Money

how i shop for rave outfits while on a budget

While music festival tickets are expensive as heck these days, it doesn’t mean that you need to spend the same amount of money for your outfits either.

Jemellee

Jul 15, 2024 • 5 min read

catching my 2nd wind of raving in my life

Disclaimer: Some of the links below may be affiliate links which I will earn a small commission if you click and purchase from them.

Way back in 2013, fresh out of college, I was listening to a lot of EDM as well as attending a couple of music shows and festivals.

Everyone was twerking. Everyone had some Clarity. Everyone was looking for and poppin Molly. It was quite a time to be in your 20’s and immersing yourself into rave culture.

With revealing but eclectic outfits, putting on your best white sneakers to shuffle around, and exchanging colorful beaded bracelets to share PLUR (Peace Love Unity Respect) with other people, the rave community is actually one of the friendliest and happiest bunch of people that I’ve ever been a part of.

had to scroll down deep into 2013 for this pics 😭

Fast forward to the present time, I’m 10 years older, unfortunately still broke, but my love for EDM was reignited thanks to a friend who recently joined the scene. She even encouraged me to get into shuffling, so that pushed me to make new friends in Chicago especially since they’re big on House music.

While I haven’t attended a lot of festivals since I got back into it last year, I wanted to finally have "proper" rave outfits. However, since I am still paying down a crap-ton of credit card debt, I have to be mindful on how much I'm spending, so here's how I do it.

check the clearance or sale section first

When I was searching for my first rave outfit, I didn't think of a theme or a specific outfit in mind. I’m all about finding what’s on sale and then looking for other matching items on sale.

Luckily, this rainbow reflective top and bikini bottom was on sale when I found them on iheartraves, so I was satisfied with this look.

However, when I tried it on at a friend’s house, she said in a very mom voice, “Where’s the rest of it?” 😂

Reflective underboob top

iheartraves // Reflective underboob top
Purchased price: $27.71

Reflective bikini bottom

iheartraves // bottom
Purchased price: $25.87

Reflective leg straps

iheartraves // leg straps
Purchased price: $14.95

(This order is old, so I don't know what the original prices were)
Total: $68.53

get creative in adding versatile items to your outfit

With her comment being said, I then searched for something that could “cover-up” the look without taking away the whole reflective look. As I typed in “rave outfits” on Amazon, I was able to find a mesh shrug and a skirt that actually adds more personality to the current look.

Mesh shrug

Amazon // Mesh Shrug
Purchased price: $16.99

Mesh skirt

Amazon // Skirt
Purchased price: $12.98

Total: $29.97

With all of this together, it will be a grand total of $98.50, right under $100.

add accessories & swap different pieces to create a new look

While I love the outfit that I have put together, I actually want more coverage for the next festival I'm attending.

For Labor Day weekend, I plan to attend the ARC festival from start to finish. Since it'll be a whole day and night event for me, I just purchased these mesh pants, light-up sneakers, and (surprisingly) a matching fan with the fit!

Mesh pants

Amazon // Mesh Pants
Purchased price: $18.95

Reflective fan and fan holster

Amazon // Reflective fan & holster
Purchased price: $13.99

Light-up sneakers

Amazon // Light-up sneakers
Purchased price: $35.90

Total: $68.84

Sure, I spent more money, but at least it’s not a whole new outfit. With all of these, the grand total would now be $167.34 just under $200.

Now with all the accessories and a few other items, I can mix and match for future shows.

halloween and cosplay outfits work as rave outfits too!

If you don't want to repeat outfits, you can grab an old Halloween costume or cosplay, and that's also an acceptable outfit!

I had my Lilo dress when I went to Disney World for my 34th birthday and in that same year, I wore the dress to Breakaway Festival in Michigan since I wanted to practice with my light-up poi balls.

I'm also counting this but when I went to TwitchCon 2019, I brought my Spider-Gwen suit for the after-party when Blink-182, Madeon, and Logic performed.

Lilo skater dress

HerUniverse // Lilo dress
Original price: $47.88
Purchased price: $39.90

Spider-Gwen suit

Amazon // Spider-Gwen suit
Purchased price: $38.99

create your own party look from your closet

Even though there’s a lot more outfits I would love to implement in my rave closet, I’m totally satisfied with looking through what I wear on a every day basis and wearing an “acceptable” rave/party look.

bodysuits or a bucket hat works just fine 😂