Many of us have already been to a music festival. We know we need water, toilet paper, and clothes, but we often show up still feeling totally unprepared next to the totem-wielding ravers. Since our trip to What The Festival, we’ve been giving serious thought to what crucial yet often overlooked items one should bring to events. While some of this gear might be frowned upon at a local venue, many festivals encourage the use of these items. We’ve compiled a list for you consisting of fun, helpful, and safety items for you to pick up for your next event!
Bandana(s) Are Your Friend
Dust sucks. So do germs and other people’s vape clouds. Bandanas are both stylish and useful, perfect for a dusty trip to the playa or even What The Festival. Damascus Apparel has an awesome selection of goth/cyber-influenced bandanas and scarves that are absolutely beautiful and work excellently as dust masks.
cred: Damascus Apparel
If you sunburn easily there are a variety of dust wraps/bandannas/scarves that come with moderate SPF protection. They are relatively inexpensive and readily available on Amazon and the like. If you find your neck constantly getting burned from forgetting to reapply sunscreen, one of these is probably perfect for you. Plus let’s face it, many of us in the NW aren’t used to the kind of sun we experience out at festivals.
Earplugs
We’ve touched on this before. Surprisingly the number of people we encountered at What The Festival was so tremendous, you might think people are trying to blow their eardrums. At the popular Groove Cube stage, we frequently encountered noise of over 110 dBA, which is equivalent to the sound of a jackhammer. Do yourself and us a favor, just wear some goddamn earplugs. Don’t be the person whose ear was bleeding at NastyNasty, just don’t. You will literally never hear the same again if you damage your ears, hopefully, this isn’t new to you.
Totems/Safety Meeting Spot(s)
Locating your crew at a festival can be a major pain in the ass. A quick trip to a hardware store solves this problem- just strap a stuffed animal or a random item on the end of a PVC pipe and you’re good to go. Obviously, this version might not look too great with little effort, so you can always spruce up your creation with battery/solar-powered lights.
On a side note, we think it’s incredibly important for people in groups to acknowledge solo travelers and extend themselves as surrogate buddies. A huge crowd of people can either act as a screen, unintentionally covering up violence against solo fest-goers (especially women), or it can act as a protective entity for those same people. Broaden your collective vision beyond their individual groups of friends and care about everyone in the scene- if you see something, say something. This brings us to our next “item”, which is in actuality just a concept and frame of mind.
With thousands of people around, getting lost can be both frightening and overwhelming. While a totem is great, sometimes they simply aren’t enough with the huge crowds some festivals draw. When you arrive at a new festival or event, establish a meeting spot with your crew. Whether it’s a sign, medic tent, or campsite, make sure that it’s easily accessible in case of emergency.
Onesies!
Festival fashion has really become a strange animal over the last few years. The great thing about it is that it isn’t really fashion at all! People can wear whatever they feel like, create alter egos, and express their style, no matter how bizarre.
Imagine for a moment that it’s your last night at a festival. You stayed up the entire night drinking before and spent your day lazing around on something inflatable in the hot sun. You don’t have any more energy, and you sure as hell aren’t going to spend hours at camp getting yourself together enough to go out, let alone pick out an outfit. We have the solution for you!- Onesies! A warm, all-over body blanket is exactly what you need to feel human. Or not human, whatever you’re into. Donning a onesie is a lazy way to look cute while still being comfortable. Plus they come in a variety of fun styles, perfect for nighttime festival attire. Check out one of the onesies available in the DMNW shop!
Clearly, we can’t cover everything- however, we’re interested in what your secret festival techniques and gear collection consist of. Drop us a comment below!
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