Capsule #52 ft. Clodagh Griffin

Hello hello,

Today’s issue is mostly guidance for festivals, split into three themes: clothing, hacks, and vibes. If you’re headed to Glastonbury, this is your bible. And if you aren’t festivalling this year, I want you to know that lots of this works for summer days out and about away from your home: in the park, by the beach, going on an adventure. I hope you enjoy it!

The ‘adding to queue’ recs are also really strong this week, so scroll down if you’re looking for something to put on or read this weekend.

Plus the inimitable Clodagh Griffin is here to share her Hots & Nots with us 🌶️

Have a great weekend!

Holly x

👚 CLOTHING 👚

First up: what to wear. It’s hard. And it kind of depends on what you’re like as a person - does comfort matter more to you? Do you want your one shot to wear very little and not care about it? Regardless of where you sit, here are a few fail-safe combinations for all the fun you’re about to have.

1. Sturdy shorts

Whether you’re a jorts head or a classic Levis cutoffs kind of person, there’s something about wearing denim shorts that just makes you feel like you’re doing a festival right. I’d avoid anything too tight - you need to be able to sit and walk comfortably.

Links: Top (Urban Outfitters), shorts (Cos), bandana (Toast), belt (Nudie Jeans), bag (Free People), boots (Dr Martens)

2. Trousers you can sit in

I know what you’re thinking. It’s too warm for trousers. That may well be true. But night time is cooler, and you also might want to sit on the ground at some point and have some coverage when you do. That said, we’re avoiding light colours, we’re opting for patterns if it works - anything that a bit of dirt won’t totally spoil.

Links: Denim top (Zara), trousers (Urban Outfitters), sunglasses (Messy Weekend), boots (Dr Martens),

3. The fun one

Here it is. Your young wild and free moment. How beautiful it is to be alive, having fun with your friends. You deserve to look the part! Don’t overthink it.

Links: Crochet dress (Mango), bikini top (Mango), bikini bottoms (Mango), earrings (MAM), belt (Other), sandals (Dr Martens),

4. Morning comfort

Mornings are hard. Hot tent. Dry mouth. Achy feet. This is where your home comforts come in. You absolutely must have a big t-shirt, you must have some sliders or Birks to slip on, a brief respite from being booted.

Links: T-shirt (Carhartt), gingham shorts (Urban Outfitters), sunglasses (Crap Eyewear), cap (Reef Knots), sandals (Birkenstock), socks (Free People)

💡 HACKS 💡

I’m not the world’s most natural camper and this isn’t your extensive list of things to pack. These are the smaller details - some obvious and some more niche - of tried and tested things that will make the camping and festival experience smoother. Not always easy, but certainly not making things worse. Let’s go.

• Collapsible bucket. To be clear: this is for washing yourself. If you have easy shower access then ignore! But if you’re camping and showers are hard (famously long queues at Glastonbury, for example), and you don’t feel great about a baby wipe (gone are the days), the bucket is your best friend. Fill it up at your nearest water point and take a flannel, and you’re able to have a pretty good wash. I’ve even had my hair washed in said bucket, and it works super well. The collapsible ones are easiest to pack!

• Packing bags. You wake up in a dark tent, you look inside your darkly-lined bag, and you can’t find what you need. This is the sort of hassle you thank yourself for thinking ahead on. Packing bags are great for keeping stuff separated in your camping bag (underwear, socks, tops) and make finding the exact top you are looking for a breeze. This type are great because you can squeeze all the air out, and I’ve also used Ziploc bags in the past and labelled them with a Sharpie.

• Earplugs. Honestly earplugs are a huge part of my regular existence but they really come into their own at a festival. Loop for loud speaker protection, Happy Ears for getting a good night’s sleep.

• Campsite shoes. You deserve to step out of your tent and slide your foot into anything that’s not a boot or a trainer. Birks, sliders, flip flops - choose your fighter and enjoy.

• Disposable camera. The photos you take on your phone will soon be lost with the 25,000 others. You’ll hold the prints dear for years to come.

