3 Reasons I love my Camper Van

I'm posting over at Campfire Chic today as part of Kam's Around the Campfire blog party. So if you fancy reading some about why I love my camper van so much you can find Freda and I here. 

Please stop by and join in the party x

Tracks Of My Years // Guest Post by the Festival Fairy

A bit like the section on Ken Bruce’s show on Radio 2 except I couldn’t just choose singular tracks and I’m not a musical type, I am just someone who loves music, and couldn’t live without it. That said I don’t have a squillion CDs I never listen to, I have about 100 I have listened to at least five times and I have many that I listen to regularly.

Those that appear in my list have special meaning to me, either from childhood or a certain time in my life, some may be seen as “iconic” albums, some may not, these are my personal favourites and are in no particular order.

I’m not claiming to be one of these music fanatics who is going to make stupid statements about albums. This is the music that I like, that has influenced me, that has made me the way I am. These are the albums that are part of my life so far and still are very much so.

Dire Straits- Brothers in Arms
As children, my brother and I used to play air drums and guitar to Money for Nothing. When I hear this song I still have to air guitar to it! This album though does bring back many happy memories of my childhood in New Zealand. I remember the day my dad found a cassette tape of the album at the bottom of our road in mint condition, this tape in the depths of my cassette tape collection in the garage which I cannot bear to part with.

Fleetwood Mac- Rumours
This was one of my dad’s records and we always used to laugh at the man with the ponytail on the front cover! I recently rediscovered Fleetwood Mac and now realise as an adult how fantastic they really were. I recently played my brother The Chain while we were waiting in the car for the rain to pass before an Erasure concert. Until then he hadn’t realised it was them he just thought it was the F1 theme! Bless him!

Funnily enough a few days after writing this I found that this album is one of two of my list that will be played in it’s entirety at Camp Bestival this year.

Pet Shop Boys- Behaviour
This album came out when I was starting high school, my brother recorded his copy onto tape for me and when he got the CD I got the original tape. I listened to this album hundreds of times over my high school career and listened to it in the car the other day. The Pets are one of my favourite groups and people used to take the mickey out of me for liking them (people used to take the mickey out of me a lot anyway for being “different” which obviously isn’t allowed when you are in high school) I still love them now and am so pleased I got the opportunity to see them at High Lodge in 2006 and hope I can see them again in the future. This may not be every PSB fans favourite album or even their best one but I still love it.

Massive Attack- Blue Lines
I was leant the tape of this album by a friend when I went on my London residential for college in 1998. I spent a lot of time listening to this album while gazing out the window at Canary Wharf and the building of its mates. It goes without saying that Unfinished Sympathy is one of my favourite tracks on there, as well as Safe from Harm and Karma Coma. Like many of the albums on my list this brings back many memories of a simpler time in my life.

Saint Etienne- Sound of Water
I have loved Saint Etienne for years, My love affair with them started when I found their Too Young To Die album in the bargain basket at Woolworths and after that I was hooked. I love how their music is almost a soundtrack to life. How We used to Live is an uplifting track that encompasses the fluffy pop they are well known for as well as a bit of a ravey bit (see if I was a proper music type I would be using much cleverer and more complex words to describe) and a lounge bar, jazzy bit at the end. I drove to France with this album in the CD player most of the way and it reminds me of how I used to live and I haven’t thrown away all of my records (or cds) My love for Saint Etienne appeals to my very deeply hidden, fluffy, girly pop side which I keep hidden most of the time.


Erasure - Chorus
My brother bought this album when it first came out and it came in a weird box with photo postcards of people riding bikes, having very smiley business meetings oh and pictures of brain scans.
But there are some absolute gems on here such as the album title track Chorus, Siren Song, Breath of Life and my favourite Perfect Stranger. I love how Erasures songs are playfully argumentative about love and relationships esp Perfect Stranger “No place I’d rather be than in the ring with you” almost has a double meaning, punching someones lights out or having a “moment” with them… I guess it means what you want it to mean… there is no getting away from the fact this is filled with lots of lovely pop songs which Erasure are so well known for.


