A REAL Festival Style Guide

It's that time of the year again. Magazines and blogs flood with Festival Style articles. Shops link to their festival collections. Retailers release their festival lookbooks. 

I'm sorry, but have these people ever been to a festival? I don't know about you, but this is what real festival style looks like to me.

Wednesday lunchtime starts with good intentions:

Monday morning tells a different story:

So I decided to write a real festival style guide. Take it from someone who's been going to festivals every summer for the past 8 years. I know what I'm talking about. And not a floral headband in sight.

Ignore the magazines. Seriously. You'll regret it otherwise. Denim might well be hardwearing but it's also very, VERY porous. And it will rain. The last thing you want is chafing your thighs from soggy jeans or shorts that just will not dry. 

First things first
Take old clothes. I'm serious. Never take anything you love. There is at least a 25% chance that you won't bring it home. It will get muddy, or damp, or ripped, or your friend will throw up over you on a fairground ride (yep, that really happened to me) and you'll need to throw it away. If you're not happy to leave it in a field, don't take it. 

The uniform
Wear leggings. Yes, I know it will be hot but it will be worth it. Plump for cropped styles if you need to. If you're blessed with legs that aren't prone to chub rub, you can go bare-legged but pack the leggings for when it gets cold. 

A lightweight skirt is always the best choice. Consider the rain- You want something that is going to dry really quickly and won't stick to your body too much. Team with a basic t shirt. There will be festival and band tees a-plenty so you can show your true colours (Your true emo colours, in my case!)

Shoes should be wellies or Converse/Vans, depending on the weather. Pack both, and make sure your wellies are as high as possible. It's amazing how high that mud can reach!

If you're one of the hardcore league, like moi, make every day a fancy dress day. Behold, Download 2011! 


Extras
Pack the following: 3 pairs of knee-high socks (at least), pyjamas, a onesie, a hoodie, a hat, gloves and slippers. You will wear all of these to bed. I know, I know, it's 25 degrees and you're roasting. You won't be at 4am. Trust me.

Hair

Take a billion hair bobbles. Don't even think about going into the pit with your hair down. It will be ripped (or more likely bitten) out. It will get muddy. It will get dusty. And sweaty. And covered with alcohol, or bodily fluids. Just tie it up. Don't be prissy about it. You don't need to put it in fancy fishtail braids or victory rolls. A simple bun will do. 

Beauty
Your make up kit should consist of eyeliner, face paint, SPF and make up wipes. That's it. Unless you're going for the red eyeshadow emo look like I did up there! There's no point applying full make up. It will all run when someone empties a pint glass (of beer, if you're lucky) over your head. It's a waste of good make up.

Anything else?

Don't forget waterproofs! A poncho is a must and waterproof trousers will scream "I know exactly what I'm doing!" Yes, you look like a fireman/fisherman crossbreed. Yes, you feel like a tool. But do you feel wet? No. So stop whinging. It's a festival, not a fashion parade.

Sponsor Becky Bedbug in June

Not that I'm biased or anything but June is quite clearly the greatest month of the year (besides December, obviously!) Why is June such a great month? Well, because it's my birthday month, of course!

As a birthday treat to you guys, for my 25th birthday, I'm offering 25% off all sponsorships. That means prices start at just $7.50 (less than £5!). Just use the code "BDAYTREAT" at checkout. 

All sponsors get an advert in my sidebar for 30 days, reaching out to my 1450+ followers across GFC and Bloglovin'. You also get a shoutout on Twitter, viewed by 1400+ followers, and, with some of the options, featured in a sponsor post on Becky Bedbug. 

Full details can be found on mysponsorship page. I'm also happy to host giveaways and review products, so get in touch if this is something you're interested in. I look forward to having you on board!  

Book Covers Redesigned

I bought Oh Comely magazine for the first time this month and I fell in love with it. There was an article in which they designed book covers for trashy novels that didn't exist. I loved the concept so I decided to redesign some of my favourite books. 

I discovered that I have a very definite style to my book cover designs! I'm not a graphic designer, they're just rough ideas so don't go getting too offended over my awful Photoshop skills! 

How great would it be to have a book that was the entire Harry Potter series?

FF XL

How much does this dude, photgraphed in 1939, look like Jay-Z?

I find abandoned buildings absolutely fascinating and I'm particularly interested in abandoned tube stations. This poster is part of a section of Euston station that closed in the late 60s. How fascinating that you can walk through the station and have these links to the past hiding just feet away from you! There are hundreds of other photos on the link too. 

I know this is a really, really old clip but it never stops being funny for me. Bring back Harry Hill!

