# It's 2016. This isn't a zombie thread. Would you attend a toga party? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 4, 2016, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710 "2016-08-04T03:27:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/1 "2016-08-04T03:27:16Z")
In a couple of weeks I’m invited to a toga party for a 50th birthday party. It’s for a casual acquaintance, but it’s within walking distance and … well what the hell? I know him well enough that he would feel a bit slighted if I didn’t attend. I’m separated from my wife (as some of you know) and we’re going through a kinda messy divorce process right now with division of assets, etc. so, it could be fun and cathartic, but I fucking hate dressing up. I even mentioned as much in a few Halloween posts in the past. Awe shit, just typing this I know what the answer should be. But how do you attend a toga party without feeling, and looking like a complete dweeb? I’m going to wear a t-shirt and shorts underneath, of course, but I’m dreading this. Why not just have a normal fucking party? What kind of sheet do I buy and what do I do with it? Angst. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/2 "2016-08-04T03:29:55Z")
Would I attend a toga party? That depends on if it is a party I would attend anyway. If I would go if it was a normal party, I would have no problem going in a toga. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/3 "2016-08-04T03:33:55Z")
I voted “Probably not.” I’m not much on parties these days, but there might be very specific conditions in which I said yes, but highly unlikely. In my roaring 20s, I would’ve said, “Yes, why not?” In my 30s, I would’ve said “Maybe.” In another 10 years, it’ll be a “Hell no.” Probably in 20, I’ll be back around to “Yes.” ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/4 "2016-08-04T03:40:19Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > What kind of sheet do I buy and what do I do with it? Angst. Take it from me\*, a sheet’s not a great idea for a toga. If you’re going to buy something, go to Jo-Anns or ideally some place like SR Harris that sells fabric real cheap and get 4.5 - 5 yards worth of fabric. You can get it for a few dollars a yard and it will not be as much of a pain in the ass as a sheet. Then watch as many youtube videos on making a toga as you like. \*theater major, we had toga parties all the time in college. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/5 "2016-08-04T03:43:35Z")
Would I go to a toga party? Sure, but only if I get to hook up with the dean’s wife. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/6 "2016-08-04T03:52:13Z")
You could dress up as a horse… ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/7 "2016-08-04T04:32:29Z")
Depends on how drunken the partygoers are likely to get. Some mild alcohol use, a little beer, a little wine, maybe some cocktails… Sure, let’s have fun. (I don’t drink, but I don’t mind being around people who do…in moderation.) Frat-boy drinking orgy with vomiting? Not in the slightest bit interested. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/8 "2016-08-04T04:39:23Z")
What **snfaulkner** said. If I’d go to it in casual attire, I’d throw on a toga. Just look at it as a themed Halloween party. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/9 "2016-08-04T04:46:39Z")
Toga! Toga! ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/10 "2016-08-04T05:04:57Z")
Of course I’d go. That sounds fun, especially considering the sedate affairs most of the folks I know have. And take pictures! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/11 "2016-08-04T08:11:37Z")
Count me in. I’d wear a tank top instead of a t-shirt, though, so as not to interfere with the effect. And plenty of deodorant. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/12 "2016-08-04T08:34:01Z")
Of course I’d go. At 50, the party is more likely to be a symposium than an orgy. Visit the local fancy dress shop and hire a proper toga. And you want a tunic beneath it, not a t shirt. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/13 "2016-08-04T12:09:47Z")
I would love it if someone invited me to a toga party (provided, as \*\*snfaulkner \*\*said, it was something I’d go to anyway). I realize it’s hard for someone who doesn’t enjoy dressing up to “just go along and enjoy it” but believe me, no one’s going to be looking at you , or at least not any more than they’re looking at all the other toga clad peeps. They will probably give the side eye if you don’t dress up or if you put in so little effort as to show that you’re not into it. I agree that you should opt for a few yards of fabric as opposed to a sheet. Maybe you can find some with hockey players on it or something. ---
**Author:** ![leftfield6](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leftfield6/32/18780_2.png) [@leftfield6](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leftfield6)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/14 "2016-08-04T12:13:30Z")
Ah, toga party memories. When I was about 25, I had the best one-nighter of my life with a girl named Jeanie after a toga party. Uh, yeah, I would go. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/15 "2016-08-04T12:17:53Z")
I’d show up dressed as a mechanical pencil. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/16 "2016-08-04T14:22:57Z")
If I were to go, I think I’d try for something a little classier than a wrapped bedsheet. Looking in Google, various costume shops have Roman tunics available for rent. But even in college, I was never the toga-party sort so I’d probably not go. ---
**Author:** ![Azeotrope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/0ea827/32.png) [@Azeotrope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Azeotrope)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/17 "2016-08-04T14:23:42Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > But how do you attend a toga party without feeling, and looking like a complete dweeb? You can’t. But everyone else at the party will have their dweeb on, so you’ll just be a dweeb in a sea of dweebs, whereas not wearing a toga will just make you look like an even bigger dweeb, of a sort that sticks out like a sore [del]dweeb[/del] thumb. Embrace the dweebery and dweeb out. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Waltzes\_with\_Cacti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90ced4/32.png) [@Waltzes\_with\_Cacti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waltzes_with_Cacti)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/18 "2016-08-04T16:51:42Z")
**Leaffan** , here ya go. Dozens of toga costumes, most of 'em budget-friendly. [https://www.google.com/search?q=toga+costume&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi2u5i4m6jOAhUENiYKHQwDCacQsAQIoAE&biw=1224&bih=683](https://www.google.com/search?q=toga+costume&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi2u5i4m6jOAhUENiYKHQwDCacQsAQIoAE&biw=1224&bih=683) ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/19 "2016-08-04T18:54:37Z")
Compared to some of the “parties” I’ve attended, a toga seems like formal wear. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2016, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710/20 "2016-08-04T19:11:34Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > You could dress up as a horse… There were blanks in that gun! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-2016-this-isnt-a-zombie-thread-would-you-attend-a-toga-party/761710.md?page=2)