Skunk Anansie- Stoosh

Another one from my teenage years. This was introduced to me by a friend who had attended the Phoenix Festival in 1997 and had seen them live and bought the album off the back of that. The opening track being one of my favourites in fact I think the only track I don’t like is Milk is My Sugar. Every thing else is proper, angry rock and one band I would gladly mosh to. Skin is one of those unique women who is stunningly gorgeous and really scary all at once and the owner of a fabulous voice. It’s a great, angry day, hormonal rant album. Love it.


Lamb- Lamb
Same person introduced me to Lamb. This album contains some of the most beautifully written and stunning music I have ever heard and sounds as fresh as it did in 1996. Probably the most well known track is Gorecki which Nicole Kidman sung in Moulin Rouge. The most wonderfully haunting track on here is Zero, I can’t listen to it all the way through now without bursting into tears, it did help me deal with a very difficult time in my life and I believe it has probably helped others.


Portishead-Dummy

Another album that made me school mates think I was even more of a freak as I played them a few of my favourite tracks from it in a music lesson and was met with wide mouthed stares. At the time, their style of trip hop was just a bit too scary for many people to take in, especially 14 year olds who were into Blur and Oasis and other 90s pop. I just could never see the point of liking one type of music like many of my friends and liked to open my mind to all the other tunes out there.

Again, like Stoosh, not many tracks I can say I don’t like. Some people will find this album weird or a bit scary but to me no scarier than Slipknot. In fact Stoosh, Lamb and Dummy are very much in tune with my slightly dark side whereas Chorus and Sound Of Water are my poppy fun side.


ColdCut- 70 minutes of musical madness (Journeys by DJs)
First heard this on a recorded off a mate mix tape and none of us had a clue where it came from. Found it years later in HMV and thought it “looked cool” but didn’t know it was the same album! This came out sometime in the 90s and contains a fantastic mix of around 35 different tracks. I love the hard drum n bass that kicks it off and anyone who knows me knows I am a sucker for a bit of DnB.

So that’s it and why oh why have you not included any of your beloved Fat Boy Slim or Moby I hear you cry? Well there wasn’t room on this list… and creating this list has made me discover more albums I NEED to own, even though I will only be listening to them on my own on the ipod cos they aren’t to everyone’s taste. It’s made me understand that music builds memories and reminds me of different times in my life and that as I said before is a part of me and who I am.

You can find the Festival Fairy's wonderful blog here

Hearts and Denim - A Mini Outfit Post // Guest Post from Heather of Sunshine & Rhubarb

We pretty much let the little lady have free reign on her outfits and this was no exception. Apart from the fact that it ( rather unusually) looked great! 

Her fashion taste is good, but ensemble wise it's a jumble of Peppa Pig and party frocks with neon Converse, but Thursday was a good day – it was a well thought out outfit – for a 3 year old! 

You know those days when it's not hot and not cold, not dry and not really lashing down, well Thursday was one of those days and I have to say the outfit was chosen for a day exactly like that. Gold star to the small blonde girl in front of the camera. 

 Dress: Ebay

Leggings: Primark

Shoes: Asda

Jacket: Unknown ( I cut the label off for comfort!)

Sunglasses: Baby Banz

You can visit Heather and Sunshine and Rhubarb here

I Can't Speak French // Guest Post by Rena

(Image Source)

There is a very strange phenomenon in the teenage world, one which perplexes and distresses me on a daily basis – the mass hatred for learning another language. Yes, I am a French teacher and therefore must confess an insatiable desire to speak as many languages as possible so I find it very hard to comprehend why my pupils don't appreciate the chance to learn not one, but two languages.

I put myself in their shoes to see it from my pupils' perspective – I work in a deprived area and they don't even know there is a world outside of their local bus route, never mind a whole world that really do speak this random thing I am trying to teach them. But I find there is a pattern in all walks of life, even the privately educated darlings groan when they realise they have a language lesson next and make their feelings well known that French is the subject they hate the most.

