What We're Really Packing for Coachella

By Kara Brown & Jane Marie  |  April 10, 2015 | 6:00pm
In Depth

We (Jane Marie and Kara) are headed to Coachella. Free from the burden of packing like sensible adults, we’re loading up our bags to hang out with all the cool kids and social media influencers out in the desert. Here’s what we’re bringing.

Jane Marie

The best part — no, seriously, the best part — of living in Los Angeles is that Coachella is within a reasonable driving distance. Everything else about living in LA is worse than that. Anyway, when I lived on the east coast, packing my suitcase for this occasion was a real pain in the ass. I hate checking luggage and I have a bad back, which is a terrible combination for someone who is also so afraid of flying that she has to get zonked on Valium before every trip. My carry-on could only be so cumbersome. But guess what? Now I can FILL MY TRUNK. And my back seat, too! So here’s everything I’m actually bringing to Coachella.

1. My laptop. I’m typing on it right now. So necessary.

2. All the shit I normally take with me whenever I leave the house: phone, wallet, gum, water, lip balm, keys, scarf, a bag of airline peanuts or some similar snack, phone charger, sun glasses.

2. This skirt that I bought at Free People specifically for Coachella:

Yeah, I’m that fuckin’ guy. Look, there are two ways to go when you attend one of these functions: beat ’em or join ’em. I cannot beat ’em. I’m not an actress or model; I’m a 37-year-old mother who sits on her ass all day. But, I don’t want to look like shit the whole weekend in comparison to all of the beautiful children, so I go to Free People. It is my only option.

3. This shirt that I also bought at Free People during the same shopping trip, whatever. Mine is dark gray.

3. These clogs. I’m rocking the SHIT out of these clogs lately because they are so comfortable and it’s still too cold out for sandals and also sandals + outdoor concerts = disgusting. I bought them a few years ago to wear to my pottery class but now I’m sort of trying to be funny by wearing them out of the studio. My husband often says they make me look “Dutch. In a good way.” ???

4. Pajama Jeans. We received an email a few weeks ago from the Pajama Jeans people asking if anyone on staff would like to try their “In Those Jeans” challenge of wearing a pair for one day. I was like “YEP!” So they sent me a pair. I haven’t opened the package yet. I’m hoping to have the guts to actually wear them to the festival.

5. This shirt to go with the “jeans.”

6. These normal jeans I found at Nordstrom Rack.

7. A plain white t-shirt to pair with whatever.

8. A gross old tank top and these sweats to sleep in.

9. This chain earring I bought, ahem, again, specifically for Coachella. My friend Erin was wearing a similar earring the other day — only hers was definitely actual gold — and I was like “Wow, she looks so hip.” So I’m copying her, and probably half of the people at Coachella. I gave the cuff to my toddler and threw the studs in my jewelry box. Here’s how I’m wearing the chain:

So Coachella-y!

10. Five different kinds of bras. You never know what kind bra you’re going to need.

11. This necklace. *CRYSTALS!*

12. Some old Dolce Vita knockoff sandals from Target for wearing around the pool.

13. A perfect swimsuit.

14. My Nook and its charger.

15. An old giant, gray cardigan.

16. This bodysuit to throw on under whatever I’m wearing after the sun goes down because Coachella can get cold as shit. Like, cold enough to make you call your husband, crying, begging him to come rescue you.

17. A flat iron for my new ‘do.

18. Two cameras: a small point-and-shoot and a giant, professional one that I’m not sure how to use, and their accessories.

19. My audio recorder.

20. Earplugs and a respirator.

21. A beautiful “silk” robe for wearing around the hotel room and maybe to the pool?

22. A flower crown that I bought at the Ren Faire last year. WHAT? So? I might not wear it. But I might!

23. A sexy dress from BCBG and some thigh-high boots from Guess. I have no plans to wear this outfit, but you never know when you’re going to be invited to a nightclub?

24. Prescription medications! Plural!

25. An ass-ton of beauty products. That’s for another post.

Kara

I am voluntarily spending the weekend in the desert for the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. I’m going for the art.

At such an event it is customary to wear clothing so that’s exactly what I’m going to do. Going into this packing project, I decided to throw sensibility to the wind and go crazy with the sheer amount of clothing to pack. We will be driving to Coachella, ergo I’m not a slave to the dictatorial packing rules of an airline or my parents. I don’t often have the freedom to pack this impractically. I feel like a Real Housewife.

Since I make all major decisions in my life based on internet quizzes, I don’t know why this scenario should be any different.

I start with POPSUGAR’s “Which Music Festival Fits Your Beauty Style?”

SEEMS LIKE A GOOD START.

Ok, now that I’m legally allowed to go to Coachella, let’s see what type of Coachella goer I am with help from LA Weekly.

Not mad about it. It’s hard to really gauge my true satisfaction because I don’t know what the other results are. I will not, however, collect his tears because I would never make Drake cry.

Vogue wants to help me find who my “festival girl spirit animal” is and, despite my confusion as to what that actually is, I let them.

Mostly Cs
You are the type of It girl we could have a beer—or some sort of refreshing mixed drink with. And maybe we’d raid your closet while we’re at it. You are Alexa Chung.

Uhhhh, not gonna lie, can’t say I’m thrilled with this one mostly because I don’t have a firm grasp on who Alexa Chung is. I don’t know how to use this information to help my packing.

Finally, I head back to POPSUGAR to find out which beautiful lady is my musical festival style icon.

Now I’m cooking.

As I said, I’ve packed a stupid amount of clothing and things but here are some highlights.

  1. This romper because I’ve decided that I’m going to spend 60% of my summer in a jumpsuit-type item and it’s starting now.
  2. A leather (ish) backpack for practicality’s sake.
  3. Sneakers, including this pair (in blue) from Nike. I tend to be a sneaker type of gal but in particular, wearing sandals at a music festival for an extended period of time makes me nervous. I hear there’s mud at Coachella.
  4. Head wraps from The Wrap Life in case I don’t want to spend time thinking about what to do with my hair.
  5. A denim jacket, a raincoat and hoodies for the evening.
  6. A Mophie to keep my phone battery anxiety at bay.
  7. Floral print wedges from Topshop that I will almost certainly not end up wearing.
  8. A black maxi dress—again, for practicality reasons.
  9. Four pairs of sunglasses BECAUSE YOU NEVER KNOW.
  10. A bunch of those scary-looking Sephora face masks because I’m worried about my skin absorbing all that dust. They make them for under your eyes also!
  11. I am black, (SURPRISE) so between all this sweet melanin, a solid skincare routine and preventing as much sun damage as possible, I believe I can keep my skin looking like this until age 50, which is why I’m bringing sunscreen.
  12. A somewhat patriotic swimsuit.
  13. Denim: my favorite pair of jeans, the best pair of boyfriend jeans ever that I bought at Lucky five years ago and a white pair that I probably will not wear.
  14. A couple of bralettes from Free People which I wear almost exclusively during the summer when my boobs cannot withstand regular bras.
  15. This basketball jersey from Undefeated, one of my favorite streetwear brands.
  16. About twelve pairs of underwear because, again, YOU NEVER KNOW.
  17. My inhaler.
  18. Zyrtec.
  19. Harper’s Bazaar suggested I pack a $645 Yves Saint Laurent. I am going to pack a regular $2 bandana instead.
Top image via Getty.

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