Packing And Preparing For Burning Man Is An Absolute Mission, I’ll Tell You That For Free.

Packing for Burning Man is not something you can really rustle together a few days before you head into the desert. If you do? There’s bound to be things you forget and things you then don’t have time to source. ..You’re going to need to make Amazon orders and store pick ups alongside both Walmart and Costco outings for this one….

Burning Man is the real deal. Burning Man is the festival of all festivals but as the commandments state, this “festival” is all about radical self-reliance, i.e. you have to rely on yourself and no one else.

Ok, we shouldn’t use the term ‘festival’. Burning Man is not a festival. Burning Man is a community. A temporary city. A global cultural movement based on on these main 10 principles. (Read our ultimate guide on Burning Man here.)

There is no exchanging of currency.

BASICALLY, the only thing that you can purchase when you get to Black Rock City (the festival location) is ICE.

Ice price at Burning Man 2018 (you will need cash): $4 per bag / block or $24 for 6 bags.

I think that’s all you can buy anyway. I read somewhere that you can buy coffee too, but I never saw it.

So Here’s The Deal….

Aside from the ice pick up, you won’t find a dollar in sight during your time in this pop up city.

You have a week to survive the desert heat, dust, raves and energy zapping activities galore – and you must bring enough to accommodate for all.

Shopping for the latter is rather difficult when you have no idea what your week is going to entail and therefore have no idea what you’ll be wanting.

I guess the mystery surrounding Burning Man was one of the things that attracted me to the ‘playa’ all this time. The mystery, the magic and the fact that until you go – you really don’t know what goes on in this famous playground.

SO now that I have been to Burning Man I’ve got a pretty good idea of what one might need and want…… (yep thats me ☝️, I’m the designer here at Euphoric Threads! excuse the half cut face.) 

Disclaimer: This packing list will vary from person to person depending on how you choose to camp, how much of a desert princess you are and how dirty you’re ready to get.

Here’s Euphoric Threads’ Ultimate Packing And Shopping List For Burning Man:

I’m breaking it down into sections because you’ll probably go crazy otherwise…

The Burning Man Wardrobe

Weather

You are in the middle of the Nevada desert in the summer heat so days are hot (30-38 deg C this year) and nights are usually pretty cold. Friends that had attended the year before emphasised the need to bring ALL THE FUR for the nights, but in 2018 most evenings were super mild, and we luckily only really had two little dust storms during our time at Burning Man.

I actually didn’t use my dust masks or goggles at all and guides I had read made me think I’d wear them 24/7. Saying that, they are a good idea to protect particularly your nose from dust build up. More on that later…

Basically, you have to be prepared for all potential weather here in the desert and it has the potential for anything.

Outfits

Burners go all-out in “expressing their creative spirits” with their costumes.

People adorn extravagant, creative outfits with plenty of colour and embellishments (just what I love!!) .. such as feathers, glitter, beads, POM POMS!!

You will most likely see Burners wearing long golden capes, giant wings, unicorn horns, feathered mohawks, stilts, and bondage, crazy hats, headpieces, head dresses, and wigs galore!…

Basically, the wilder the outfit, the better!

Daytime:

Girls, you’ll pretty much be naked, or half naked at least.

It’s simply about how far you’re comfortable to take it. As the week progresses and you settle into your new home, you’ll be wearing less and less. You’ll soon realise no one cares and that there always someone more naked than you. It’s HOT and we prioritise being comfortable in the desert.

Think Along The Lines Of:

• Multifunctional partywear!!
• Leotards / bikinis / swimming costumes
• Euphoric Threads Surfwear !
• Hotpants, Cycle shorts..
• Floaty long skirts… or WINGS! BE CREATIVE!
• Pasties (nipple covers)
• Jewelled crops / bralets
• Shoulder chains / feathers
• Flipflops (for pottering around camp in the day)
• Glitter / face and body jewels
• Wigs – (Yes it gets hot but its not as bad as you think!)
• Fancy Dress – Why not choose your spirit animal and rock it …..

