Look Fabulous At Festivals

Festival weather works in extremes. From the desert heat of Coachella to the oft-flooded plains of Glastonbury, the best festivals often produce the most uncomfortable conditions. However, if you’re into music, you probably don’t bathe anyway.  (ouch bit hard on the music guys – Ed)

Before I discuss clothes, a word to the wise: A large bag and high heels actually spells AMATEUR when seen from a distance, so it is inadvisable to come equipped with those two things.

Kate Moss, according to my research, made wellies ubiquitous festival wear, though I find this doubtful. Anyone walking around in the mud and rain would probably come to the conclusion that willies are the most utilitarian form of footwear available in such conditions.  Hunter is the most obvious brand to go for, though on the more expensive side. The Original Short style (£50 at www.asos.com) by Hunter is especially flattering on guys, keeping slippage to a minimum while lengthening the legs.

I snapped up a pair of these Liberty for Target wellies during my volcano-extended stay in Ohio last month for a cool $29.99. Liberty is selling them on their website for £35! My friends, this is robbery! However such extortion is sometimes worth it. The dainty floral print is a perfect foil to the wellingtons’ rugged functionality.

Buy up some cheap £9.95 anoraks at Muji (www.muji.eu) – their ‘freecut raincoats’ are ingeniously designed with dotted lines along which you cup the hem and cuffs for DIY ‘made to measure’ rainwear and come in black and white with carrying cases.

Were I able to afford to go to any festival at all this summer, I would probably want to dress comfortably. There’s a reason celebrities are always pictured in loose clothes (unless you are Kate Moss and wear PVC trousers...) with layers that can be adjusted for the temperature. For girls, a tank top with a shirred waist skirt (£30 at American Apparel),  or a loose shirt dress (£95 by Rennes Handmade, http://rennes.bigcartel.com) with shorts (APC Madras, £59 at Urban Outfitters) would pair perfectly.

For men, shorts (£29.99 at Uniqlo) and dark coloured trousers are a safe bet for camouflaging mud and grass stains.  Jeans are the most durable choice (if they are good enough for gold miners, they are good enough for festival goers): a pair of dark wash denim trousers (£36 at Topman) roll up over some Clark’s desert boots (£69 at endclothing.co.uk) would look both rugged and fashionable, especially coupled with a graphic tee (Blood is the New Black, £32 at Urban Outfitters)or one of Uniqlo’s ‘quick dry’ shirts.

 

On the accommodation front, H&M have launched their third annual Fashion Against AIDS Campaign inspired in part by summer festivals. Designed by Anne-Sofie Johansson (no relation!),  the sleeping bags (£12.99) and tent (£7.99)are among some of the best pieces in this worthy collection.

Jus to add to there niceness 25% of the sales proceeds will go to youth HIV/AIDS awareness projects.

Also: blotting paper! Whether you are male or female, you’re going to get greasy and blotting paper soaks up all the compounded grime you’ve been collecting throughout the day. It is incredibly satisfying to wipe all the sludge off of your face and watch a delicate periwinkle paper turn a lurid wet royal blue. Clean and Clear Oil Control will do the job, but Palladio Rice Paper Tissues are much more absorbent and more natural (Burt’s Bees used to make really good ones, but I can’t find them anywhere, and I’ve digressed too much on the finer points of what is essentially toilet roll for your face

To be perfectly fair, what you wear to a festival really shouldn’t matter, but music, and all the subculture politics it summons, tends to bring out the ugly scenester in almost everybody. There will be girls who look more effortless and carelessly amazing than you, guys who have better mud hair than you, and people of all sexes who wear dirt better than you do. Oh well!!