Obviously I am generalising somewhat, as I have managed to convince some youngsters that learning a language is a passport to freedom, fun and a fulfilled life, but those who go on to enjoy learning a foreign language are few and far between. Universities are struggling to fill language degrees across the country so it is clear it is not just a problem with my teaching (that's a blog for another day!)

So what is it? Where does this dislike of being able to communicate with a whole other nationality come from?

Personally, I blame whoever first said “Everyone speaks English”. It is a phrase which has swept the nation and believes it's own propaganda. Yes, the vast majority of people in tourist areas and large cities do speak English. The bit that is forgotten is that these people have learnt English because it helps their business and earns them money. What good is the cafe owner in Benidorm who has never learnt what a Full English Breakfast means, or the bar owner in Paris who doesn't know what 'wine' means? The vast majority of others haven't bothered to learn English, and those that have will not entertain those who have not put the effort into learning theirs.

English youngsters find it hard to think about their own imminent future, and I think this plays a massive part in the problem. They have no real idea what they want to do in the future, or what they will need in order to succeed, so learning another language is way down the list of possible options compared to exciting things like Travel and Tourism and Business Studies – both of which practically double their value when combined with a language! They fail to see that speaking another language opens up so many possibilities that they never thought of – spending time at a foreign university while studying for any degree, being the one who is chosen to fly with the boss to that all important meeting in Paris to translate the new contract (or being the boss who can have a few drinks with the new clients after signing the new contract), making a fortune as the only one who can sell the product to Moscow and reaping the commission rewards.

Added to this is the inability to convey the pure joy of being able to speak another language to anyone who hasn't done it – it is hard work, it involves using your brain to work things out (a major inconvenience for most young people) and most people give up at the first sign of hard work and go back to the whole “Everyone speaks English” safety net and miss out on the euphoria of being understood in a foreign language.

So I leave you with no answer – if I had one I wouldn't be writing this – but rather a question, how would you convince a 14 year old that learning a language is possibly the best thing they could ever do?

Reduce, Reuse and Recycle: DIY Painted Sign // Guest Post from Deb of Living the Good Life

Firstly, it should be said, ive never done a guest blog before, so thank you to Rachel for letting me and i hope you have a great holiday!!!!

I am an avid believer of Reduce, re-use, recycle this, if theres anything i can use the 3 R’s for i will.  I hate waste so if it can be re-used, it generally is. Also with having children, teaching them early and getting them involved, means that it becomes a way of life for them from the off.

At the moment on my blog http://livingthe-goodlife.blogspot.com/ we as a family are trying run a bit more self sufficiently and its an educational experience for my daughter, who can see that veg comes from the ground and not from the market.  By next year i hope to have a good crop of veg or at least have it planted as well as have chickens  running around the plot so we can have fresh eggs, the blog highlights the highs and lows of this starting from the beginning.

This weekend we have been allocated out allotment i cannot tell you how excited i am about this, i can not wait to get cracking on it and i have so many ideas as to what we are going to do, how it will be set out etc....

So to get into the spirit of our allotment obviously a sign for our plot was a must!!! Even if theres nothing on there the sign can go up and people can see it belong to someone, and using the above mantra ‘reduce, re-use, recycle’ i started hunting around the house to see what could be used.

Upstairs in our bedroom we have a very old, haggered dining table which is currently being used as a clothes horse!! 

 

At this point it worth noting other half of this table has been ‘used’ and painted and been made into a desk for my daughter room, eventually with a bit of luck ill use so much of it for different things there will be nothing left of it and we will no longer justify using it as a clothes horse!

On either side of the table of the centre of the table one of these has been taken off for the ‘sign project’.

 

All the handles and screws have been taken off and it had been sanded down.  Then with the clever use of greaseproof paper and any font you fancy on the computer:

TA-DAAAAAAAAAA.

Now it wouldn’t be ‘me’ if it wasn’t a little bit ‘kooky’ so the bit about the fairies has been added because, lets face it, id love to think there are fairies helping around the garden and secondly, and more importantly, my daughter can not wait to get down to the allotment to look for them, i wonder how long it will be before i can convince her that if she digs up carrots the fairies will be under them!!!!

