help me with clothing do's and donts????

[BBadger]

The times I've went I've used the same pair of hiking boots with metal eyelets and all that above. I'll probably continue to use them, but may opt for some sandals too if I decide to bring some vinegar or something to combat the dust corrosion.

One thing I will remember to bring for my shoes is some velcro for holding the shoelaces to my shoes. Multiple times my shoe laces would come undone and get caught in the bike pedals. One time it caused me to tip over after I had come to a stop (a group of people noticed and helped me up). With some velcro I could keep them fixed to my boots and prevent the laces from being a pain.

Something I enjoy about the whole Burning Man "motif" is that some makeshift fix, like velcroing stuff to your boots, or taping some lights to a bike, or tying a stuffed animal to a stake, looks perfectly normal. It's like visiting someone's home and seeing stuff out of its "place."

[misfit]

shampoo and conditioner, overated. rinse hair and scalp with water. dry and spray on,"no more tangles", comb through and braid. we spend a little over a month on playa and when we get back to defaulta our hair feels thick and healthy.
boots, paladium style canvas. heavy leather boots may look cool, but try walking all day in them.
sandals, because going to the jots bare footed is just nasty.
hat, something floppy.
clothing, who really gives a fuck what you wear. something cool and something warm.
sunglasses, chances are 50/50 you'll lose them. maybe bring an extra pair.
scarf for around your neck. if your prone to sore throats, this may help.

[pretty_monster]

1) are tights/pantyhose a good idea to keep the dust off - nothing keeps the dust off.

2) what kind of boots or shoes should i look for - depends what you're into. the main thing is to avoid blisters and to keep your feet clean. personally??? 99% of the time i wear my knee high combat boots. if i can keep my feet and lower legs clean and moisturized, i really don't care what else i wear. i also bring faux uggs for first thing in the morning when it's still pajama time or when i have to go to the porto in the middle of the night. a big DON'T of shoes is zippers. i would really recommend that you just avoid using zipper if at all possible. the dust gets in the teeth and totally trashes them. my big boot have zippers but i only use the laces & buckles on the playa.

3) and any other tips for managing long hair - keep it tamed and covered. i pull mine back into two low pigtails, then coil them into buns. i take out the buns at night but leave it in piggies. in the morning, i take out the piggies, give everything a good combing and put it right back up. i ALWAYS wear a hat or head covering of some sort. i don't even go to breakfast without at least having a head scarf on. halfway through the week i'll wash and condition it. i put in ***GOBS*** of leave in conditioner, cover my head with a netted head wrap until it dries (which takes all of 5 minutes on the playa) and then put it right back into piggy buns.

[Ratty]

I'm a costume person. 365-24-7.
I can guarantee that you won't wear everything you bring.
Do not spend a butt-load of money on playa clothes.
You will be hot. Step outside your comfort zone and wear less than usual.
You will be cold. Your costume at night will be your coat.
Bring some comfortable athletic shoes and twice as many socks as you think you'll need.
Go to shampoo camp if you feel 'itchy'.
You will have playa dust in every crack. Enjoy it.

[Mohairs]

1) My most comfortable clothes out there consisted of cotton leggings, long flowing skirts, and sarongs. I found out the hard way that things that were too binding or had a scratchy fabric drove me crazy (especially in the heat) and I was ripping them off of me in no time.

2) I brought mid-calf combat boots thinking that was the thing to do, but for the most part they just made me hot and gave me blisters. I gifted them by Thursday. I ended up finding my low top converse to be perfect and ended up being my go-to shoes for most outings. Your mileage may vary, but that was my experience at least. Oh and yes, flip flops for hanging out around your camp.

3) I have very long hair so this was something I pondered about before I went as well. For the first few days I kept it down naturally, or threw it up if I got hot. The dust is kind of a funny magical thing to hair. By mid-week I had a lovely wild body that no hair product could ever give me and I kinda loved it. I didn't even feel the need to wash it with that fine layer of dust soaking up all the oils. But beware as that wild beauty look may soon transition into a matted mess, as did with mine. This year I'm braiding it ahead of time.

As said above, embrace the dust. After a week you'll forget it's even there. Then after you get back home, you will miss it terribly and stuff your face into your backpack just to get that smell one more time...trust me, you'll see.

Last year was my first year. I discovered that what I thought would be comfy actually sucked. Like you mentioned, I started with awesome boots, but they made me too hot...over heated. I switched to plain sneakers. This year I'm going to PAINT them! And I agree, loose flowing skirts were the best! I just tucked it up under the waist band to ride my bike. I wore my hair back in a triple pony during day. Brushed out at night and morning then back to a triple pony.
And that is SO true about embracing the dust...I missed it so bad! Can't wait for this year!

