Headbands to Hunter Boots - 2012’s top festival fashion trends

Are you going to a festival this year? I bet you are. Have you thought about what you’re going to wear? Ah. Before you start panic-buying Hunter wellies and spending ridiculous amounts of money on over-priced band t-shirts, have a read of this.

Some of you may remember our festival fashion trends article from last year. This was one of our most read pieces ever - we’re back with 2012’s installment of what exactly you should be wearing at the festivals this summer!

The well-known faces on the festival scene, such as Alexa Chung, probably don’t have all their clothes for the weekend scrunched up in a back pack along with baby wipes and crisps. They step out looking fresh, crease-free and usually pretty fashionable in their expensive-but-casual ensemble which unfortunately for us normal folk, can be difficult to emulate. We can but try!

Firstly, the essentials. It’s going to rain, it’s a British weather habit that we are used to, but still complain about, and therefore wellies are top of the festival fashion list. Hunter wellies are good quality, come in a range of fun colours and are in the not-so-fun price range of £45-80 on their official website Check eBay for some bargains though. They’ll keep your feet dry and you can even wedge pocket money and a mobile phone inside them. If you don’t want to necessarily pay for the Hunter name, then places like Tesco and Asda sell wellies in a variety of patterns and colours and does the same job of preventing trench foot. 

A recent fashion phenomenon is the playsuit; it encapsulates your torso allowing your limbs to be free and gives them a rare chance to get a sun tan. H&M have got new stock of playsuits for the summer season that are a bargain at only £12.99. It’s essentially a whole outfit, which can be worn with a big cardigan or denim jacket for the cool evenings around a campfire, or dressed up with lots of accessories, such as copious amounts of bracelets or a weird and wonderful headband. Did you know that headbands now do more than keep your hair out of your face? They can be an addition to your outfit, colour co-ordinated, and essential in disguising how much your hair needs a wash after a weekend without a shower. ASOS have got a good range of ‘off the wall’ headgear that should get people talking.

For a less pricey look go for Pret a Portobello’s Elmstone Peacock Feather Crown (£30). A regular fixture at London’s Portobello Market, Elmstone creates beautiful works of art from feathers, lush velvets and vintage appliques and buttons. Make yourself a queen with this crown - which was even featured as one of Vogue’s top festival buys.

Or do you want to channel your inner hippy chick? There’s an array of pretty flowery headbands to help you conjure up that 60s vibe. Accessorize sells a Flower Crown Bando in green with little white and yellow flowers for £6. If that’s not your style, they have 43 other bandos to choose from - none of which will break the bank.

Dry shampoo is all the rage - but, any of the above hats or headbands will help tame locks that haven’t been washed for a few days!

Working our way down the body - scarves are another festival accessory staple. Alexia has scarves made of and with just about anything you could dream of - tie dyes, stripes, fringes, pom poms, jeweled beads, chiffon, silk, sequins, and even zippered pockets! They’re a bit expensive - ranging from £49 to £149, but take a look and you’ll be hooked! (Or head to your favorite high street shop for a more pocket-friendly look alike)

We all love abit of denim. But the tricky weather can mean soaked denim that takes a life time to dry, or traps the sunshine heat in a way that gives a less than pleasurable burning sensation. Never the less, try some denim shorts. Every vintage shop tend to sell the old Levi’s brand of denim shorts; high-waisted ones are great to tuck in a T-shirt and have deep pockets, handy for a mobile phone or

money to save taking a bag around the festival site. Denim shorts could be paired with some patterned tights, try Topshop for some bright and brilliant designs.

For guys, you may prefer less flowery wellies and the usual jeans and T-shirt combination, which is fine. Check out Topman for some fabulous printed sweatshirts that could be layered with a checkered shirt or teamed with some skinny jeans. You’ll look sharp, despite the lack of sleep and the elongated hangover.

Oh, and don’t forget sunglasses! It might surprise everyone and turn out to be a brilliant summer.

By Jennifer Jordan

No Glastonbury, so What’s the Alternative?

No Glastonbury, so What’s the Alternative? 

So as Glastonbury takes what some (particularly the local residents) would call a well earned break in 2012, others are looking at the summer calendar in sheer desperation at the prospect of missing their summer fix of that heady mix of the weird and wonderful in terms of the music and performance that the country’s biggest convergence provides. Well there is no point in staring at the website pages for the 2011 event and refreshing your browser every five minutes, the big event is not going to happen this year. It is time to plan what you can do instead. Whether your preference was for the John Peel Stage, The Acoustic Tent or the Dance Village stages (or all of the above) there is a bountiful summer selection of events which should go some way to filling the void during the months ahead.

