With many people commenting on the article on Facebook, arguing about what's right and wrong with what is being said; I decided to read it with an open mind and see what all the fuss was about.
After finishing it I was in shock and steaming up inside with the judging, narrow minded statements that the journalist had made throughout the article.
Firstly, as the sub heading of the article, the journalist asks a silly question.
"What exactly is festival fashion?". Well as a FASHION journalist for a highly recognised newspaper, I would have thought that she would have known what one of the most consistent and popular summer trends consists of. Does she not follow trend reports? I thought that a writer of fashion would be aware that looking good and wearing certain clothes for festivals has now become a hugely followed part of female fashion. That's what a trend is - a particular style direction that is crazed by a large number of people for a certain period of time. Festival fashion IS now a trend, whether you want to be apart of it or not.
Secondly, she states what, in 'her world' festival fashion is.
"A plastic rubbish bag fashioned into a poncho"
"...absolutely no clothes because you lost your tent on the friday night and your clothes shortly after that.."
"This, clearly, is how a fashion attendee knows they have had a good weekend"
Ha, I certainly know that if I lost my clothes at a festival, I would be absolutely mortified and that would make it possibly the worst weekend. Not the best.
Here her narrow minded thoughts take centre stage as it's obvious that out of the thousands and thousands of people that attend festivals every year, not all of them have the same priorities as the ones that make up this journalists own 'festival world'.
Mine certainly aren't the same as hers that's for sure. I would say my appearance is just as much of a priority as to having the best time dancing to music with friends and getting really really drunk.
"...they allow even the most obnoxious of us to offer it all up to the weather gods, get disgusting and lose that self-consciousness that plagues us the rest of the time." This is what is said by the journalist further down the article. Yes I agree that this is what some people think is a major part of the fun of a festival - getting caked in mud and not giving a fuck about what you look like...But, what if all the celebrities, particularly fashion role models were to dress disgustingly or similar to what the journalist claims to have worn one time at Glastonbury?
Firstly, as the sub heading of the article, the journalist asks a silly question.
"What exactly is festival fashion?". Well as a FASHION journalist for a highly recognised newspaper, I would have thought that she would have known what one of the most consistent and popular summer trends consists of. Does she not follow trend reports? I thought that a writer of fashion would be aware that looking good and wearing certain clothes for festivals has now become a hugely followed part of female fashion. That's what a trend is - a particular style direction that is crazed by a large number of people for a certain period of time. Festival fashion IS now a trend, whether you want to be apart of it or not.
Secondly, she states what, in 'her world' festival fashion is.
"A plastic rubbish bag fashioned into a poncho"
"...absolutely no clothes because you lost your tent on the friday night and your clothes shortly after that.."
"This, clearly, is how a fashion attendee knows they have had a good weekend"
Ha, I certainly know that if I lost my clothes at a festival, I would be absolutely mortified and that would make it possibly the worst weekend. Not the best.
Here her narrow minded thoughts take centre stage as it's obvious that out of the thousands and thousands of people that attend festivals every year, not all of them have the same priorities as the ones that make up this journalists own 'festival world'.
Mine certainly aren't the same as hers that's for sure. I would say my appearance is just as much of a priority as to having the best time dancing to music with friends and getting really really drunk.
Everyone's different, but unfortunately, the journalist doesn't seem to recognise that.
I also find it very very strange that again, a FASHION journalist is slating a very popular fashion trend. And is also quite happy to disrespect and pin point people within the fashion industry, that are actually 1000000x more successful than her. Alllll because she doesn't agree with the idea of looking good at a festival.
For example, Poppy Delevingne and Kate Bosworth are mentioned numerous times throughout the article.
"..endless boring photos of people such as Kate Bosworth and Poppy Delevingne, who, as far as I can tell, are famous purely for being photographed at music festivals, looking improbably glamorous."
"..endless boring photos of people such as Kate Bosworth and Poppy Delevingne, who, as far as I can tell, are famous purely for being photographed at music festivals, looking improbably glamorous."