• Long legs for sleeping. Odd phrasing but I mean leggings, pyjama bottoms, joggers, whatever you prefer. I’ve never not wanted them at night-time.

• Rehydration. Those Dioralyte sachets are your best friend. Always a good idea.

• Waterbottle with loop and a carabina. You don’t want the burden of a big bag but you absolutely need to be carrying water around. Clipping your bottle to your smaller bag is a great fix.

✨ VIBES ✨

And finally: words of wisdom from your auntie who wants you to have a good time (and sometimes needs reminding herself). For you and your friends when you have a wobble.

• You can probably write “less is more” on my headstone at this point but once again it’s true. Trying to do every single thing and treating it as a tick-boxing exercise will leave you exhausted and prevent you from enjoying what’s right in front of you. A few things done well with freedom to move as you please is always the better option.

• Prepare to have no signal and don’t worry too much about trying to coordinate everyone, especially if you’re in a big group. You can spend so long trying to link everyone up only to find your friends were responding to a text from four hours ago that they only just received. It’s okay to enjoy stuff in smaller break off groups and know that you’ll link up with everyone later.

• That lack of phone signal and battery preservation is also a blessing, because it puts you off using your phone. Enjoy your few days of being outside and away from your daily routine - that’s one of the best things about it.

• If you’re the type that needs it, remind yourself (and people around you) that you don’t need permission to have fun. It’s not something you have to earn. Equally try not to let small inconveniences ruin your day — you will forget something, you will be too hot or too cold at some point, you will have achy legs. Respond to those things quickly and kindly and move on.

• And finally. An important one. Scope out your home comforts to eat and drink. For me that’s starting each day with a cup of tea and eating and jacket potato for lunch 🥔. For you that might be a coffee and a pastry, pizza, a big icy lemonade. The lesson is to get stuff that you know sits well in your body.

And finally…

The news from the Capsule sphere of fashion and pop culture that you may have missed this week:

• New music from Lorde might be on the way sooner than we think, as she cleared her IG feed and teased us with this carousel about spit

• There’s a new Miley interview. She talks about getting her Grammys flowers, Beyoncé, and returning to acting

• Virginie Viard is leaving Chanel, and rumours are already swirling about her replacement (Hedi Slimane? Jeremy Scott?). This 1 Granary post reminds us to look at the broader landscape of creative directors

• This Petra Collins photoshoot of Rosalia for 032c made me want to watch the Beyoncé ‘Dance For You’ video

• Chappell Roan was interviewed by Trixie Mattel for Paper Magazine. Don’t sleep on the photos

• People are accusing Dior of copying Chopova Lowena for their new resort collection… 😬

• And Rihanna announced Fenty Hair, and was then spotted wearing this t-shirt in New York

This week, Clodagh Griffin popped into Capsule to share what’s 🔥hot🔥 and what’s not 🙅‍♀️ …

Clodagh is a journalist and content creator from Dublin, living in London. She interviews celebs you love (Nicola Coughlan, Callum Turner), reports from festivals, and creates harm reduction content around drugs.

📺 Watching: Jenny Slate’s standup special titled Seasoned Professional. It cheered me up so much this week. Also some Tems goodness ahead of her new album: Chicken Shop Date and Tiny Desk.

📖 Reading: Jessica DeFino’s latest column for the Guardian, in which she answers a reader’s question on pubic hair. Her response is excellent, because it includes evidence from the 14,000 people she polled in her newsletter. A state of the nation!

🎧 Listening to: Some uplifting new releases today: Charli XCX’s BRAT, Tems’s Born in the Wild, Ayra Starr’s The Year I Turned 21, and a new single from Sabrina Carpenter, complete with a music video starring Barry Keoghan.

Bree thinks your summer events will be populated with transparent skirts and is totally here for it. We saw them on the SS24 runways, and now they have hit the (more afforable) shops. Très chic!

If you’d like to adopt Bree or one of her friends, click here to learn more.

Thanks for reading! I’d love to hear how you’re finding Capsule - let me know here. And if you have a friend who might like it, please forward on 🥺

See you next week 💋