Must Haves For The Day:

• Hydration bladder
• Sunglasses (bring a selection, you’ll probably end up losing a pair)
• A vacuum insulated bottle
• A BIKE. YOU CANNOT DO BURNING MAN WITHOUT A BIKE. (Bike lock too)
• An awesome quality pair of boots (you’ll be doing a lot of dancing and walking, it’s worth the investment otherwise… hello blisters. I wore my Doc Martins pretty much the entire week.

Nighttime:

• Anything glow-in-the-dark, LED !!
• Jumpsuits, Catsuits,
• Awesome leggings
• Netted dresses
• Leotards

(Basically daytime clothes with the addition of layers depending on the temperature)

• Faux fur coats
• Kimonos (Email me for a custom fur collared SEQUIN Kimono!! Euphoric Threads do custom orders for Burning Man!)
• LED lights (these are perfect, Amazon all the way)
• Glitter / face and body jewels

Must Haves For The Evening:

• Hydration bladder – shop here
• LED lights (these are perfect, Amazon all the way)
• A BIKE. YOU CANNOT DO BURNING MAN WITHOUT A BIKE (bike lock too)
• More LED lights for your bike (You can literally never have enough LED lights)

Note – You should never go out at night without lighting yourself and your bike up.

Tips For Outfits:

• Clothes with LED lighting can be pretty expensive. If you want some but need to stay in budget, we added some LED’s to our jackets and faux fur coats with safety pins, easy! (…OR to save time when your drunk, just wrap a tonne of fairy lights around you like I did … CLASSY LAURA, looking like a travelling christmas tree!)

• Definitely handmake accessories to save money OR get someone (Euphoric Threads!) to handmake some unique accessories for you … Burning Man hats and goggles sold online are super expensive, so I would be happy to sort you some unique custom-made items for a reasonable price.

• Use Ziplock bags to separate things (under wear, leotards, jewellery), keep them fresh and away from dust
• There’s a thing called ‘TUTU tuesdays’ at Burning Man so if you want to get involved – pack your tutu! (TuTus also double up as wacky necklaces)

 

• You may want to grab a couple of big tubs from Walmart for $3 keep your bits separate and stored efficiently if you are camping or don’t have the space.
• I also bought a pair of sculpting black hot pants from Primark for £2 and ended up living in them. They were the best comfy daytime option that transferred to a great evening option with some sparkles or rainbow madness on top:

Recommended Shops For Awesome Outfit Sourcing:

• Euphoric Threads – why of course! Email me! (Laura) – I can honestly custom make you anything your heart desires with our signature tropical prints – or other fabrics of your choice!!
• Dollskill – is AWESOME for a mix of global independent designers and crazy festival rave gear.
• Amazon – SHOP HERE
• ASOS – SHOP HERE
• Wild Thing –  SHOP HERE
• Ebay
• Goodwill (second hand stores located all over the US)
• Haight Street (If you make a pit stop or come from San Francisco, which most people do, head to Haight Street. It’s literally got everything you could possibly need for Burning Man in one single street.)
• In Reno – Check out Chocolate Walrus – there are a few shops off the main street (not hard to miss Reno is quite small) – these main costume shops stock all kinds of crazy outfits, fancy dress and rave gear. Check out these nipple pasties!! ….

Tip – About 40 minutes before you get to the playa there are some clever bunnies that have set up roadside stalls and are selling everything you’ve probably forgotten plus extra costumes. They aren’t actually too badly priced and yeah, this will be your last option to buy anything before you enter the burn!

The Big Food Shop

Food purchases depend on whether you have a generator for running a fridge, whether you have a freezer or whether you’re camping with cool boxes. So I won’t this list is just a rough idea.. and what I vaguely remember taking. Baring in mind we had a RV with a microwave, oven, fridge … THE DREAM!