So what are the alternatives? There is no doubt that there are plenty of promoters out there desperate to fill in the cataclysmic vacuum that the absence of the big festival leaves behind. But who will step up and provide the best combination of noise, camping and mud slides?

Here is a quick look at some of the preferences that are out there and being used to keep the entertainment junkies in check until the Glasto returns in 2013:

Bestival 

Bestival could prove to be the event that picks up most as a result of Glastonbury’s absence. The late summer/early autumn event on the Isle of White, which kicks off just after schools have gone back between Thursday 8th and Sunday 11th September plays host to some hot festival acts including Pendulum and Primal Scream. The event also boasts the world’s biggest fancy dress party with up to 40,000 expected to attend attired under the themes of Rock Stars, Pop Stars and Divas.

Reading & Leeds Festival

Perennial event, The Reading Festival, could also mop up some of the vagrant glasto goers form the summer streets during the final weekend (From Friday 26th to Sunday 28th) of August. The event has already filled its 87,000 capacity and is show casing some of the serious festival heavyweight acts including My Chemical Romance, The Strokes and Muse in and event which would serve to satisfy those who prefer the main stage of Glastonbury to the diversionary tents.

The Big Chill

The Big Chill at Eastnor Castle from Thursday the 4th to Sunday the 7th of August will give some outlet to those who enjoyed the mixture of dance and entertainment provided at the Glastonbury gig. In addition to playing host to some of the biggest names on the festival circuit including Kanye West and The Chemical Brothers the event has an extensive arts programme which promises and eclectic mix from the fields of film, comedy, dance and cabaret. And for those who are confident enough to give it a go the festival also plays host to the Skate Ramp, provided by GreenpeaceHeathensk8 and Third Foot. This is an eco-friendly and challenging way to burn off the excesses of the night before as well as a way of entertaining your mates before you head out to do it all again. Catering to ensure the whole family gets something from the event there is even a Boutique Babysitting ‘mini festival’ which will allow the little ones to play in their own music studio, and set up in their own wardrobe, production and stage areas.

V Festival

Another event which may well see its 90,000 capacity filled by those who normally would have held on until the main event of the summer is the V Festival in Chelsmford on Saturday 18^th and Sunday 19^th August. Although the acts are as yet unconfirmed the bill is sure to list some big name festival acts and in addition to its reasonably accessible location its timing is fairly central in August not clashing with many of the other main events of the summer.

If in doubt probably the best alternative is to find a venue close to your own doorstep with reasonably good pub insurance and ask the landlord if he wouldn’t mind cranking up the sound system to 11 and allowing you to sling a few tonnes of wet topsoil across his beer garden. Not very likely, but you never know.

London 2012 – Golden egg or ‘damp squib’ for UK businesses?

The London 2012 Olympics are quickly approaching, but will the Games be the golden egg or “damp squib for” U.K. businesses?

On one side, the culture secretary sees them as “a once-in-a-generation opportunity to promote the UK.” So far, almost 40,000 jobs have been created as a direct result of the Olympics and Stratford City has been reinvented with vast new construction projects, including the largest shopping centre in Europe.

On the other side, renowned composer Andrew Lloyd Webber fears they will bring a “bloodbath” for London theatre, world-famous music festivals, including The Big Chill, have been cancelled, and even VisitBritain doubts we’ll see any real influx of foreign visitors.

So, where does the truth lie? It probably depends what business you’re in and if you’re betting on making a buck this summer or hoping to dig your way out of the recession for good.

Big business sees boom
New businesses on the Olympic doorstep are likely to boom. The Westfield supermall in Stratford drew in 160,000 customers the first day it opened and is expected to be teaming with locals and tourists all summer.

The British economy has been bolstered by all the activity around the Olympic Village since the bid was accepted in 2005 and companies closely tied to the official venues should fare very well.

However, the majority of Olympic projects –construction of sporting venues, food and drink sales, security etc. - have gone to large firms. Meanwhile, Westfield is teaming with multinational stores. From Apple to Armani and Pandora to Primark, shoppers have a full spectrum of mega chains to choose from. But, small, independent retailers say they’ve suffered the consequences.

This January, the Essex Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) labeled the long-term benefits of the Games a “damp squib” for small companies.

“The immediate effect of the Olympic area where Westfield has been developed has been bad. Local businesses have really suffered because of the shopping mall along with the recession,” South Woodford Business Partnership chairman Kerk Davies told The Guardian.