Finally, a little bit of paint, we’re going for a bit of a mad hatters/alice in wonderland theme.

And there we have it a handmade sign, completely free to go on the allotment.

Pop over to the blog http://livingthe-goodlife.blogspot.com/ and become a follower and keep up with us as we hopefully progress into becoming a tad more self sufficient.  And any tips would be greatly appreciated.

A Muscular Female? (Gasp!) // Guest Post from Anna of This Way Up

 (Image source)

Today’s guest blog is brought to you by This Way Up – a blog which is largely to do with gymnastics but also includes the ups and downs of running a business, a husband and a toddler all at once. had to think for about 20 seconds about how to incorporate something sporty into a fashion blog and then an issue which has always mattered to me came to mind.

I am about as mesomorph as it is possible to be. I am short, athletic and muscular, gain weight easily but can lose it just as quickly. Ideal for gymnastics, and indeed most other sports I try my hand at. If I exercise, I don’t tone like some women, I just build more muscle.

This earned me the nickname “Helga” amongst friends, the implication being that I am built like a Russian shot putter. I can live with that. What I find really disappointing is the British media and fashion industry’s attitude to this body shape. It seems sometimes this is the worst shape to be – big is beautiful nowadays after all, and svelte-like figures such as Cheryl Cole are considered to be more attractive.

This is not the case everywhere – in countries such as the Netherlands, Germany, Scandinavia and Canada, the sporty female physique is more desirable. Female athletes from these countries enjoy a higher profile and greater status, whereas our British sportswomen tend to be seen either as a bit butch, or if they try to move away from that, a sex symbol whose looks are worth more than her athleticism.

Levels of sports participation amongst teenage girls in this country are absolutely appalling. In my opinion a big part of that is down to society’s view of females in sport (and in general, but that’s another blog…). If you’re going to spoil your hair and make-up, or get a bit sweaty or muddy then that’s a disaster isn’t it?

Anyway, many thanks to Rachel for letting me borrow her soapbox, and I would love to know your thoughts on this.

Festival Fever: Thoughts from a Biker// Guest Post from Chairman Chegwin

Now here at Firebird we welcome all walks of life and even like to move well away from the perceived association that 'vintage' is all about tea and cupcakes, I thought that should apply to the Festival Fever posts as well. So I asked my good friend Cheggers from the fantastic biker blog 'Box Hill or Bust' to write a guest post for us. So here with his thoughts on all things music festival is the unequivocal Chairman Chegwin...
 
With thanks to Rach for indulging this ageing old rocker, here is my contribution to the "Festival Fever" page.

I'm going to start by saying that I don't actually like festivals very much - if at all! This obviously goes against the grain of Rach's blog, but it seems to me that festivals these days are more about the corporate opportunities and celeb-spotting that goes on, rather than the music.

For events like V etc, there's no access to the bands, unless you want to give up half a day protecting your space you won't get near the main stage and yet people pay horrific ticket and camping prices for it still. I realise that it's a right of passage for youngsters these days but, in a nod to Rach's mum's excellent contribution, nothing historic or ground-breaking happens at festivals these days. It mystifies me why they are so popular.

Don't get me wrong, I love live music and I like a good time, but I guess I'm a bit too long in the tooth and too "comfortable" to enjoy camping and the mudfests that e.g. Glasto is famous for. Nevertheless, there are still events I do like to go to (as long as there's a nice hotel room nearby!). Introducing.....THE BULLDOG BASH.

This is an event that is now in its 25th year. It was started by the Hell's Angels and despite the advancement of corporatism and the opposition of the local police, it remains an event staunchly for bikers. My (and the Angels') favourite band - Motorhead - are regulars there, and this year the bill is topped by Status Quo and The Damned. Clearly not the Ting Tings, Girls Aloud (although I think they'd be welcome!), Take That or any of that other "poppy" or X-Factor rubbish that dominates the airwaves these days, but good old-fashioned British rock music. You'll also get drag racing, a custom bike show, probably a wet t-shirt/mud wrestling competition or two for the ladies, lots of beer and good times.

Which kinda makes me question why I haven't booked my tickets yet!

