The smart girl's guide to festival fashion

I've never really understood the whole festival trend, why do brands and magazines keep telling us to dress a certain way for a certain event? And why do girls completely change their style for the weekend? Surely you should just dress like yourself. Well, a messier, dirtier version. Whilst I'm an all round fan of festivals, the British 'festival look' is completely not my thing.

In the past 5 or 6 years I've been to Reading several times, Leeds and Download, I've never experienced a non camping festival so this post is in reference to the tent life, all day drinking, no showering type of weekends.

 

So while everyone's getting hyped because fringing is 'in' (again) and buying flowers for their hair and glitter for their faces, I'm giving you the smart girl's guide to festival dressing.

 

So what do I wear? Black. And lots of it. I always bring clothes with pockets and hoods and never bring anything that I would't like to lose. I don't own any wellies but my pink Timberlands have never let  me down and I'm looking forward to wearing my new Cat boots this year. I tend to avoid accessories completely because having a chain banging against your chest while your trying to dance in a sweaty arena tent is just annoying. I also prefer not to take a bag out so here's were the pockets (and bra storage) come into use. Think layers, think waterproof, think comfort.

From my personal experience, if you look good, you're not having a good enough time and if you're having the best time, the way you look is the last thing on your mind. The only thing that frustrates me more than the multitude of festival style magazine features is seeing people who actually try to pull it off. Girls, you're living in a field for a week, drop the vanity and enjoy yourselves.

 

 

The New Minimal

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Man, these inspiration posts are so much easier now I have Pinterest...almost too easy, I used to have to work to find images.

 

I hate to say it but I'm beginning to tire of the internet's saturation of monochrome and minimalism, unless it's high end luxury or with sportswear detailing (as shown in above images) it can become quite repetitive. I read an article on the rising costs of manufacturing, it related directly to sneakers but could be applied to any area of he fashion industry (trust me I'm going somewhere with this, it is slightly relevant just read on...). Anyway, factors including the rising cost of oil, increasing minimum wages in emerging economies and high cotton prices mean that retailers need to either raise their selling prices or simplify their designs to continue to achieve the same profit margins. Understand it yet? It could just be complete coincidence that simplistic, minimal styles have come into fashion just as brands are desperate to lower the cost prices of their products. But knowing the fashion industry, nothing happens by chance and we all fell for this one.

 

So, there's a clear differentiation between classy, minimal style and garments that are plain boring, a differentiation that many fail to see. My advice- keep the fabric quality high, play with textures and proportions and add in a bit of print or detailing to keep it interesting!

Depop Culture

Depop is an app for buying, selling or swapping fashion products in an eBay-meets-Instagram experience and gets my highest stamp of approval. The app facilitates interaction between users, creating a network for fashion minded individuals; finally a social media platform with a purpose beyond selfies and hate. With everyone from super-blogger Chiara Ferragni, to exclusive trainer sellers on board, the app encourages you to buy and sell in equal measures, increasing your status within the community.  It is fast, free, safe and links easily to Facebook and Twitter however there is an additional reason why I am such a fan.

 

 The ever-growing trend of disposable, fast-fashion has got me, amongst others, concerned. It is unethical, and far from stylish to be buying cheap, high-trend products only to disregard them when the retailers/media tell you this is no longer 'in' (Warning: this is a marketing ploy, the shorter the trends, the more often you buy, the more money they make). Of course, there are ways to combat this disposable mentality such as investing in classic, quality garments that will last seasons or recycling unwanted goods. Depop brings about a third option to reduce waste from unwanted clothing, with the added convenience factor that other online selling platforms fall short of. After all, clothes are meant to be worn and loved, not hidden at the back of a wardrobe or thrown out in the bin.

 

Reuse. Recycle. Resell

 

I am seriously looking forward to getting back home to my wardrobe and depopping all the stuff I don't wear/doesn't fit. You can follow me @takeovergirl, currently I've only got trainers up for sale that I was planning on eBaying but more shall be added next week including cheaper products.

 

What I am Selling:

 

 

Nike Jordan V- Grape White

Nike Blazer Office Exclusive- Black Suede

 

What I have bought:

 

 

Zara White Clutch bag: Stressed, But Well Dressed

(Painfully relevant to all final year fashion students, I'm sure)

Green Is Good

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm shocked at how diverse this blog is getting...and everyone thought I could only do black and Air Max.