I watched a great programme on Channel 4 this week called World's Weirdest Weather and came across the phenomenon of Brocken spectres. It's basically a shadow of yourself projected onto a cloud with sunlight diffracted in a halo around the head. It's fascinating stuff!

I seriously love Jes, and her response to the Abercrombie & Fitch size scandal is incredible. 

Elycia made a crochet Mario mushroom and it's amazing! 

Book Review: Wonder

Wonder- R. J. Palacio

Being a teacher, I read a lot of children's literature. In fact, I find a lot of it more profound than adult literature. It's less pretentious- It doesn't try to be overly deep or complex. There's a lot of beauty in children's literature that is often overlooked.

Anyway, I really love children's literature that is in some way meaningful. The wishy-washy Diary of a Wimpy Kid stuff doesn't do it for me, and don't even get me started on Jacqueline Wilson's superficial attempts to tackle difficult issues! I like books that are genuine and sensitive, books that handle real issues in an intelligent way that children can understand. Wonder is the most perfect example I've ever read.

 It tells the story of August, a 10 year old boy who suffers from mandibulofacial dysostosis, a facial disfigurement, and is starting school for the first time. It documents his struggles to make friends and the prejudices he faces, told through the voices of the key characters- From August himself, to his sister Via and his new friends at school. 

Although often heartbreaking (there were parts of the story that made me feel like I'd been kicked in the stomach), it ends with a truly soul lifting conclusion that made me sob my heart out. It's such a powerful and inspiring story. Everybody should read this book- Children and adults alike.

Giveaway: Benefit Lip & Cheek Kit

One/Two/Three

Well, it's that time again! Time for my bi-monthly giveaway! This month, I've chosen a Benefit giveaway since they produce most of my favourite products. My favourite products from Benefit are their blushers, so one of you lovely people will get to choose one of the three lip and cheek kits. I know which one I would choose, but unfortunately I can't enter my own giveaway! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

Small print: Prize is one of the Benefit lip and cheek kits featured above. If the chosen kit is out of stock, the winner can choose another kit of equal value. Giveaway is open to all readers of Becky Bedbug, including international readers. Prize is bought with my own money and is in no way sponsored by Benefit. To keep these giveaways going, consider sponsoring Becky Bedbug. 

My diaries 2003- 2004

This is the second edition of my new series, documenting some of the best quotes from my vast backlog of diaries. If you haven't read the first edition, start there to read the introduction.

Esmée- Lola (14th June 2003- 4th August 2003)

A bit about me:"I hope that one day I'll be famous for my diary like Anne Frank or Samuel Pepes. You're my 4th diary. My first was Cally, for 3 years; my second was Emma- Rae, for 8 months; and my last was Tallulah, who lasted 5 months. I hope you will be as faithful to me as they were.
I have mousy blonde/ brown curly hair, and small "antique-brown" glasses. I'm 15 today and have fancied Chris for 21 months".

16th June 2003
"I'm so annoyed! I've got a day off school today but Jamie won't own up [about damaging the bannister] so I can't go shopping. For god's sake! I'm being punished for something I haven't done! I might aswell throw all of my money out the window, for all the good it'll do here. Maybe I could buy a non-punishment. That's probably what they want. They're punishing me so I'll pay them!"

20th July 2003
"It was Katie's birthday. I can't be bothered to write about it, but we saw Daniel at one point. He was depressed about Katie and had drunk 1 1/2 bottles of straight vodka"

24th July 2003
"I'm desperate to make something of my life. I want to get a well-paid job, get a decent house and life then have children. I really want to get married and have kids, but I want to get a decent life going first"

Felicity (4th August 2003- 2nd January 2004)

A bit about me:
"I hope that one day, I'll be famous for my diary, like Anne Frank or Samuel Pepes. You're my 5th diary. My first was Cally, who lasted 3 years; my second Emma-Rae for 8 months, my third Tallulah who lasted 5 months; and my last Esmée-Lola, for 2 months (she was very small!)
I have mousy blonde/brown hair, curly and mid-length; and "antique-brown" rectangular-ish glasses. I'm 15, a prefect and want to be an interior designer. I have fancied Chris for 23 months, but now I'm slowly going off him"

4th August 2003
"There's this boy at school and I think I'm falling for him. It's really annoying 'cos he fancies me and I kind of fancy him, but I'd never go out with him, and oh! It's just so frustrating!"

21st November 2003
"Then she told me that Amanda had told Ashleigh who told Katie and everyone. I got in a stress with Amanda , who had a go at Ashleigh who told Katie who had a go at me 'cos I didn't tell her"