Possibilities are honestly endless if you take a gas stove, generator, camper van or RV.

Here’s roughly what we bought (from Costco/Walmart for a group of 6 people crashing in a campervan!) :

• SHIT LOAD of CRISPS, mainly family sized DORITOS X10
• Crisps and Dips – (My staple diet) We bought giant tubs of Salsa.
• Hummus
• Wraps, wraps and more wraps!
• Microwave meals, family sized lasagnes etc
• Quick easy meals like rice dices … more microwave meals!
• Beef Jerky (gross! – but the boys went wild for it)
• CHEESE! Lots of it.
• Mac n’ Cheese sachets (lots of them!)
• 4 x guacamole tubs
• Tubs of Peanut Butter
• Wraps
• Watermelon
• Ice lollies
• Pizzas
• NOODLES! / RAMEN
• Frozen berries (amazing for frozen smoothies in the morning … we brought a blender!)
• Cookies, Oreos etc
• Muesli nutty mix
• Almond milk
• Miso soup sachets (just mix with hot water) – got them in bulk at Costco
• Popcorn
• Berry and protein smoothie sachets
• Protein bars and snacks
• Fresh food for first few days (lettuce, tomatoes, salad bits)
• Fresh fruit for first few days … Like juicy juicy PEACHES
• Reusable water bottle
• Bin bags
• Allllll the booze, mixers, and I remember we got giant bottles at CostCo or pre mixed cocktails.
• Beers
• Bread
• Doughnuts
• Sweets (journey sweets and nibbles for the kiddies! aka me!)

What I actually lived off:

• Crisps and Dips … mostly for breakfast, lunch, dinner
• Occasionally Muesli with almond milk, nuts, smoothies
• Macaroni cheese .. the microwave sachets
• Berocca / Hydralyte … 1 a day to keep the doctor away
• Pizza …. and yeh, that was it! Terrible I know. (I also mostly lived off Quesadillas and Bloody Marys from a lovely camp, I can’t remember where!)

Other great ideas for no onsite cooking:

• pre cook chicken and vegetables at home and pop into a Ziplock bag with pita / wraps
• pre made frozen burritos
• sliced meats and cheeses
• Noka smoothies (only available to order on Amazon US here)

Liquids

• WATER – aim to 1.5 gallons each per day. You don’t want to run out!!!
• Coconut water (amazing for hydration)
• Energy shots (amazing for… energy!)
• Chosen alcohol spirits … (Note – I didn’t drink half as much alchohol as I normally do at UK festivals, bare it in mind you won’t need as much as you think … BUT if you have an RV Campervan … stock it right up!)
• Mixers of your choice

Tip: Pick up your water in Reno on the drive through. Less weight to carry.

Housing, Comfort And Getting Around

The Main Choices You Have For Desert ‘Accommodation’ Are:

• A tent (hardest option, unless you have a fan or a generator to run A/C through)
• Hexayurt (these are awesome but take a couple of days to prep before you get to the desert)
• RV (ultimate luxury)
• UHaul it (US removal vans! etc etc)

If you’re camping / yurting you’ll need:

• Mattresses
• Duvet and pillows
• Sheets

Useful last minute things I bought at Walmart:

• Hanging mirror
• Hanging camping wardrobe – to slot shoes or outfits in (I did’t have a proper bedroom in our RV, my bed was above the drivers seat so I had to make do with a make-shift hanging wardrobe).
• Bike basket? – optional
• Artificial flowers – to decorate my bike with
• Cable Ties
• Batteries
• LED fairy lights – to adorn / for my bike

Tip – Bring any other leftover creative materials like FAUX FUR scraps .. to decorate your bike with … for the purposes of recognising and spotting your bike in the mass of other bikes when its parked up on the playa….

Getting Around:

• A BIKE. YOU CANNOT DO BURNING MAN WITHOUT A BIKE.

