dark backdrops |
| Game day | Low | Medium | Great when branded |
| Tropical Christmas | Low | Low | Great |
| Disco | Medium | Medium | Excellent |
| Casino night | Low | High | Good |
| Hollywood red carpet | Medium | Medium | Excellent |
| Masquerade | Medium | Low | Mixed |
| Y2K | Medium | Low | Great |
| Year-in-review | Low | Low | Great |
| White Christmas in summer | Low | Medium | Good |
| Long-table Italian | Low | Medium | Good |
1. 1920s / Great Gatsby
The most reliable theme we see. Most people can put together a 1920s outfit from their own wardrobe (a dark suit and braces, a fringed or beaded dress, a string of pearls), and the people who go all in with feathers and headpieces look fantastic in the booth.
Strips we designed for an Oaks Day party at Left Bank Melbourne with G.H. Mumm. The gold Art Deco frame does half the theming, so even guests who didn’t dress up still look on theme.
On camera: feather headbands and sequins catch the flash beautifully. A white or gold backdrop suits the look best. A black backdrop hides dark suits.
Make it easy: put a basket of feather headbands and strings of pearls by the booth for people who forgot.
2. Black and gold
The lowest-effort theme that still feels like an event. Guests wear black, add one gold accessory if they want to, and you’re done.
Our black backdrop with gold geometric lines, shown here at a wedding. It’s one of the standard backdrops included with a corporate booking.
On camera: elegant and consistent. Every photo looks like it came from the same event, which helps when the social team uses them later.
Make it easy: match the print design to the theme with black stock and gold type.
3. Tacky Christmas shirt (the Melbourne version of the ugly sweater)
A Christmas jumper at 30 degrees is a hard sell. Swap it for the loudest Christmas shirt guests can find: Santa prints, flamingos in tinsel, anything from the op shop.
On camera: bright patterns read brilliantly in photos, and the more ridiculous the shirt, the better the strip.
Make it easy: award a prize for the worst shirt, and judge it at the booth so you get the photo.
4. Champagne and racing season
Melbourne’s Spring Racing Carnival finishes in November, so many teams already own a fascinator or a good suit. Lean into it with a champagne bar, florals and a French-inspired print.
4x6 prints from a Melbourne Cup Day party at Left Bank Melbourne with G.H. Mumm. “Ma Chérie, Race With Me” carried the French champagne theme through to the print.
On camera: headpieces need a taller frame, so 4x6 prints work better than strips here. Groups lean in, so a wider shot helps.
Make it easy: a hat or fascinator is optional. A floral print and a pastel colour palette are enough.
5. All white
Everyone wears white, and the room does the rest. It’s simple, it looks expensive, and it suits a summer rooftop.
On camera: pair it with a black or dark backdrop so the outfits stand out. White on white washes out.
6. Game day
Pick a sport, a team or your own company “league”. Jerseys and team colours are the dress code. This works especially well for companies with a sports partnership.
“Shoot & Score” strips for a Canva event with Melbourne Victory. A great example of a sports theme done with formal wear: the theme lives in the name and the print, not the costumes.
On camera: team colours on the print tie the photos together, even when guests come in normal party clothes.
7. Tropical Christmas
Palm leaves, pineapples, a frozen cocktail and an outdoor venue. It’s what a Melbourne December actually feels like.
On camera: greenery and bright florals around the booth make a cheap, effective backdrop.
8. Disco
Sequins, flares and a mirror ball. It’s one of the easiest themes to dance to, which makes the DJ’s job easier.
On camera: sequins and metallics look excellent under flash. GIFs and boomerangs suit this theme better than stills.
9. Casino night
Hire gaming tables with fun money, and guests trade their winnings for raffle tickets. Dress code: black tie optional.
On camera: good, but the photos come from the tables more than the booth. A roaming content creator captures this theme better.
10. Hollywood red carpet
A step-and-repeat backdrop with your logo, a red carpet, and guests “arriving” in their best outfits.
On camera: excellent. A branded backdrop makes every photo look like a premiere.
11. Masquerade
Masks are cheap and inclusive. The catch: they hide faces, and faces are what make a good photo.
On camera: mixed. Encourage guests to lift masks for at least one frame of each strip.
12. Y2K
Butterfly clips, frosted tips, low-rise everything. Huge with younger teams, and your over-40s will remember it first-hand.
On camera: bright colours and a playful print design (think early-2000s fonts) make it great fun.
13. Year-in-review
Theme the night around your own year: the product launch, the office move, the in-jokes. Award categories, print design and table names all reference things only your team will get.
On camera: this is where the print design matters most. A line like “We survived the office move 2026” makes the strip feel made for them.
14. White Christmas in summer
Fake snow, white florals, silver accents and air-con turned up. It’s a little ironic, and that’s the point.
On camera: good, though fake snow ends up everywhere. Keep it away from the booth and the printer.
15. Long-table Italian
Not a costume theme at all: a long shared table, family-style food, red wine and string lights. It’s ideal for teams under 60 people who would rather talk than dress up.
On camera: best captured candidly by a content creator, with the booth as a drop-in on the side.
How to make any theme work
Theme the print. Every corporate booking we do includes a custom print design. It’s the cheapest way to make a theme feel complete, because guests who didn’t dress up still end up with an on-theme photo.
Give six weeks’ notice. Put the theme in the first invitation, not the reminder.
Make it optional. Say “dress up if you like” and mean it. Put a basket of props near the booth so people who didn’t dress up can still join in.
Think about the weather. Melbourne in December can be 35 degrees by afternoon. Skip themes that need heavy fabric, and avoid outdoor venues without shade for themes with formal wear.
Pick a backdrop that suits the outfits. Dark outfits disappear against a black backdrop, and white outfits wash out against white. Our standard backdrops (black, gold geometric, marble and white) cover most themes, and a branded backdrop is available as an add-on.
Planning a themed Christmas party?
We design the print, match the backdrop to your theme and run the booth on the night. See our Christmas party photo booth page for inclusions, or our 30 work Christmas party ideas for the rest of the night. When you’re ready, send us your date and theme and we’ll come back with a proposal within 24 hours.
Christmas party theme questions
What is a good Christmas party theme for work?
Black and gold, 1920s and a summer tacky Christmas shirt night work for most Melbourne workplaces. Guests can dress up from their own wardrobe, nobody has to buy a costume, and all three photograph well.
How do you make a Christmas party theme inclusive?
Make dressing up optional, give at least six weeks' notice, choose a theme people can do from their own wardrobe, and keep props near the photo booth so guests who didn't dress up can still join in. If your team is diverse, call it an end-of-year party.
Does a themed photo booth print cost extra?
Not with Ghost Booth Events. Every corporate booking includes a custom print design with your logo, event name and theme, proofed before the event. A printed branded backdrop is an optional add-on.
Which Christmas party themes suit hot Melbourne weather?
Tropical Christmas, all white, tacky Christmas shirts and long-table Italian all work in 30-plus degree heat. Avoid themes that need wool, fur or full costumes, especially at outdoor venues.
