Summertime is calling and wants to know if you have a date with the music festivals coming to the Capital Region?
From jazz fests in Schenectady to the weekly Alive at Five series in Albany, if you’re going and you’re going to be seen, you have to dress the part. Shall we explore your options?
Anything after work such as Alive at Five dictates at the least you bring a change of shoes! I work in three inch minimum heels all day (office professional, thank you!) and while I can walk and run errands all day long, I am not going to be standing in these shoes for the remainder of the evening.
So my suggestion is to wear an outfit that will go day to evening and let your shoe move you. I could see a nice pencil skirt and blouse with a tank layered underneath that can be worn for an evening out. With a tank top under a blouse, you can remove the more tailored blouse and just wear the tank and skirt. Switch out traditional pumps or wedges with gladiators or even some dressed up (think rhinestone) flip flops and you’re ready to go.
If you can jazz (pun intended) up your tank top by wearing one with embellishments, even better. That way, you’ll sparkle in the ambient lighting.
If skirts aren’t your thing for work, or if you have to wear a uniform, there is no taboo in bringing a change of clothes to change into at the end of your shift. This way, the sky is the limit when you’re choosing your outfit. Cars have clothes hooks for a reason, ladies and gents. If you bring a change of clothes always keep in mind the venue, how dressy or casual the setting and the weather. This way you’re always prepared.
If you have an all-day music festival prepared then there are so many clothing choices for you to choose from. Be it a bohemian dress, a hippie chic crop top and wide leg pants or a casual romper combining shorts and your shirt for easy wear. All day events held outside in the elements need a couple of essential elements.
One, please wear a hat. Also, sport some sunglasses if you’re going to be outside in the sun. Protect your face, scalp and hair color from the UVA/UVB rays. Even on a cloudy day, you can get sunburn. This happened to me on a cloudy Memorial Day parade.
Which leads handily to my next point: Don’t forget the sunscreen.
If you aren’t covering your skin with clothing, make sure you’re applying sunscreen a minimum of 15 minutes before you head out. Light clothing colors also don’t keep the rays out. So apply if you’re wearing light colors.
Lastly, stay hydrated. Always make sure you’re carrying water with you. The last thing you want is to miss your favorite act because you were at the med station. Now that we have the essentials out of the way, what are the top trends for this year?
Fringe! Anything and everything with fringe is on point. Be it on your bag, your crop top or your shirt. Fringe continues to be strong and let’s that hippie chic out. Add beads to your fringe or just let it be natural fabric.
Denim, my perennial favorite is very strong. Don’t be afraid of wearing a little destructed or distressed denim to the festival. Anything showing threads continues to be super trendy. Wear your denim as shorts, as pants (wide legs are always flattering) or as a tied up shirt.
The color white is also very hot right now. We have all heard of the LBD, the little black dress; well enter the LWD, the little white dress. Online retailers such as Torrid are including shopping tabs now just for LWD. They couldn’t be any hotter. Crop tops, halters and even bikini tops in white would look fantastic, if you don’t want one piece.
So how would I pull all of this in? Find a white fringed crop top, layer it with a distressed, maybe bleached out denim button down. Tie the button down into a knot at your waist. Pair the top pieces with a long, maxi broomstick style skirt in burgundy or purple. Accessorize with a straw floppy hat, aviators and gold- tone gladiators and get ready for a great show.
Happy festival!
Denise Bennett maintains a fashioin blog on Perfect20.co and her various fashion tips can be read weekly in SpotlightNews on Living.
