BlacksXScotts Festival Fashion

Festivals were on a slow burner for me during most of my life and apart from Glastonbury honestly I couldn't see what the hype was about. As someone who is claustrophobic, obsessive compulsive and has a severe anxiety disorder festivals would conjure up painful feelings that would make me forget how to block out all the noise and just enjoy myself. It took a while to ease myself into accepting festivals and not having a freak-out every time one was mentioned but one fateful day four years ago I went to Wireless Festival were some of my favourite artists were performing including Drake, Kanye West, B.O.B and Rudimental. Sadly Drake was ill so Kanye took over as headliner but amusingly his infamous rants about fame, materialism and erm Kim Kardashian never failed to entertain us. As much of a douche Kanye is you cannot deny that the guy has talent and I had always been a hardcore fan since the 'Stronger' and 'Golddigger' days. Anyhow, Wireless changed the way I saw festivals and for the first time I saw it as a time to let loose and have fun rather than be silently panicking and try to act normal for the sake of my friends. Fast forward to 2016 and I have regularly been going to festivals ever since; from the more obscure Secret Garden to V Festival, festivals bring friends together and introduces you to a world where musicians and entertainment collide. As festival season draws to a close it has been an eventful summer of festivals that have brought joy and surprise in equal measure but above all it has given me the chance to dress down for once. As someone who is the epitome of being 'over-dressed' for every occasion, festivals allow you to have a more chilled approach to fashion and noone knows casual better than BlackXScotts.

Now, I know what you are thinking and yes you would be correct in thinking that Scott's is a menswear brand. But so what? Can I let you in on a little secret? I love, scratch that adore menswear especially crisp pressed oxford shirts. While that might not be the traditional choice for 'festival fashion' I am anything but 'traditional' and love creating unexpected outfit combinations that shouldn't work as well as they do. Because that is the beauty of fashion, its spontaneous and ever changing and regardless of what trends dictate only you have the power to determine what feels right. So I will be damned if I choose something feminine simply to appease an archaic system of fashion and quite frankly I will wear whatever the hell I want. If I want to wear a men's shirt with a skirt in neutral colours or become androgynous for a day I sure will, even if it isn't considered 'proper'. Which leads me onto my next point, traditionally when it comes to 'festival fashion' an image of kimonos, floaty frocks and wellington boots tends to come into the picture which is all well and lovely but if you really want to make an impact then wear something unexpected. Go bold or go home is what I always say.

Shop The Look: Sunglasses- Lindex/ Coat- New Chic / Shirt- Fred Perry / Skort- Forever 21 / Flats & Bag- Primark

Speaking of crisp Oxford shirts, one of my favourite menswear brands is Fred Perry and as Scott's is a marketplace of brands, I was able to choose two Fred Perry shirts: A Fred Perry Crew Neck Shirt and the Fred Perry Classic Oxford Shirt . Both shirts merge the line between 'smart' and casual wear and while most style mavens would typically pair both shirts with trousers or form as part of a suit, I decided to mix the formula up and pair both shirts with either a skirt or a layered skort. The first look drew inspiration from the changing colours of the seasons, where the rich forest green suede skirt symbolized the birth of summer, whereas the darker aubergine hue of the crew neck shirt and rust satin bomber was derivative of autumn's arrival. Because I have festivals to attend in September, naturally the colours that I chose were 'darker' and richer in their colour intensity whereas the second look featuring the Oxford Shirt was worn during August and thus still retained the soft pastel hues that are so popular during the summer season. The crew neck is one of the easiest shirts to style and whether you choose to go casual or use as a focal point during a formal assemble, the richness and intensity of the shirt makes it an ideal colour to make any outfit stand out. Naturally, because I also love to colour-block both outfits use the 60's method of colour-match whereby I set opposing colours as an 'accent hue enhancer' and a deliberate mode of contrast. Thus the magenta Chelsea boots bear a similar place in the colour wheel next to the aubergine hued crew neck, while the rust satin bomber creates enough of a contrast to stop the look from appearing to be too 'samey'. The shocking conclusion of a complete opposite hue 'forest hue' is a jewel colour so although it might appear on the same colour spectrum as the rich tones of aubergine, magenta and rust, its warm and bright undertones means that it still creates a splendid outfit combination.

Similarly the pastels incorporated in the second look also use the colour spectrum method, although the inclusion of pastel pink and rose gold draws on using metallic as a contrast rather than a specific colour like the crew neck uses. While rose gold might not be your typical accent co-coordinator, because I love rose gold so much I used it to ensure that the look wasn't too pastel heavy. As the shirt is so formal I wanted to ensure that the outfit still retained some severity and formality, which with the inclusion of a tailored skort and rose gold pointed flats, the look had elements of what you would find in the work-place. That being said as the outfit was being worn at a festival I still wanted to have fun and thus the rose gold metallic back-pack and printed oversized coat stopped the outfit from looking too smart. Besides I wasn't going to a dinner party, I was getting ready to attend a festival and mosh out! Of course no festival is complete without a sleeping bag and thanks to Black's I was able to find a sleeping bag that suited my colourful personality. With lime green base and teal accents, the sleeping bag was specially created with security in mind and owing to severe incidents that can happen at festivals I was pleased that it would be secure enough for me to sleep in. Unfortunately the sleeping bag was on sale and has now sold out but they have plenty of other sleeping bags to help you sleep stylishly.

Shop The Look: Bomber Jacket & Chelsea Boots- Primark / Shirt-Fred Perry / Skirt- H&M

Have You Attended Any Festivals This Summer?