Festival Fever: Making the Most of Your Festival Photos // Guest Post by 'the Aussie'

Rachel has asked me to give some ideas and suggestions for how to get the best out of your camera while attending a festival. So I'm going to talk about football.  If you knew me, that wouldn't come as any surprise...

I love photographing at football, and my collection of shots from matches I've been to is something I really treasure.  Other people seem to really like it too, and occasionally they've even paid me. But - and this is really my whole point - I rarely bother taking photos of footballers, or the stuff going on on the pitch.

In the past, on the few occasions I happened to have a camera at a game, I did the obvious thing that everyone does, and tried to take a photo of the match in front of me.  Regrettably, the result is that the only photographic memories I have of a trip to Milan's remarkable San Siro stadium are some blurry, distant shots of the pitch, seemingly from miles up in the air. I wish I'd captured the little details around me: the edgy (and well armed) teenage Carabinieri recoiling from the dynamite-like firecrackers being thrown by the slightly insane Calabrians in the tier below; the more sedate Milanesi lining the grubby chairs of the middle tier with magazine pages to save their expensive chinos. 

At football, the mainstream media use the finest capabilities of their multi-thousand pound equipment, they get perfectly sharp images of their target, and they reduce the background to a featureless blur. The result is a thousand identical photos of the same footballer kicking a football.  Everything else is simply lost.  The media's photography of sport is dull, and they're better at it than me, so why should I try to be like them?

There is a joy to being part of a big event that watching on television can never reproduce, and it's a joy that is great fun to capture on film.  At football, turning the camera round and pointing it at the people around me captures something wonderfully genuine: the tension, the joy, the sheer skill required to keep a cigarette firmly clamped in the mouth while yelling "hooray!" through your nose.

And, surely, festivals are no different?  They are equally wonderful experiences, yet thousands of people fill their memory cards and drain their batteries trying to film the band from a thousand yards back.  I've never seen the point.  Sure, the band was great, but if you want to watch that set again, it'll probably be on YouTube, filmed properly, sounding good.  There'll be great photos of the bands in the music press, and you can google them any time.  If festivals were all about seeing musicians up close on screen, you'd have stayed at home and watched it on the telly.

But we all know perfectly well that festivals are far more than that!  An impromptu rave has just started at Joe Bananas Blanket Stall.  Next to them, over there by the gate, is the stoned hippy couple trying to sell you "trash huffles".  A bloke standing on the bale of straw further up the track, dressed only in a marine survival suit, is lecturing nobody in particular about the big wet of 1998, and how he hated Galliano with a passion, but they were good live.  And is that Michael Eavis climbing a tree?

The photos you take of what's going on around you are the ones you'll treasure.  I promise. They'll bring back memories of happy days in the sunshine (hopefully), they'll age in an splendid way, to tell a story of that festival you went to, that weekend, back then. Wearing that.

A few hints...

• Get comfortable with the modes of your camera, so you know you can take a photo quicky without too much faff.  Don't worry about getting it exactly right.  At a festival, things are going on all around you, all the time. You want to capture the moment and not  miss it for the sake of  composition or exposure.

• If you can avoid using the built in flash, avoid using it.  Even on expensive cameras, they're harsh and unforgiving and artificial.  With a bit of practice, a steady hand, and some tolerance of a bit of imperfection and blur, you can often get much more atmospheric results without it.

• Get a photo editor package and learn a few basic tricks.    The software doesn't have to be expensive (in fact, GIMP is marvellous, open-source, and entirely free).  Learn some simple tricks like cropping, contrast and brightness adjustment, then play with curves and colour saturation.  It's easy to get good results quickly, and you can turn often workable photos into really good ones.  If a photo seems irretrievably dark, try converting it to black and white and pushing the contrast and brightness up.

Above all, have fun!

