Festival fashion - Hay on Wye

Going the Hay's Festival of Literature and the Arts, to give it its full name, is always a hugely enjoyable intellectual treat. I love the opportunity to hear writers talk about their books and artists perform in a friendly, attentive and rigorous atmosphere where the audience is as smart if not smarter than the speakers. In the midst of such intellectual refinement and stimulation, one area is always problematic: what to wear at a festival where heavy rain is as likely as scorching sunshine, where one walks a lot but also sits in over-heated or freezing tents!? Frankly, I have not yet found the answer and found that my feeble attempts at covering all options, from raincoat, scarf and heavy duty boots to layering light jacket and T-shirt and packing flat shoes in my handbag were not successful. As it happens, fashion is clearly not high on the list for Hay festival goers.  As is often the case, intellectual pursuits are seen as incompatible with elegance and the resulting mix of sensible shoes, baggy tops, inappropriate floral patterns and bad haircuts is overwhelming. Whilst the general look was not as inspiring as the talks, I thought there were a few successful festival outfits, in particular a very good use of hats.

Ultimately, my festival companions got the prize for relaxed elegance!

As to talks and books, I would like to recommend Terri Apter's work on sisters. Her book, "The Sister Knot" explores with great skill and sensitivity the complex relationships that bound sisters, from love to hate and envy, companionship to competition, fear of annihilation to protectiveness. Her look...sensible and academic!

To learn more about the Hay festival: http://www.hayfestival.com/wales/index.aspx?skinid=2
To learn more about Terri Apter: http://www.terriapter.com/