From bondage to flowers, a fashion bonanza at Coachella
Coachella became one of the
world’s premier music festivals not only for the A-list performers. The
two-weekend party in the California desert has become a major event in its
own
right for the fashion.
While designers have heavily marketed their brands to Coachella, the fans
who draw the most notice often do so by embracing their own sartorial flair,
driven by a sense of innovation and, among revelers in the searing heat, of
inhibition.
Fun with bondage
They dress in green from head to toe, or at least when they dress at
all.
Tiana Tuttle and T.J. Sonnier covered their bodies with green nets over
matching swimsuits, with caps to top it off.
The pair from Los Angeles have been coordinating their festival outfits
for
several years. Tuttle, 23, said that this year, they wanted to explore the
fashion possibilities of bondage.
“We wanted to be that slutty, sexy thing in the corner that you can look
at
when you’re bored at the show,” said Sonnier, 22.
A passion for flowers
Hillary Osgood, 31, has been heading to festivals, especially
Coachella,
for 12 years. One thing she never forgets and has never lost — her light
purple umbrella that both shields her from the sun and highlights her
signature style.
This year, she decked herself out in matching flowers draped like a
turban
on her head.
While the flowers are artificial, Osgood said she found inspiration as
she
lives in the flower district of Los Angeles and works at a tiki bar.
“It’s a way to exemplify the Coachella lifestyle. It’s not every day that
you find a safe place to project some of your style,” she said.‘Graduation’ in a vintage dress
Aquiel Hayden has been on the festival circuit for the past two weeks
and
threw her clothes into a suitcase, choosing the day’s wardrobe at the last
minute.
The purple-haired 21-year-old sported a floor-length, sparkling red dress
that she found in a vintage store in her home of Santa Barbara, California,
paired with thick maroon sunglasses and a golden belt.
Hayden however said she was disappointed in the changing musical
direction
of ever-expanding Coachella and may not come back.
“I thought I should go all out for my last one. It’s sort of like my
graduation,” she said.Recycled fashion
Chanel Twyman and Auzunay Watkins were looking for something
different for
Coachella and found it — short, and largely revealing, dresses made
entirely
from the tops of soft drink cans.
The pair from Philadelphia bought the unique outfits from the New York
designer Gypsy Sport and matched them with equally shiny half-masks with
rabbit ears.
Twyman, 23, said that she and Watkins, 25, considered themselves “very
fashion-forward” — and found the cans to be comfortable.All about the sunglasses
For Genevieve Paish of Christchurch, New Zealand, who is attending
Coachella for the first time, the initial accessory was a pair of
orange-red,
heart-shaped sunglasses.
Paish, 21, said she picked the rest of her outfit to match, including her
impromptu dress of drooping red strings.
She dyed her hair a similar color and used a key chain to make puffy red
scrunchies with which to hold up her hair. (AFP)Photo: Coachella website