[Mohairs]

I'm a costume person. 365-24-7.
I can guarantee that you won't wear everything you bring.
Do not spend a butt-load of money on playa clothes.
You will be hot. Step outside your comfort zone and wear less than usual.
You will be cold. Your costume at night will be your coat.
Bring some comfortable athletic shoes and twice as many socks as you think you'll need.
Go to shampoo camp if you feel 'itchy'.
You will have playa dust in every crack. Enjoy it.

Ratty, can't wait to see you!
I've been studying your Pintrest board! Thanks for the ideas!

[Eric]

I switched to plain sneakers. This year I'm going to PAINT them!

Careful - the areas you paint become sealed (this includes acrylic, spray paint, and oil paint). If you're just doing some swirlies or stuff you should be fine, but if you paint the whole shoe you've just made them little acrylic ovens. I've done small areas & been fine, I would never paint my whole shoes (unless they were already leather, where you're not going to lose the "breathing" ability to a noticeable degree)

[Mohairs]

I switched to plain sneakers. This year I'm going to PAINT them!

Careful - the areas you paint become sealed (this includes acrylic, spray paint, and oil paint). If you're just doing some swirlies or stuff you should be fine, but if you paint the whole shoe you've just made them little acrylic ovens. I've done small areas & been fine, I would never paint my whole shoes (unless they were already leather, where you're not going to lose the "breathing" ability to a noticeable degree)

good points
I'll keep it minimal.

[AntiM]

Try some 3-D fabric paint. You can get some nifty GID ones, or sparkle or glitter, and they do not shed. I use them on everything.

[Captain Goddammit]

I'm not a big costume or clothing guy, but I do wear a suit and tie on the playa and my one tip is that tans and earth tones appear clean even in the dust. Good for pants and shoes... Shoes all become tan anyway.

[unjonharley]

You can always spot Captain, he's the one with two paper bags over his head..

Yes he is a double bagger ugly....

[Captain Goddammit]

Don't listen to the crotchety old doo doo head!

[Mohairs]

Try some 3-D fabric paint. You can get some nifty GID ones, or sparkle or glitter, and they do not shed. I use them on everything.

Awesome! Thanks for the info, AntiM!!

[gustavh]

Here's what I do, along with some tips I've learned (...btw, this will make more sense if I start off by saying I'm a girl, gustavh is the pup in my avatar):

-Wear loose fitting cotton clothes during the day. My day time staples are: sarongs, jumpers, boy-short style panties, bandeau bras, and sometimes tutus. I wear toms during the day. I bring the pair of toms that I've worn throughout the year and usually chuck them after BM, then buy a new pair and repeat the following year.
-At night I pretty much only wear leggings on bottom, and I like to wear cotton wife beater style tank tops as a base layer on top both day and night. . I have lots of pairs of leggings with fun patterns (UV reactive ones are my fav) and if it's really cold I wear fleece lined leggings under the fun ones.
-Bring at least 2 jackets bc you never know when a zipper might break. Fur is lovely on the playa.
-At night I wear combat boots. Last year I upgraded my cheap boots for some dr. martens (the soles are stitched on) and I'm so glad I did. The sole on my last pair was coming unglued...playa does a number on most types of glue for some reason.
-I keep my hair up in a bun and cover it with a buff. Buffs are an awesome multi-purpose piece to have. If I was better at braiding I'd probably do a french braid or two and leave it at that but my skills are week so I stick with the bun.
-Olive oil will un-jam any zippers that are stuck with playa dust.
-I use bungee laces in place of my regular shoe laces for reasons stated above, unlacing and relacing shoes will chap your hands pretty quickly.

[lucky420]

Uhhhhhhh what are toms?

[gustavh]

Oh sorry! Toms are slip on canvas shoes (http://www.toms.com/women/womens-shoes/slip-ons). I wear em without socks on the playa (and off for that matter). I have never had a problem with playa foot but I understand this may be an issue for some people.

[Eric]

Uhhhhhhh what are toms?

Brand of shoes with an incredibly cool mission - for every pair sold, they match a pair for a child in need (since expanded to more items, if you buy a pound of their Tom's Coffee, they supply a weeks worth a clean water to a person in need, etc)

[lucky420]

Ahh I have heard of these after all.

I am more familiar with Chuck