....Hmmm I'm pretty sure Kate Bosworth is a very successful actress, and Poppy Delevingne is a fashion icon, model and significant part of todays fashion industry!
Why is she so concerned about these people in particular? When, similarly to what I've stated before, many many thousands of festival attendees ALSO dress glamorously.
Kate Moss is even mentioned....are you kidding me...She is using Kate Moss as an example of her critical fashion thoughts. I'm not sucking up to Kate Moss but you seriously have to be one silly sausage to have the gut to take the piss out of one of the most influential British people in fashion. Like c'mon!
Despite my strong dislike towards the points this journalist is trying to put across to us, I do empathise with her confused comments towards Coachella.
If you don't know, Coachella is one of America's most recognised festivals that happens every year in California. It's renowned for it's pool of celebrity festival goers, huge music line up and an atmosphere that looks to be extremely clean, happy and sober.
Something a lot of British festival goers just aren't used to. Hence why I see where she is coming from when she accuses it as being "the whitest event in American history this side of the 1960's".
HOWEVER as an older woman, she is clearly unaware that a lot of festivals nowadays are very similar to Coachella. Yes, still a music festival but ones that incorporate a lot more glamour and a lot less mud, dirty clothes and poor hygiene.
A lot of British festivals have taken this approach, but are clearly unknown to this writer as they appeal to the younger generation and not the middle-aged. Day festivals such as LoveBox in London, Love Saves The Day in Bristol and We R Fest in Essex are renowned for the attendees to dress to impress and pick out the best from their summer wardrobe.
Even the bigger festivals that hold a lot more variety are bombarded by people that want to look good. Bestival, Reading and Glastonbury are all examples.
...'wellies printed with stars, corduroy trousers at least two sizes too big, a sweatshirt with a map of Asia on the front and a man's ski jacket'.
With such a big media front that festivals have nowadays, imagine the negative coverage people like Kate and Poppy would have to deal with if they were seen to be wearing clothing such as that.
I think it's safer to avoid the hassle of people judging you for looking a state, and to just look good instead.
I'm just going to comment on one last point, even though this article is a lot longer. This next point though is probably the most narrow minded and to me, the most frustrating to read.
(I will put the link to the article underneath so you can take a read and hopefully feel the same as I do towards it.)
Anyway, in the second to last paragraph of the article, the writer intolerantly questions whether people who like to plan their festival outfits or the people who just put effort into their appearance at a festival actually have fun.......ERMMMM YES. THAT'S WHY WE GO. TO HAVE FUN.
"No one has fun when they are fussing over how they look, or if they’re too scared of getting messy to relax. I love fashion and I love festivals but I do not understand people who go to festivals with specific looks planned. Do these people have fun? Because they don’t look like they’re having fun. They look like they’re thinking about how to look as hot as possible on Instagram, and that, to me, is completely anathema to the festival experience."
Preeeetty sure that if you were to ask the thousands of people who pre-planned their festival outfits if they were having fun, they would say yes. How blinkered of her to label the people who dress up for festivals as lacking enjoyment and in some words 'boring'. I don't think she knows how ridiculous she sounds when she says that people who take pride over their festival outfits are not having fun. Is she a mind reader? A festival expert? I'm not sure if going to Glastonbury a few times in the 90's to watch Travis quite makes her the festival guru she puts herself forward as.
It winds me up how an older, bitter-opinionated person thinks that her way of enjoying a festival is the same as everyone else who goes to festivals. Yes, we get the fact she spent her festival days in shit stained, mismatching clothes. But a tonne of people are not like that.
I think someone needs to wake up and realise that 'festival fashion' isn't a way of avoiding fun at festivals. It's a way of standing out and feeling confident...Besides, Fashion and Music go hand in hand. Therefore, I see absolutely nothing wrong with having the freedom to treat a music festival like an al fresco fashion show.
Up Yours Hadley Freeman.
Link to article - CLICK HERE
Link to article - CLICK HERE
Below are a few photo's from my festival experiences over the past few years. I may not be looking as clean and sophisticated as the models at Coachella but yes I did put effort into my outfits AND I had the best time. So hard to believe?
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