For a lot of Mancs, Parklife is the biggest weekend – and the liveliest party – of the entire year, and it’s one that requires you to pull out all the fashion stops.
It’s a chance to get dressed up to the nines, unwind in the sunshine (or rain), see some incredible live music and dance until your feet ache.
Many people heading to the festival spend hours and even days getting ready, and as the years have gone on, the fashions on site have become more and more bold and colourful.
The trends have moved on a long way from the days of denim shorts and band tees.
Now you’re more likely to catch people walking around in neon bikinis, colourful flares, and sparkling mini dresses.
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Though we can’t imagine we’ll ever lose the sea of bucket hats from this very Manc event…
Here are some of our favourite looks and fashion trends we’ve seen at Parklife 2023.
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Bright colours
Look, if you can’t wear your neon patterned unitard at Parklife, where can you!?
It always seems like the perfect weekend to embrace all things neon, from the hot pink one-pieces to neon socks to even bright orange combat boots.
We’re particularly loving all the thrifted finds this year.
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Novelty hats
How to make sure you can find your mates in a crowd 101 – make them all wear the same novelty hat.
We’ve spotted a lot of great headwear walking around Heaton Park this weekend, but this little army of matching sombreros is pretty special.
And how could we forget those golden arches cowboy hats…?
Bikini tops
It’s a festival trend as old as time – colourful bikini tops chucked on with the rest of your festival ‘fit.
We’ve loved seeing so much colour and creative combos walking around Heaton Park all weekend.
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And I bet these came in handy when everyone got soaked through this afternoon…
Ponchos and other improvised waterproofs
Nothing takes the shine off your festival outfit quite like a torrential downpour, and we got hit HARD by rain on Sunday afternoon.
The storm that saw the festival momentarily halted due to lightning risks gave Parklife-goers a thorough soaking, with some hastily adjusted outfits appearing to try and stay dry.
From bin bags ripped in to ponchos, to broken umbrellas held overhead like a blanket, to a cardboard box on a head, Mancs thought of everything.
This guy…
Did we ask this man to strip off? No. Could we stop him? Also no.
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But what better way to embody the free spirit of a festival than by stripping down to your kecks?!
We loved his original 90s-printed cycle shorts almost as much as we loved his shiny purple briefs, to be honest.
Clashing prints and bold accessories
We’ve found them – the two coolest people at Parklife 2023.
While you spend a lot of the day playing spot-the-difference with the waves of outfits purchased from Shein or PLT, this pair really stood out from the crowd with their colourful choice of accessories.
10/10, no amends.
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Pink EVERYTHING
The pink fluffy cowboy hat is now a festival and summer gig staple – you see droves of them heading into gigs like Harry Styles and Beyonce every summer.
We’re really enjoying how much the Parklife crew have embraced the matching pink outfits though, with this lot all marching around in top-to-toe pink ‘fits.
Stunning huns.
Cargo pants
This has been the year where teeny tiny shorts have started to be phased out in favour of proper utility wear.
Sturdy, comfortable, and seriously stylish when paired with crop tops and bold colours, there’s been masses of cargo shorts walking around Parklife this year.
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Matchy-matchy with your bestie
For a lot of Parklife-goers, getting ready is part of the fun with it. You crack open a drink, slap on your makeup, make TikToks and compare outfits.
So we’ve loved seeing all the coordinated outfits friends have been rocking this year.
Hoardings spotted as Uniqlo prepares to open second Manchester store inside Trafford Centre
Emily Sergeant
Hoardings have officially been spotted, as Uniqlo prepares to open its second store in Greater Manchester.
The popular Japanese high street fashion retailer currently operates 24 stores in the UK, with its first British store having opened its doors all the way back in 2001, and its first European flagship store opening on Oxford Street in London in 2007 – but now, Manchester is about to get a second helping later this year.
Uniqlo has announced that it will be opening its second Greater Manchester inside the Trafford Centre, following the huge success of its city centre store opening on Market Street in 2019.
The Trafford Centre store makes Manchester the first location outside of London to have two Uniqlo stores.
Uniqlo prepares to open second its Manchester store inside the Trafford Centre / Credit: Trafford Centre (via Facebook) | The Manc Group
Shoppers at the Trafford Centre this week have spotted that hoardings for the new store – which is taking over the old Ted Baker store following its closure in April 2024 – have officially gone up, and it’s fair to say, they seem pretty excited about it.
“Uniqlo in Trafford Centre would be a dream come true,” another person said on Instagram, while a third added: “I will never have to step foot on Market Street again,” and plenty others chimed in with comments like “finally” and “can’t wait”.
Uniqlo’s arrival at the Trafford Centre follows the opening of several other high-profile stores in recent months, like Urban Outfitters, White Company, Stradivarius, and many more.
While no official timeline or dates for Uniqlo’s new Trafford Centre store have been announced, fashion business news outlet Drapers has reported that it’s set to open during the autumn/winter period.
Featured Image – The Manc Group
Style
Manchester City release new ‘The Decade Collection’ celebrating 10 years of Pep Guardiola
Danny Jones
Manchester City and PUMA have just released a new clothing line celebrating 10 seasons of Pep Guardiolaat the club.
Simply entitled ‘The Decade Collection’, the new PUMA range revolves entirely around Pep as he marks his 10th anniversary in charge of the Blues, focusing on minimalistic style.
Guardiola has always been a trendy bloke, often being highlighted for his fashion choices on the touchline – even some of the questionable ones…
But with a much plainer approach this time around, the Pep clothing collab
Debuting the lifestyle drop on Wednesday, 15 April, Man City wrote on social media, “Ten seasons on the touchline. Ten seasons of setting the standard.
“Introducing the Puma Football Decade Collection with the Pep Team – celebrating Pep’s ten seasons as our manager and inspired by memorable moments from his tenure at the Club.”
While it’s unclear how much (if any) of these new clothes the Catalan coach has helped design or had influence on, but given its exclusive nature, you can expect it to sell out pretty quickly.
They go on to add: “Created to honour a defining chapter that reshaped the club’s modern identity, this exclusive collection is available in limited quantities.
Starting at £30 for the cheapest item – a ‘P’ logo baseball cap – the most expensive part of the collection clocks in at £110: his special anniversary edition ‘Majesty Low Decade’ PUMA trainers.
You can see some more examples of what we’ve already seen him wearing, and what we’ll no doubt see him in pitchside very soon, down below.
Obviously, City has plenty of other brand partnerships when it comes to both official sports apparel and more casual clothing, many of which we’ve already seen the 55-year-old football manager wear, but you can almost guarantee he’ll be donning them for the coming fixtures.
You can see Man City x PUMA x Pep Guardiola ‘Decade Collection’ in full HERE.
Speaking of which, up next for Pep and co is what could prove to be THE big twist in this year’s Premier League campaign, with his squad of serial winners taking on league leaders Arsenal at home.
Not only did the Gunners’ surprise loss to Bournemouth last weekend help City close the gap on the top spot, but with them refinding their form ahead of hosting the title hopefuls at the Etihad Stadium, it all looks to be shifting back in their favour at the moment.
With seven games left, and one in hand compared to Arsenal, do you see them beating Mikel Arteta’s side to another trophy?