By Anna White julio 22, 2015

Our Tartan Invaded Trends blog post series aims to bring Tartan to the forefront of fashion, illustrating how subtly including hints of tartan in your outfit can be as on trend as the latest fashion trends themselves! In this blog post, we're focusing on festival fashion and how to create the perfect look this summer.

Summer is officially the global festival season, with festivals taking place every week and weekend all over the world.

For a long time festival fashion has been very closely aligned to the hippie/bohemian look but fashion designers are taking it upon themselves to put an end to this and bring in a new festival look in 2015. Say goodbye to floral headbands, ripped denim shorts and white cotton blouses because a new festival fashion trend is making its way down the catwalk (quite literally!).

So what’s dominating this new fashionable festival look?

If you're going to a festival this summer, it's time to forget the default uniform and opt for something with personality and a point of view instead. Vogue

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Pink Blouse Topshop.com

Our festival look is a take on Alexa Chung's festival outfit - a sophisticated festival look with no tie-dye or blue denim in sight. Black jeans are perfect for festivals as they are flattering and you're less likely to see spilled beer or mud. Additionally, we suggest opting for a simple blouse to keep an elegant look.

Shades are an essential festival item so consider something classic. We've gone with Ray-Ban's round lens glasses as they go with everything. Finally, if the weather turns a bit colder in the evening, wrap a beautiful tartan wool stole around you for warmth without losing that retro style. Pictured is the Help for Heroes tartan so you can support a good cause and keep warm!

It's not all about the clothes

Individuality is the key to this new festival look which means bespoke, antique and unusual accessories - think costume jewelry! Rings are the most obvious choice here so pile on lots of them. Long necklaces with pendants and dangly bracelets are also very much on trend, the more mismatched the better.

Hair is often the accessory most likely to be forgotten and lets face it, if you’re at a weekend music festival you don’t want to be worrying about styling your hair with anything extravagant. Thankfully this summer, fashion dictates that you should braid your hair, as it’s fashionable of course. Either a simple french braid down the nape of your neck or revive that boho look by styling your braid into the shape of a flower garland or something else elaborate.

Think 70s

If we were to liken this new festival look to earlier fashion trends, we’d likely consider the 1970s. You always want to look like you could be with the band. You’re getting it right if your look is retro; motif t-shirts, biker jackets and slim fit jeans are all acceptable options.

The history of festival fashion

The history of festival fashion is interesting as it has paralleled the changing trends in popular culture and, more importantly, the changing trends in music. From the looks of it, festival fashion trends have done a full circle since the 1960s:

  • 1960s - Rock - Hippie/bohemian look
  • 1970s - Punk - punk/garage look
  • 1980s - Pop - glamour look
  • 1990s - Britpop - indie look
  • 2000s - Indie pop - Hippie/bohemian look

Stay tuned for our next Tartan Invaded Trends post, on the blog soon!