(photos by Jon Hall)

Festival Fever: Glamping // Guest Post from the Festival Fairy

I love the Festival Fairy. She adores music festivals and, since becoming a Mum, is now sharing the experience with her gorgeous little girl. She is the Queen of frank and no-nonsense advice for getting the most of your festival experience without breaking your budget. Here's her guide to 'Glamping' on the cheap...

image source

I absolutely hate these words such as "Glamping" "Bromance" "Jedward" you get the drift...But I just cannot understand this "new fangled thing" called Glamping. To be honest with you it's probably been around for years, seasoned campers have been doing it for years it is just that someone out there decided to give it a silly word.

In my eyes, Glamping is overpriced camping for people who don't like camping. Glamping is those little huts called podpads, you can hire them at festivals for stupid amounts of money. Don't get me wrong, if I could afford it I'd give it a go but for me I like roughing it a bit, I mean isn't that what it's all about? Keeping it simple?

On a set up campsite, they will have excellent facilities meaning that you don't have to go without washing or go to dingy toilets, that is reserved for the domain of the festival however as the years go on facilities do get better.

I camped at Las Palmeras in Tarragona, Spain in 2002, they have fantastic facilities there, the showers and toilets are cleaned twice a day, hell they even clean the beach every morning. I was able to mantain glamour at every opportunity while away and I was just staying in a simple 4 man tent with a borrowed gazebo, with a small camp table, a few chairs and a really basic gas cooker. It was one of the best holidays I have ever had, why? Cos it was simple.

I personally feel with the so called Glamping, it is bringing a very different sort of punter to a festival. Podpads and the like are making it easy for people that don't like camping to do the trendy festival thing, I am not saying it's wrong at all because I think everyone should go to a festival. It is changing the atmosphere of some festivals though,  certain people go cos it's something they want to tick off their to do list, these people are generally the ones that have no idea about festival etiquette, however, I digress...

If you really want to "glamp" then the following are essentials-

1. A tent you can stand up in and that has a big awning, we bought a five man tent and it's brilliant, it's by no means the biggest tent on the market but it's good enough for now.

2. Plastic wine glasses and a box of wine- Mr Festival Fairy and I wandered round Glastonbury with a box of red wine and two plastic wines glasses, I'd like to say we were "glampers" before the word was invented. So many people commented on our glasses.

 3. Babywipes- we have a little one so will have them anyway, but babywipes are just ace, you will feel clean and fresh in seconds and absolute must.

4. Bring ready prepared one pot meals- stuff like bolognaise, chilli and cassarole. Cook up large amounts and portion into those Indian/Chinese takeaway dishes you get and freeze them. On the day you leave pack them, still frozen into your cool box. You then have your first nights meal and a seconds nights meal ready to go, add some rice or pasta and you have a delicious filling meal.

5. Airbeds- I only used an airbed for the last few festivals I went to and it makes such a difference! I suggest getting a battery powered pump, I got one from Argos for a tenner, not only does it pump one up within minutes but it deflates it also.

6. Nikwax your tent- been through that one. It's really worth doing and it doesn't cost much in comparison to a £200 tent.

Thats all I can come up with for now, I am sure others have essentials to add to my list!

Many thanks to the Festival Fairy for all these fabulous tips, what are your festival essentials?

PS. There is one more day to enter the 100 followers giveaway, come and have a look x

Festival Fever: Isle of Wight (1969 & 1970) // Guest Post from Momma Firebird

I'm very excited about today's guest post, it is from someone who has literally known me all my life. So I'm very pleased she agreed to share some her festival memories...

In 1969 the legendary Woodstock festival was held in New York state and is regarded to be one of the pivitol moments in popular music history. But the buds of this blossoming festival fever were not confined to the USA. 

The first Isle of Wight festival was held just eleven days after Woodstock, headlined by Bob Dylan (who missed Woodstock to play on the Isle of Wight instead). The second festival in 1970 had estimated crowds of 600,000. It is said to be one of the largest human gatherings in the world at the time and is one of the defining moments of the UK's music scene. 

Today's guest poster ventured down from her student digs in Manchester to attend both of these festivals on the island. So without further ado, I am very proud to introduce you all to my wonderful Mum....

Thank you Momma, I love you x...

I don’t think you ever remember festivals with your brain. What linger are feelings. Fragments of the days and nights blow around the memory.

