The Fashion Speak : How to Avoid Cliché Coachella Style

If you're confused about the increasing amount of suede, fringe, crochet and knitwear appearing in major retail stores, there's a good explanation for it. It's festival season!

Every spring, music festivals roll out one after another, after another.... Coachella is the most famous music festival of them all as hoards of celebrities, models, and generally COOL people attend year after year. These people claim to go for the music but I know they only go to show off their Coachella-fied designer clothes.

You've seen the types: bohemian chic with a rocker vibe, 70s glam with a modern twist, and edgy punk with feminine glam. These are the style combos I heavily associate with music festivals like Coachella.

I find myself loving certain pieces of these outfits but feeling overwhelmed when they're all combined. It can be a little *too* much, you know?

Here are a few outfits I find to be cliché (RE: overdone) at Coachella and other music festivals...

Doing the most:

photo | Vogue.com

photo | E Online

These outfits have a million different things going on at once. Mixing trends is great but it needs to be done tactfully.

The left photo shows how fringe can go wrong when paired with an intense graphic tee.

Similarly, the right photo mixes an uber-popular suede front button skirt with a printed long cardigan. Verdict: too busy!

Doing it right:

photo | E Online

photo | Splash News

You can't go wrong with black and white. I've said it before and I'll say it again and again!

These two looks stand out because they are getting the festival feeling across while looking fabulously chic.

I love the monochromatic look on the left, accented by a ribbon choker and long chain necklace. The booties are an excellent update to the gladiator sandal.

The look on the right is SOoooOo cute! I'm loving the front button shorts - a nice update to the front button suede skirt from above. The double-buckle belt is trending and fabulous.