 

When it comes to print I'm an all-or-nothing kind of girl and at the moment, 'all' comes in the form of tropical, leafy green, fruity and floral. They've been featuring across the full fashion spectrum from Moschino to 10 deep and from Zara to Obey in a mass of print-on-print co-ords. Finally a mainstream 'summer trend' that agrees with me.

 

 

Why I say no to the Huarache Platinum

 

 

So there I am at 8am this morning, obsessively checking the Size? website for the much hyped Huarache Platinum release. Thanks to their unexplained delay, this continues throughout the morning and into the afternoon, hitting refresh like my life depended on it and ignoring the exam revision I had planned to dedicate my day to. Its about 2pm before their actual release and I'm straight on it within a minute of the tweet. Typically there are no small sizes, so I panic buy a UK8, resale value has gotta be good.

 

There seems to be a love/hate divide when it comes to Huaraches as well as the reoccurring 'jumping on the bandwagon'  issue and backlash, ever present with sneakers. Personally, I like them. They're not my favourite style ever but the platinum white, just like the triple black release, is very nice shoe. Especially for women.

 

So anyway, lack of small sizes results in me tweeting Size? as well as ringing up stores across the country like some desperate woman whose life revolves around Nikes. Turns out they might get another delivery tomorrow, so I consider sacrificing another morning.

 

It's only then that I get a chance to chill and check my phone. My Instagram feed is full of white huaraches, and Twitter, and Facebook. Everyone seems to want them or have them, with a fair few hating on them but still, it's publicity nevertheless. By now, I've seen the damn trainers so many times they've lost their appeal. I mean, white is on trend this season blah blah but really, this is all a bit excessive.

 

It got me thinking how a hot product, combined with a saturation of social media marketing can convince a nation that they all must have these shoes. There's clearly a correlation between the hype surrounding a product and how much I want it. However, this seems to reach a point, of maximum hype, where I'm put off completely. This isn't an anti-conformist thing; I haven't just decided to dislike them because everyone else likes them. It's more about the love of fashion, and individuality, and not wasting time, effort and money on something that everyone has seen a million times.

 

There's no doubt that they're the best colour-way in a while, but I prefer to see trainers I've never come across before. Whether they're old, exclusive, kids, custom or just not hyped that much. For me, this is far more interesting and impressive than the latest fad to hit the sneaker world, that Instagram told you to buy.

 

All Red Everything

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Opening Ceremony x Adidas

T by Alexander Wang

Supreme Perforated Camp Cap

Nike Air Force 1- Valentines Day (Old)

Supreme quilted sweater

Supreme joggers

Nike Air Max 90 Hyperfuse- Independence Day

 

I've been feeling red recently, and if the above are feeling it too, it's gonna be a winner for sure. I left the Red October Yeezys out cause we've all seen photos of them about a million times. I think the tricky thing with the colour is what to wear it with; black and you risk looking like a 13 year old in that awkward emo phase and white seems to be a bit too sports team apparel. However, the answer is now clearer than ever... more red.

 

We managed to pick up some red mesh and faux leather on a fabric shopping trip to London, I got some ideas of what to do with it so lets see if we can make this work.

Adidas Global

 

 

 

 

After a long winter of black on black on black, I was getting slightly worried I would never appreciate colour again... until I saw this. Whilst the world has been going crazy over Adidas' collabo with Topshop, a different project has caught my eye, Adidas x The Farm Company. The collection offers retro sporty styles, matching separates, tropical prints and some of that Brazilian flavour Farm are known for. Plus hella hot models.

 

I can't help but wonder if this is the year Adidas will do the impossible (impossible is nothing, right) and overtake Nike as the leading sportswear brand worldwide. In terms of marketing Adidas have been killing it for 2014. Fashion bloggers are loving it and they seem to have the UK music scene under control, achieved through their extensive sponsorship of grime and hip hop artists. Furthermore, Adidas signed up Kanye West straight after he was dropped from Nike for an Adidas Yeezy collection. There's no doubt that there's extreme competition between these two super-brands, but as long as they're both at the top of their game, I'm happy!