More than 60 percent of small businesses in the area believe the Games legacy will not help them at all, according to a survey conducted by the FSB. In fact, 25 percent of the 1,674 companies interviewed predicted that the Olympics would have a negative effect.

A separate survey conducted by Olympic sponsor BT of 1,200 companies around the UK found that 72 percent expected their supply chain to be disrupted and 40 percent thought staffing would be a headache because staff would want time off.

‘Displacement’
VisitBritain, which has received an extra 27 million in funding to drive up tourist numbers, has admitted that the Olympics will put some people off visiting London.

“For some people, a busy and vibrant environment with a global spotlight on it is not where they want to go on holiday, which is fair enough,” a spokesman told The Guardian. “It’s displacement – people who would usually come here go somewhere else.”

While the usual theatre-loving, Tower-of-London-touring visitors may be fewer in number this summer, Stratford is sure to be packed.

Gearing up to serve the 9.7 million spectators, 200,000 workers, and 140,000 athletes and officials expected in the Olympic Park, McDonald’s is building its largest restaurant ever.

However, as the mega McDonald’s heaves with hungry visitors, restaurants outside Stratford may see fewer diners.

“Many of the visitors will be eating in the Games area so restaurants in the West End may suffer,” a spokesman for the British Hospitality Association told the paper.

“And if Britons stay at home to watch the Games on TV – rather than going out to eat as they might normally do – that will impact on restaurants far beyond London,” said spokesman Miles Quest.

Festivals canceled, moved
The festival industry is still gauging the effect the Olympics will have on the upcoming season.

Glastonbury moved its rest year from 2011 to 2012 to avoid a clash with the Games.

HSome festivals that usually take place at the start of August, including Herefordshire’s The Big Chill and Ireland’s Oxegen, have been canceled.
Organisers of The Big Chill said the Olympics had negatively impacted “artist availability.”

owever, the festival had suffered its own problems in the past. Festival Republic took over the event three years ago when it went into voluntary liquidation with debts amounting to 1.2 million. Last year, it was headlined by The Chemical Brothers, Kanye West, and Rodrigo y Gabriela, but it failed to sell out.

Successful festivals, like Victoria Park’s Field Day and Brighton’s Shakedown, have changed their dates but will otherwise go ahead as usual.

‘Bloodbath’ for the West End?
“Nobody’s going to go to the theatre at all,” Lord Lloyd Webber told the BBC.

He feared “a bloodbath of a summer” for the West End, saying that “most of the theatres in London will shut”.

“It’s going to be very tough,” he told the broadcaster, adding that advance bookings were “about 10 percent” of their normal level.

He claimed that three major musicals “are not going to play over the Olympics.”

However, President of the Society of London Theatre Mark Rubinstein, gave a more nuanced assessment of the situation.

“There’s no question that there’s going to be a lot of visitors in London. I don’t think it’s going to be a bloodbath. I think we are going to see different audiences from the summer audience we would normally see in those weeks,” he told The Guardian.

Rubinstein said the key to success would be in getting those new audiences out of Stratford and into the West End.

“There will be an awful lot of visitors whose primary reason for coming is the Games and we need to work harder as an industry to reach out to those people, to run promotions, to run initiatives that will make sure they get the information about what shows are on and how to book,” he told the paper.

‘Wave of excitement’
Excitement for the Games is growing as venues are finished, but there is a north-south divide over how much Britain will benefit in the long run.

Just 22 percent of Scottish businesses believe the UK economy will benefit, compared to 53 percent in the South of England, including London. In the Midlands, just 36 percent believe the economy will be lifted, according to research by RSM Tenon and YouGov on behalf of The Daily Telegraph.

But, as big and small businesses across the country vie for a piece of the Olympic pie, there may be reasons for optimism regarding the long-term benefits of the Games.

Three-quarters of businesses in Vancouver, which hosted the 2010 Olympics, say they have continued to enjoy higher sales, according to the BT survey.

Sixty percent say they have experienced ongoing Olympic-related benefits. Most of the companies that did well were in the media, leisure, and retail industries.

The Government says it is also backing a new tourism fund aimed at generating £1 billion of public relations and marketing activity in the years around 2012, with the target of 1 million extra visitors a year and £2 billion additional spend for the UK as a whole.

“There is a lack of understanding of the economics behind the funding of London 2012. The budget is very closely monitored and people forget that the physical assets from the Games, such as stadiums and buildings, will generate revenue,” John Abbott, director of accountants at RSM Tenon told The Telegraph.

“Positive consumer sentiment is confidence based. More people are likely to be swept up in the wave of excitement surrounding the Games the nearer we get to July 2012.”

(Source: facebook.com)