10 ideas on what to wear to a Eurovision party

Next Saturday is May 16, 2009. And that means the final of Eurovision: Moscow style. Since most of us won’t make it to Moscow, here’s a few ideas to kick off your Eurovision party in, er, ‘style’.

1. Fly the flag
Wrap a full-size country flag around you and wear as a sarong, cape or toga. The host should try to procure the host nation’s flag.

2. Be an ambassador
Pick a country and make its national dress your fancy dress. Obviously good improvisation is key here, probably generating a whole world of wrongness. I hosted a Latvia 2003 Eurovision party, wearing an embroidered white dress, plaits and clogs – absolutely nothing like actual Latvian folk dress, I’m afraid.

3. Be a Ferrero Rocher
If you’re throwing an ambassador’s party for Eurovision then the Ferrero Rocher pyramids should be circulating. Dressing as one needn’t be a challenge – just aim for sparkly gold lame and carry a brown cup.

4. When in Rome… dress like a Muscovite
This year lovely Moscow is rich with fancy dress pop culture style options. First stop, find a Ushanka, that’s one of those big Russian Trooper style fur hats. Add some long black boots, jodhpurs and a Soviet-style military jacket. Alternatively, go for sexy and glamorous cold war spy, Russian ice dance couple or troupe of gay Cossacks. PS You can buy Ushanka hats here.

5 Red Eurovision
When else will you get to throw a party with everyone dressed in red – just think of the colour- coordinated photos.

6. Camp Eurovision
It’s kitsch, it’s OTT, it’s your chance to throw fashion out the closet and indulge your inner gay. If already gay,  just be fabulous, I  guess…

7. Be a star
Pick a past winner and follow their costume style: Sandy Shaw (1967), Lulu (1969), Abba (1974), Buck’s Fizz (1981), Dana International (1998) and, of course, Lordi (2006).

8. Be a song
Puppet on a string anyone? Diva? Rock’N'Roll Kids? Diggi-Loo Diggi-Ley (abstract challenge, that one)…

9. Be a set of Russian dolls
It’s the perfect family option. Dress in anything – as long as it’s the same and you’re all different sizes.

10. Be a Eurotrash teen
Tatu anyone? Ok, sorry. If you don’t want to do the faux lesbian teen thing, check out Russian street style – here’s a few more pics, too.

11. Bonus UK option
It used to be that you could go as Terry Wogan but he’s finally had enough and handed over to Graham Norton. So, well, over to you. Is that a silver suit and pink shirt lurking in your wardrobe?

What to wear at SXSW interactive

By: SMITHmag/Flickr

As my favourite comic book writer once said, ‘Never apologise, never explain’. So, after a blogging sabbatical, I’m back and getting micro-local on dress codes. In just over a week I’ll be heading to South by South West interactive in Austin, Texas. SXSWi is a conference-party mashup and once more I have no idea what to pack. So I asked around on Twitter and got this reply from@peteashton, a 2008 attendee: 

Sxswi attire is pretty much tshirts and jeans. But which tshirt opens a whole can of worms!

So there’s t-shirt pressure then. Of course, Pete’s not a girl (!) so we shall see if the same dress code goes for the girl geeks, too. Til then here are some past SXSWi tees in action. And thanks also to@BostinBloke, who has kindly offered to sort me out a Bostin Austin t-shirt for the big event.

What to wear in Beyoglu, Istanbul

Tip sent in by Jane Hayward:

Women in the trendy Beyoglu area found clever ways to look sexy but modest – skinny jeans with long boots or opaque patterned tights with skirts & boots. Best look was slightly bohemian – lots of leather & loose hair.

Looking for a pic but no joy so far.

If you can help, send it to whattowearwhere@gmail.com

Tip of the day: Cuba

…sent in by recent visitee to Havana and surounds, Felicity Cumming.

‘For girls, the tighter, the brighter, the better. But watch out for men with belt buckles – the bigger the buckle, the more danger you’re in!’

And here’s the pix to prove it…

The tighter…

The brighter…

The belt buckle…

10 packing tips to look good in Europe

Fashion and travel combine in Europe so if you want to blend in without crumpling all your designer togs or risk having them nicked from hostel laundries, then this list will help you pack for those sleek Euro capitals.

He's got the shoes, the bag and the dog! By: Porcelaingirl° {enthusiastic foolish} / Flickr

1. Pack a chic accessory – a bright scarf, matching gloves, a hat, a killer bag, hot shoes, a trophy dog, etc (this is good advice for men too – see pic left).

2. Take a summer wrap for covering your shoulders when entering churches. You may also need to wear longer trousers or skirts. For stricter Vatican dress codes, Travelista has the lowdown.

3. Bring something classically tailored, like a fitted jacket, or pencil or A-line skirt, and mix in with a trendy top or bottom.

4. Invest in some Capri pants or cut-offs for riding round town on your rent-a-Vespa.

5. Take smarter cuts of jean, ie, leave the ancient baggies at home.

6. Pack a pretty travel dress for those Audrey Hepburn moments.

7. Wear lipstick, gloss and big sunglasses.

Cutoffs & kitten heels by Paul Keleher/Flickr

8. Bring a comfortable pair of ballerina flatties and/or low-heel boots for all the walking tours and Before Sunrise moments.

9. Dust off your old leather biker jacket – they’re creeping back into fashion all over Europe including the UK.

10. Tie, pin up or sleek back long hair. Save the loose locks for the beach.

For the latest street styles and fashion trends in Europe, check out Travelista.com or, for packing help, click on the ‘Europe’ or individual country tabs on this site. For Euro fashion faux pas (or are they!), read this!