Leaving your bedsit laden with what you think you’ll need, feeling as if you are the only person heading to some great adventure; seeing numbers of similarly laden people increase exponentially at each transit change until you form a rag tag river flowing down leafy lanes to the metal perimeter fences. It is always further than you think. You start to appreciate why your mother had this thing about sensible shoes.

It was other-wordly travelling to the Island and not simply because the ferry trip dislocated you from the world you left behind. In ’69, I don’t think the local people fully expected the influx.There was more of a Woodstock spirit. By ’70, they had located the festival in a far off corner and were equipped with small tables laden with over-priced supplies by the sides of the road.


No-one stole from our tent and though there was reported to be disruption in ’70, I didn’t see it. Any sleep happened from dawn til early afternoon, because bands played until the sun came up. Maybe you could grab 20mins between sets unless someone trod on your hair.

I remember Dylan, who seemed curiously alone on stage however many people were around him; the Who – popped up everywhere in those days and they played every last note of Tommy; the Nice (interminable) and Julie Felix, whose voice left clear notes suspended in the air.

I ruined my shoes, which were red ballet affairs with ribbons; discovered skirts are way better than jeans in portaloos and that velvet looks beautiful (my grandmother’s Edwardian coat) but offers little protection from the cold.

1970 I was prepared! Layered clothing is your friend. Apart from making the mistake late Friday night of pitching behind a large marquee which turned out to be the Hawkwind tent and made any sleep impossible for 2 days, I was a seasoned festival goer. Everyone I wanted to see was playing, Doors, Sly Stone, TYA, Joni Mitchell, Free, the Who (a-gain), Joan Baez, Jimi Hendrix.

Made a lot of friends; danced in the moonlight; started a tradition of festival-going, which passed down the line to my children.

The spirit lives on!

(All images sourced via Google images, please let me know if you know who they belong to)

Festival Fever: Vix's Rough Guide to Packing for a Music Festival // Guest Post from Vintage Vixen

In the run up to the great British festival season you'll find a festival fashion feature in most magazines, which is all well and good but do you really want to be one of a hundred other revellers wearing "that" TopShop playsuit or New Look tea dress?

We vintage-loving party animals prefer a wilder, more ecclectic mix of second-hand and customised clobber, after all it's a festival not a fashion show.

Here's what I'm packing for Glastonbury:

1. 1950's mohair blanket for sitting on in the sunshine and wrapping around my shoulders after sunset.

2. Loud 1970's Hawaiian maxi dress so I can be easily located if I get separated from the gang.

3. Vintage St Michael nightdress shortened and pimped up with artificial flowers.

4. Neon petal bikini top (as old as I've been clubbing) for when the temperature soars.

5. 1960's suede jerkin, because hippy chic is always festival friendly.

6. Huge 1970's straw sunhat.

7. Oversized cheapo sunglasses (because wearing designer ones in a field is just silly).

8. Groovy Ganesh necklace and an assortment of huge feather and bead earrings.

9. Indian leather money belt to keep valuables safe in the mosh pit.

10. My favourite 1960's red rubber wellies.

11. 1930's parasol (which can double as an umbrella if it rains).

12. Some cheap and cheerful (and comfy) gladiator sandals.

13. Bum skimming hotpants because if it's raining there's nothing worse than wet fabric stuck against your skin for hours.

14. A huge vintage Indian tote bag, essential for carrying my blanket, waterproofs and woollies.

15. My trusty fake leopard coat waterproofed with tent spray for extra showerproof protection.

16. A handmade floral headband - because outrageous festival headgear is an essential.

17. Stacks of cheap and colourful plastic bangles.

(Everything is from charity shops, jumble sales, car boots or eBay)

If it dares to rain I'll be donning my flamingo cape and hat I made from a second-hand shower curtain using a vintage dressmaking pattern.

I'm off to Glastonbury, CamperJam, The Big Chill and the End Of The Road this year. Do pop over and say hello if you spot us.

Thank you Vix for these brilliant festival wardrobe tips! You can find the gorgeous Vix over at Vintage Vixen xx