You can pick one up at Walmart for as little at $78 I believe.

Tip: If you can, get a tricycle where you can put a cool box on the back for daytime explorations. When you’re in the desert and dancing you’ll be gagging for anything cold. Having a toolbox of beers and drinks is the ONE. Next time.

For Comfort, Also Consider…

• Spray bottle / mister

This will change your entire life, I made BBF’s with anyone that had one. I wouldn’t go without one again.

• Shade structure.

Seriously. Create shade. Noone likes hangovers in the desert heat.

• Big mirror

To check up on your awesome outfits, apply glitter and generally check you’re alive. Obviously.

• Outdoor chairs

To chill on in the day, to use while you eat or are pre-gaming.

• Foldable table

To raise food / clothes / cooking equipment off of the floor if you don’t have an RV etc.

• Cultery, cooking utensils etc.

Tip: Costco stocks lots of cheap pillows, mattresses, sleeping bags and cushions. Walmart has all your camping essentials.

Toiletries / Beauty

• Medical kit including: (vitamin c sachets popular in the US), electrolyte drinks and packets, blister plasters, lip balm with SPF, advil / paracetamol, alka seltza, valium)
• party recovery vitamins (berocca, vitamin mix, 5 HTP)
• baby wipes, face wipes
• tangle teaser, shampoo, conditioner, dry shampoo, hair oil
• tarpaulin for shower, stop mud pond
• nose filter
• tissues
• toilet roll
• eye mask (you’ll be trying to sleep in the day after an all night party at least one day trust me)
• face cleanser and body moisturiser
• eye drops
• quick dry towel (even if you don’t have a shower, you can pour water on yourself)
• hair clips / Invisi-bobble hair ties etc .. (if you need it!)
• chewing gum
• hand sanitiser
• toothbrush
• toothpaste
• floss
• deodrant
• ear buds
• sun cream …. ETC … of course all your standard toiletries

My Top Tips:

The fine white playa dust will get EVERYWHERE… up your nose, in your hair and everywhere on your body.

• Nose spray – Your nose is likely to dry, bleed and block unless you take nose plugs or wear a dust mast. You kinda embrace it though. Keep tissues on hand for nose bleeds and vaseline to soothe it.
• Coconut oil – For your hair (even if you don’t wash it for a week) won’t get that greasy. The playa dust kind of acts like a dry shampoo and does wonders for your hair volume and styling. Don’t stay on top of it though and it will begin to matt and dread. Coconut oil also works wonders for your skin, I would literally cake myself in it.
• HATS! See above for Euphoric Threads custom made hat options. I lived in my customised military hat. Hid the greasy mop well and protected my head and eyes from the desert sun.

Euphoric Threads Absolute Burning Man Essentials:

Just don’t go to Burning Man without the following:

• WATER (Duh!)
• A BIKE
• Hydration bladder – shop here or refillable water bottle.
• LED lights

Personal essentials:

• hair oil
• glitter (of course! .. but keep it biodegradable!)
• lip balm
• wet wipes
• Dust mask (I had a Euphoric Threads bandana that I kept around my neck and lifted if there was a sand storm)
• Batteries for lights (usually AA) – shop here
• portable charger  – shop my favourite here
• scissors (cutting things, opening things, adjusting outfits)

Other:

• Essential oils and a diffuser – ( WOW – life changing in our RV ! Trust)
• spare tyres / bike pump (your bike is so essential you do not want to be without it)
• disposable camera (keeps the mystery of photos a treat for when you’re home, no battery issues and easy to carry)
• cable ties
• bike lock

Well that’s a wrap! I think that’s everything! If I think of something I missed, I’ll add it in.

Check out our complete guide to Burning Man here. 

Read more about my Burning Man experience with Euphoric Threads here with answers to your FAQ.

Big love to all you burners heading to Burning Man this year.

Make sure to get in touch if you want some custom made Euphoric Threads festival outfits!

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Happy burn! x