Holiday packing for female fashionistas

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from looking at dress codes around the world is that, as diverse as they can get, there is often enormous overlap. Jeans and t-shirts anyone?

So I’m liking this 10 items women should pack to stay fashionable on the road piece from Lily Girma. It’s a capsule/suitcase wardrobe for women with holiday gear that goes from daytime to dining to dancing. In reality, it’s probably more suitable for spring-summer vacations in the warmer parts of Europe, the US, Canada and the city breaks of Australia.

And the images are aimed at the younger end of the market.

But as a packing list, you can easily suit it to your own wardrobe.

Probably more for the two-week holidaymaker than a months-on-end backpacker. But if you’ve ever dithered over the balance of casual to going-out stuff, then this’ll help.

Blog Action Day: buy Fairtrade fashion

Boom & Bust - Howies

It’s Blog Action Day on poverty. There’s a list of 88 suggestions to help fight poverty on the site but having seen the effect of the excess of throwaway Western clothes flooding markets in countries such as Malawi and killing off local tailors’ trades, I’m not sure that giving unwanted clothing away is the answer.

Felt berry brooch from PeopleTree

So fight poor wages with your own purse. Buy locally and support local business and goods. And if you’re stuck in your homeland, buy ethically – here’s what to look for in terms of labelling.

And here’s some links for buying Fair Trade fashion in the UK:

• People Tree – “At People Tree, we create gorgeous garments and accessories by forming sustainable partnerships with Fair Trade and organic producers in developing countries.”
• Adili - Fairtrade clothing and ethical fashion.
• Hug – Fairtrade and organic fashion.
• Spirit of Nature – from clothes to baby products. Look for the Fairtrade sections such as here.
• Howies – great tees and re-investment in grass-root social and environmental projects.
• Quail – homemade (in Devon) ethical, Faritrade and organic fashion for the ladies.

In fact, check out this aggregated list from A Lot of Organics. Will add more suggestions and recommendations as time goes by.

This post is part of Blog Action Day 08 – Poverty

Fashion tips from the frontline

Blue burqas are ‘out out out’ this year. Photo by: Barbara Millucci/Flickr

It’s not often you meet someone fresh off the cargo plane from Afghanistan so I plagued Mr F aka NY Fashionistani for his take on what to wear… and got this hot fashion update in reply:

Basically khaki shalwa kameez are still the top sellers in Kapisa province as too are the ever functional ‘Herati 5 piece’ burqa’s for women – fashion-forward women are leaving their blue burqa’s on the goat paths and are going for the pure white this fall season.

One should always be careful which valley one is traveling in – one should never been seen (again) wearing a classic Chitrali pakool (the flat round bread shaped hats made famous by the anti Taliban commander Ahmed Shah Massood) in a Pashtun-inhabited area. Go for for it with gusto, wear it loose and foppish on the back of your head at a jaunty angle if you are sure you are hanging in a Tajik valley.

With the rise of the Taliban in the south, young men in Kandahar are donning the kol eyeliner once again, ditching the mustard color shalwa’s and going for the hardliner black. Personally I think it looks hot hot hot – especially when it’s worn with a Talib white turban and well worn AK 47 (Russian, not Chinese made).

If you are a western journalist – get rid of the blue bulletproof vest and go for the light brown – oh , and drop the velcro badge that says “PRESS”, and don’t forget to put the ballistic bulletproof plates in – I know they chaff, but better a little sore than a big gaping wound. To go with your ballistic plates for your vest, a pair of ‘Wiley X’ ballistic sunglasses are a must. Form fitting to the face, you look like a special forces bad ass, rather than a nerdy hack, and they are great for looking cool and stoic when the chopper hits the ground and you get engulfed in a ball of dust.

Under the Burqa and behind the closed wood doors of the caravanserrai, women in the cooler northern areas go for alpaca wool knickers with a double gusset and imported bra’s from Tajikistan – “lift and separate” is the code words when buying your loved one something saucy from Akmal Famim’s breadshop/hoisery store in Balk.

Men still enjoy the ‘limpy limpy’ look – and go ‘commando’ -or as they say ‘go mujihideen’

‘Go mujahideen’, heheh…

What to wear in… Afghanistan

I seem to be meeting more and more people who love this country. And with The Kite Runner film last year, it’s getting ever-increasing attention. So if you’re venturing into the most dangerous Stan of all, where a bodyguard/armed guide is a de rigueur tourist accessory, you really wanna know what’s what. Not that there’s fashion police as such but Taleban ministers have imposed outrageous rules on attire in the past – you can read about some of them in this BBC report on tagging for non-Muslims.

The Lonely Planet forum has some advice. Here, as ever, are the ahem bulletpoints:

• Men – shalwar kameez on the road or in the country, western clothes are fine in cities like Kabul, Herat or Mazar. The jury’s out on the pakul hat due to many a silly Westerner photo.
• Women – you don’t get no advice so check out wikitravel instead, which says:

“Women in all parts of Afghanistan wear the burqa or chadori. On the other hand, many women in Kabul and Herat these days don’t wear the burqa but rather put on the middle eastern style hijab, which is similar to Iranian fashion. Western women are highly encouraged to wear a head scarf (especially outside Kabul)”

Jailhouse rocks in Berlin

With the anniversary of the Berlin Wall coming down in 2009, Berlin’s going to be a big destination next year. This looks like a good (if a little costly) local buy – Haeftling (aka Prisoner). It has a new prison-inspired range, designed, inspired or made by prison inmates. The convict chic look is going to be big there next year (so the press says). The company also campaigns for better prison conditions. Liking the field jackets for men & sturdy denim tailoring for gals…

Photo: Haeftling

Photo: Haeftling